Nanny Taxes in Oregon

Household employers must comply with tax, wage, and labor laws affecting nannies, in-home senior caregivers, and other household employees. While federal laws cover employers in all states, there are also state- and city-specific regulations that employers must follow. Here’s what you need to know about nanny taxes in Oregon.

Oregon Minimum Wage

Household employees must be paid at least the highest of the federal, state, or applicable local minimum wage rates. There are three different minimum wage rates in Oregon:

Portland Metro: $15.45/hour

Standard: $14.20/hour

Non-urban counties: $13.20/hour

To determine which rate applies to your county, visit the Oregon Minimum Wage Rate Summary.

Overtime

Household employees in Oregon are required to be paid at least time and a half for hours worked over 40 in a seven-day workweek. They must be given at least 24 consecutive hours of rest each calendar week. If the employee agrees to work on their day of rest, they must be paid overtime for each hour they work that day. Overtime compensation is required for live-in employees if they work more than 44 hours in a workweek.

Domestic Workers’ Protection Act

Under Oregon’s Domestic Workers’ Protection Act, household employees:

• Receive at least 24 consecutive hours of rest each work week; if they work on their day off, they must receive overtime pay for each hour worked.
• Get at least eight hours of time off during a 24-hour period if they are a live-in employee and be provided a space with adequate conditions for uninterrupted sleep.
• Receive overtime pay of at least time-and-a-half for hours worked over 40 hours in a week or 44 hours for live-in employees.
• Get at least three personal leave days each year if they have worked an average of at least 30 hours per week during the previous year.
• Have the right to cook their own food in the home, subject to reasonable restrictions based on the religious or health needs of the home’s residents.
• Enjoy protections under state laws regarding sexual harassment or harassment based on gender, race, national origin, religion, disability, or sexual orientation.

The law doesn’t cover in-home caregivers for seniors and persons with disabilities, occasional babysitters, independent contractors, or the employer’s parent, spouse, or child under 26 years old.

Learn more about Oregon’s Domestic Workers’ Protection Act.

Oregon State Unemployment Tax & Rate

The new employer SUI (state unemployment insurance) rate in Oregon is 2.4% on each employee’s first $52,800 of wages. Employers with previous employees may be subject to a different rate. This is an employer-only tax.

Paid Leave Oregon

Contributions to the Paid Leave Oregon program are a payroll tax of 1% of employee wages, up to the social security wage index per employee ($168,600 in 2024), split between the employer (40%) and employee (60%).

Household employers with fewer than 25 workers are exempt from employer contributions to the program. However, employees are still required to contribute their share. For example, if an employee’s paycheck totals $1,000, they would pay $6 as their portion of the contribution for that paycheck. Employers should deduct their workers’ paid leave contributions from paychecks, then report wages and submit the employee contributions with their payroll reports.

Employees can receive 12 weeks of paid leave in a 52-week time and may be able to take an additional two weeks if they are pregnant, have given birth in the past year, or have health needs because of childbirth.

Paid Leave Oregon covers three kinds of leave: Family, medical, and safe leave.

Family leave

• To care for a family member with a serious illness or injury
• To bond with a child in the first year:
  • After birth
  • After adoption
  • After placement in your home through foster care

Medical leave

• To care for yourself when you have a serious illness or injury

Safe leave

• For survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence, harassment, bias crimes, or stalking

Beginning January 1, 2025, employees may also take leave for the legal process for placing a foster child or adoption of a child.

Employees’ pay while on leave will depend on their earnings. Some employees may receive 100% wage replacement.

Learn more about Paid Leave Oregon as a small employer.

Download a Model Notice Poster.

Oregon Sick Time

Oregon law gives all workers – including household employees – sick time. For household workers, this sick time will likely be unpaid. Sick time is paid if an employer has ten or more employees (six or more if they are located in Portland). The law applies to both full- and part-time workers.

Household employees can use sick time when they or a family member is sick, injured, experiencing mental illness, or need to visit the doctor. Other reasons to use sick time include caring for an infant or newly adopted child under 18 years of age; caring for a newly placed foster child under 18 years of age; absences associated with the death of a family member; absences related to domestic violence, harassment, sexual assault or stalking; and in the event of a public health emergency. More details on qualified reasons for sick time.

They receive at least one hour of protected sick time for every 30 hours they work up to 40 hours per year. A household employer can choose to frontload at least 40 hours of sick time at the beginning of the year.

A household employee begins accruing sick time when they begin work and can take sick time after working for a family for at least 90 days.

Household employers must let their workers know how much sick time they have accrued at least once every four months.

Learn more about Oregon Sick Time.

Workers’ Compensation Insurance

Household employers in Oregon are not required to have workers’ compensation coverage for full- or part-time employees. However, you can choose a voluntary policy to protect you and your employees. Get a quote on workers’ compensation insurance.

Helpful Links for Nanny Taxes in Oregon

Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries

Oregon Department of Revenue

Oregon’s Domestic Workers’ Protection Act

Federal Regulations

All household employers need to follow certain federal regulations including:

Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) Classification Guidelines

• Household workers are considered employees and not independent contractors. Learn more about misclassifying employees as independent contractors.
• Household workers are also non-exempt employees, which means they receive overtime pay of at least time-and-a-half for hours worked over 40 per workweek. Learn more about overtime pay.

FICA Taxes

Social Security and Medicare taxes are commonly referred to as FICA taxes. If you pay cash wages of $2,700 or more to any household employee in 2024 (or will pay a domestic worker $2,800 or more in 2025), you must withhold and pay FICA taxes. FICA taxes are 15.3 percent of cash wages. As an employer, you pay 7.65 percent (6.2 percent for Social Security and 1.45 percent for Medicare). Your employee's share is also 7.65 percent, which you can withhold from their wages or choose to pay yourself. You don't withhold or owe FICA taxes on wages you pay to your spouse, child under the age of 21, parent, or any employee under 18 at any time during the calendar year.

Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)

If you pay a household employee total cash wages of $1,000 or more in any calendar quarter, you'll owe federal unemployment tax. This is an employer-only tax. FUTA is six percent of cash wages on the first $7,000 you pay an employee.

Mileage Reimbursement

If your employee uses their own car in the course of their work, you can reimburse them for mileage. For 2024, the IRS has set the optional standard mileage rate at 67 cents per mile driven. This rate increases to 70 cents per mile on January 1, 2025. Paying mileage is not mandatory or you can reimburse your employee at a different rate. However, if the cost of mileage causes your employee to fall below minimum wage, then you need to reimburse them for mileage.

GTM Can Help with Nanny Taxes in Oregon

Call (800) 929-9213 for a free, no-obligation consultation with a household employment expert. We’ll answer all your questions and show you how to comply with wage, tax, and labor laws as a household employer. Or, if you’re ready to have GTM Payroll Services handle it all for you, get started with our nanny payroll and tax service.

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