Hiring a Foreign Nanny or Other Employee

Since nearly one-quarter of the household industry’s employees are noncitizens, immigration is a very real consideration for hiring household help. Hiring a foreign nanny (or other household employee) is a complex process that involves a number of government agencies—the U.S. Departments of Labor, State, and Homeland Security.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor Employment & Training Administration (DOLETA), qualifying criteria for hiring a foreign worker include the following:

• The foreign worker must be hired as a full-time employee.
• The employer must have a bona fide job opening.
• Job requirements cannot be tailored to the foreign worker’s qualifications, but must follow what is customarily required for the job within the United States.
• The employer must pay at least the prevailing wage for the job in the location of the anticipated job.

There is no such thing as a general work permit under U.S. law. Work authorization for aliens is always connected to the visa status that they hold in the U.S. The following three classes of aliens allowed to work in the United States are:

1. aliens authorized to work per their immigration status, such as green card holders;
2. aliens permitted to work for a specific employer per their immigration/visa status;
3. aliens who must first apply for and obtain permission from the U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services to accept employment within the United States.

To ensure you are hiring a foreign worker legally, use the checklist below as a guide:

• Confirm their employment eligibility status by completing Form I-9 and checking work authorization documents.
• Verify Social Security Number and its validity for employment.
• Verify valid Driver’s License.
• Know and abide by federal, state, and local employment and labor laws.
• Know thoroughly the noncitizen’s visa or green card status and all the conditions related to it.
• Be sure that the employee meets the USCIS’s requirements for their status.
• Be aware of discrimination issues related to nationality and immigration status.
• Consult with an immigration attorney if there are any specific issues that need to be attended to.

Please contact GTM’s Household Employment Experts at (888) 432-7972 with any questions you may have.

This information was reviewed by Anastasia Tonello, Managing Partner at Laura Devine Attorneys LLC. For immigration legal services, Ms. Tonello may be contacted at 212.661.5401.