Household Employment Taxes 2022 Checklist
Schedule H reports household employee wages and employment taxes for the 2022 tax year.
Unlike other tax schedules, it requires calculating Social Security and Medicare taxes on domestic worker compensation paid to household employees.
Filers must determine whether cash wages to household employees exceed thresholds requiring Form W-2 preparation and federal employment tax liability. Although Schedule H is integrated with Form 1040, it is the sole reporting mechanism for household employment compliance.
Understanding Schedule H Structure and Purpose
The 2022 Schedule H consists of three main parts plus a signature section. Part I addresses
Social Security, Medicare, and federal income taxes, while Part II covers federal unemployment
(FUTA) tax calculations, and Part III totals all household employment taxes due.
Part IV provides space for your address and signature when filing Schedule H without an accompanying Form 1040. No stimulus reconciliation, shared responsibility payment, or unemployment exclusion provisions apply to Schedule H 2022 because this schedule operates under standard household employment tax rules established before 2021.
Determining Filing Requirements
You must file Schedule H if you answer “yes” to any threshold question on the form. Three
separate conditions trigger filing requirements for household employers
- Schedule H filing is required if cash wages of $2,400 or more were paid to any single
household employee during 2022, which meets the threshold for Social Security and
Medicare tax liability.
- Filing is also required when federal income tax was withheld from a household
employee’s wages at any point during the year, even if the total compensation paid was less than the Social Security and Medicare wage threshold.
- In addition, household employers must file Schedule H if total cash wages paid to all
household employees reached $1,000 or more in any calendar quarter of 2021 or 2022, triggering federal unemployment (FUTA) tax obligations.
Cash wages include payments by check, money order, or electronic transfer to household workers. They exclude the value of food, lodging, clothing, or other noncash items you provide, but cash given to replace these items counts as cash wages subject to tax.
Gathering Required Documentation
Collect household employee names, addresses, Social Security numbers, and dates of birth before beginning Schedule H preparation. Verify total wages paid to each employee during
2022, separating cash wages from noncash compensation.
Obtain copies of any Form W-2 documents you issued to household workers. Calculate total annual wages per employee before proceeding with Schedule H tax calculations to ensure accuracy and compliance with reporting requirements.
Completing Tax Calculations
Calculate Social Security and Medicare tax liability in Part I using 2022 rates and wage bases specified in the instructions. The Social Security tax rate is 12.4 percent combined for employer and employee shares, with a wage base limit of $147,000 per employee, while Medicare tax applies at 2.9 percent combined with no wage base limit.
Additional Medicare Tax withholding of 0.9 percent applies to employee wages exceeding
$200,000, affecting only the employee share. Federal income tax withholding appears in Part I only if you elected to withhold or the employee requested withholding through a completed Form
W-4.
Federal unemployment tax calculations appear in Part II when quarterly wages meet the $1,000 threshold. In general, the FUTA tax rate is 0.6 percent on the first $7,000 of cash wages paid to each household employee annually. However, credit reduction states may require additional federal unemployment tax payments based on state-specific circumstances.
Preparing and Filing Form W-2
You must file Form W-2 for each household employee who received $2,400 or more in cash wages subject to Social Security and Medicare taxes during 2022. File Form W-2 even when wages fall below this threshold if you withheld federal income tax from the employee’s compensation.
Leave boxes 3, 4, 5, and 6 blank when wages are not subject to Social Security and Medicare taxes. The Social Security Administration will reject Form W-2 submissions showing Social
Security and Medicare information for wages below the $2,400 threshold established for household employment.
Distributing Form W-2 Copies
Give employees Copies B, C, and 2 of Form W-2 by January 31, 2023, for their tax filing and record retention purposes. Send Copy A of Form W-2 with Form W-3 to the Social Security
Administration by the same deadline to report employee wages and withholding.
Retain Copy D for your records per IRS Publication 926 recordkeeping rules. Do not attach
Copy B to Schedule H because employees receive this copy for filing with their federal income tax returns.
Filing Schedule H With Your Tax Return
Attach Schedule H to your 2022 Form 1040, Form 1040-SR, Form 1040-NR, Form 1040-SS, or
Form 1041 before mailing to the address shown in your tax return instructions. Include your daytime phone number on the form, and mail your return by April 18, 2023, unless you receive an extension.
Extensions of time to file your return extend the Schedule H filing deadline accordingly. Fiscal year filers must file Schedule H by their fiscal year return due date, including extensions, while calendar year taxpayers with no household employees for 2022 need not file Schedule H for that year.
Filing Schedule H Without Form 1040
File Schedule H by itself if you are not required to file a 2022 tax return but paid wages meeting
Schedule H thresholds during the year. Complete Schedule H and mail it with your payment by
April 18, 2023, to the appropriate IRS address for standalone Schedule H submissions.
Make checks or money orders payable to the United States Treasury. Write your name, address, Social Security number, daytime phone number, and “2022 Schedule H” on your payment, but do not send cash with your filing.
Tax-exempt household employers who do not file returns may also file Schedule H independently. Churches that pay household workers to care for a minister’s home represent one example of tax-exempt employers using this filing method.
Employer Identification Numbers
You need an Employer Identification Number to file Schedule H when you have household employees subject to federal employment taxes. Apply online at IRS.gov/EIN for immediate processing, or apply by faxing or mailing Form SS-4 to the IRS for standard processing timelines.
Do not substitute your Social Security number for an EIN on Schedule H filings. Internet applications provide immediate results, while fax applications generally process within four business days, and mail applications take approximately four weeks for IRS processing and response.
State Employment Tax Obligations
Schedule H covers federal taxes only and does not satisfy state filing requirements for household employers. Contact your state unemployment tax agency to determine whether you must pay state unemployment contributions for 2022 based on your state’s specific wage thresholds and registration requirements.
Find out if you need to pay or collect other state employment taxes or carry workers’ compensation insurance for household workers. State obligations operate separately from federal Schedule H requirements, and compliance with federal filing does not eliminate state-level reporting or payment responsibilities.
Important Filing Limitations
Schedule H cannot be filed alone when you are required to file Form 1040 or another income tax return for the year. The form must accompany your income tax return or qualify for independent filing under specific exceptions outlined in the Schedule H instructions.
Government agencies or third-party agents reporting and paying employment taxes on your behalf eliminate your Schedule H filing requirement for those wages. If an authorized agent under section 3504 handles all federal employment tax reporting and payment, you do not need to file Schedule H for wages covered by that arrangement.
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