Household Employer Resource Center

If you pay one household worker at or above the annual federal FICA threshold, Social Security and Medicare generally apply unless a family-employee exemption does. FUTA uses a separate household-wide quarterly test, and state obligations can start at different thresholds. When required, the W-2 is due by January 31 of the following year or the next business day.

This resource center collects everything you need in one place: a free calculator that runs the math for any state, line-by-line guides for the forms (Schedule H, W-2, state withholding returns), and per-state breakdowns of rates, thresholds, and deadlines. The cheat sheet PDF distills the most-used numbers into a single page you can keep next to your records.

Every guide is reviewed against the current IRS Publication 926, state agency websites, and Social Security Administration cost-of-living announcements. Tax rates and wage bases change each year; we update the resources as the IRS, SSA, and state agencies publish new figures.