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The home nanny
In their quest for a form of care for their young child, many parents opt for the home nanny. A priori more expensive than the nursery or the approved nursery assistant, this solution nevertheless has certain advantages. In particular, the nanny works at the family home.
What is a home nanny?
Like the approved nursery assistant, the crèche or the au pair, the home nanny is one of the forms of childcare for young children. It does not necessarily have a diploma, accreditation or training. The nanny is recruited by the parents after a job interview. It is then bound by an employment contract, the parents de facto become private employers.
The nanny at home looks after the children under the conditions provided for in the contract – hours, holidays, remuneration… The contract can specify the rules of discipline imposed by the parents – no television, no sweets between meals… – and the specific missions of the nanny – accompanying the children to activities, taking them to the pediatrician, etc. Parents can also agree with their home employee that she will perform certain household tasks – cleaning, ironing, shopping, etc.
Unlike most other types of childcare, the nanny works in the family home.
Advantages and disadvantages of the home nanny
Some parents employ a home nanny by choice, others by default. In fact, faced with the problems specific to large cities – a shortage of approved childminders and a limited number of crèche places – the nanny remains the most available form of childcare. If her remuneration represents a heavy budget for families, this home worker has many advantages.
The advantages of the home nanny | The disadvantages of the home nanny |
Home care:
| Insofar as the nanny works at the parents’ home, the latter must be able to trust her blindly. To be feared: deterioration of the premises, theft … |
Children are small. The nanny can pay more attention to them, and the environment is calmer. | Unless they are looked after with their brothers and sisters or in the context of shared custody, the child has no playmate and socializes to a lesser extent. |
Parents can set their own rules and organize the nanny’s typical day schedule with the baby on their own. | The nanny is not necessarily an early childhood professional, she is not subject to any control. Anyone can claim to be a nanny, hence the importance of the job interview to properly judge the skills and qualifications of his employee. |
Employers can expect the nanny to adapt to their schedules and work constraints. This flexibility is not always acquired with other types of childcare. | When the home nanny is ill, the parents must provide for her emergency replacement themselves. |
The home employee can perform certain household tasks, if her contract specifies it. | In comparison with other childcare solutions, the cost of a nanny is the highest: at least € 9,98 gross / hour compared to € 2,75 gross / hour / child for the licensed childminder. Fortunately, parents can benefit, under certain conditions, from financial aid from the CAF. |
The nanny can keep a sick baby, unlike most nurseries or childminders who exclude sick children. |
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The remuneration of the home nanny is the same regardless of the number of children to be looked after. This financial aspect is interesting in the context of large families or shared custody. |
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The expenses incurred within the framework of the employment of an employee at home give rise to the right to a tax reduction. |
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Nanny at home: what costs to expect?
The most sensitive point when hiring a home nanny, her remuneration often weighs heavily on the household budget. In addition to his salary, parents have to bear other costs:
- The salary: it is freely negotiated by the employers with their nanny, within the limit of the applicable conventional minima. In 2017, the minimum wage for home care was € 9,98 gross / hour – i.e. € 7,61 net. Within the framework of an employment contract of 40 hours per week, this represents a monthly budget of 1 € gross. Also be careful to take into account the increase in overtime … Note: the home nanny benefits from paid leave, parents must pay her during her vacation.
- Mileage allowances: if the nanny uses her personal vehicle to transport the child as part of her employment contract, the parents pay her an allowance, the amount of which is calculated according to a kilometer scale.
- Transportation costs: if the home nanny uses public transport or a bicycle rental service to get from her own home to that of the employer parents, she will be reimbursed for her expenses up to 50%.
- End-of-contract indemnities: compensation for paid vacation, termination indemnity and notice indemnity if applicable.
Parents must also include in their nanny budget the purchase of diapers, meals and all the necessary equipment for the baby.
Note: benefits in kind can be deducted from the nanny’s monthly remuneration.
Assistance with hiring a home-based nanny
Employer parents have 2 types of assistance for the expenses they incur to pay their nanny:
- The free choice of childcare system (Cmg) supplement: this financial assistance from the CAF Paje system benefits parents subject to means-tested conditions.
- The tax credit: parents can deduct part of their expenses from their income taxes.
To lighten the nanny budget, or to allow the child to have a playmate, many parents choose shared custody. Concretely, this system consists of reuniting two families to employ a single nanny at home. The custody of children is exercised alternately at the home of one and the other, or exclusively with a family.