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Your responsibilities as an employer

Anyone who employs a full-time live-in caregiver under the program is required by federal law to register as an employer with Revenue Canada Taxation. You must make the proper deductions for income tax, employment insurance and Canada Pension Plan and remit these amounts to the proper federal authority.

When you register as an employer, Revenue Canada will provide you with an information kit giving you the necessary forms and showing you how to comply with the law. Remember: you must comply with the law and provide your employee with a Record of Employment when the employee's term with you is over. You will not be able to get the Record of Employment form unless you have registered properly as an employer.

Like all other small business employers in Canada, you must keep written records of your caregiver's employment. Employment standards laws require that records be kept of an employee's earnings or that employees be provided with a statement of earnings with each pay cheque. We strongly encourage all employers to provide a statement of earnings to their caregiver with each pay cheque. The statement should normally show your employee's gross and net pay, specific deductions, the purpose of those deductions, and the total hours worked (including overtime) in that pay period.

You are also required by law to give the employee a T4 form for the previous year by the end of February each year. The T4 form will show your employee's total gross earnings and total deductions for income tax purposes. Your employee will require the T4 to file his or her income tax return for each year. Refer to the information kit provided by Revenue Canada Taxation when you registered as an employer.