Taxpayers must file Schedule H with their Form 1040 when they have household employees and meet certain IRS wage or withholding thresholds. A household employee is someone you hire to perform work in or around your home and you control what work is done and how it is done. This generally includes workers such as nannies, babysitters, housekeepers, cleaners, cooks, health aides, yard workers, and similar roles.
You are required to complete Schedule H if you answer Yes to any of the questions on the schedule:
Did you pay any one household employee cash wages of $2,800 or more in 2025?
Did you withhold federal income tax during 2025 for any household employee?
Did you pay total cash wages of $1,000 or more in any calendar quarter of 2024 or 2025 to all household employees?
If any of these conditions apply, Schedule H is required to calculate and report household employment taxes such as Social Security, Medicare, FUTA, and withheld federal income tax. Review IRS Schedule H (Form 1040) for details.
To create Schedule H for Household Employment Taxes in the TaxAct program, follow the steps below.
Online
Dashboard
From within your TaxAct return, click Taxes & Miscellaneous.
On smaller devices, click the menu at the top left corner of your screen, then make your selection.
Click the Additional Tax Payments drop-down.
Click Add beside Household Employment Taxes.
Complete the rest of the interview process.
Classic
From within your TaxAct return, click Federal.
On smaller devices, click the menu at the top left corner of your screen, then make your selection.
Click the Taxes drop-down, then click Taxes for household employees.
Complete the rest of the interview process.
Desktop
From within your TaxAct return, click Federal.
Click the Taxes drop-down, then click Taxes for household employees.