Free Nanny Contract Template

A nanny contract sets terms between a family and the person caring for their children. It records hours, pay, duties, and the authority the nanny holds when something goes wrong.

This differs from the trade agreements families usually sign. A nanny works inside the home, alongside the household, and typically as an employee rather than a contractor.

The relationship is also unusually close. Everyone involved wants it to feel warm, which is precisely why the terms need writing down while goodwill is plentiful.

Two areas cause the most trouble. Duties expand quietly into housekeeping, and hours drift later than anyone agreed.

Write it before the first day. A document that arrives after three months of informal arrangements has a much harder job.

Families get this wrong constantly, and the consequences land on both sides.

Why the Label Is Not Enough

Calling somebody self-employed does not make them so. Status turns on the substance of the working relationship rather than what the paperwork says.

What Usually Applies

Most nanny arrangements count as household employment. The family sets the hours, the place, and the way the work happens. Independent contractor treatment rarely fits an ordinary nanny arrangement.

Payroll and Registration

Employing somebody in your home usually brings registration, withholding, and reporting duties. Requirements differ by location and change over time. Confirm the current position rather than copying what a friend did.

Wage and Hour Rules

Minimum wage and overtime rules often reach household employees. Some places also handle live-in arrangements differently. Check what covers your situation before agreeing a rate.

Workers Compensation

Household employers are sometimes required to carry cover, and a home insurance policy may not extend to it. Ask your insurer directly.

Where to Check

An accountant, a payroll service that handles household employment, or your state labor department can confirm all of this. The cost of asking is far below the cost of getting it wrong.

Childcare runs on a family’s schedule, which is exactly why it needs boundaries.

Guaranteed Hours

State the hours you pay for each week, whether or not the family needs them all. Guaranteed hours are standard, and they let somebody plan a life.

Rate and Pay Day

Confirm the gross rate, the pay frequency, and the day money arrives. Agree gross rather than take-home, since deductions change.

Staying Late

Set the rate and the notice for evenings or extra days. An occasional favour works fine, though a pattern of unpaid extra hours does not.

Paid Time Off

Agree holiday, how it accrues, and who chooses the dates. Then say what happens to unused time at the end.

Sickness

Say what happens when the nanny is unwell, and separately when a child is. Families need a fallback plan for both.

When the Family Travels

Confirm whether you pay the nanny when you go away without them, and what applies if they travel with you.

Live-In Accommodation

Where the nanny lives in, describe the room, the facilities, and their private time. Many places restrict deducting the value of accommodation or meals from wages. Check the position before assuming anything.

Write this section generously, since it prevents the most common resentments.

The Children in Their Care

Name each child and their age. A newborn and a school-age child need different things, and the job changes as they grow.

Daily Routine

Sketch the shape of a normal day: naps, meals, school runs, and activities. Then say how much flexibility the nanny has within it.

Household Tasks and Their Limits

List what falls inside the role, such as children’s laundry, tidying their spaces, and preparing their meals. Then say plainly what does not, because this boundary erodes faster than any other.

Discipline and Boundaries

Set out your approach to behaviour and consequences. State explicitly that physical punishment is not permitted, so nobody has to guess.

Screens and Activities

Agree screen limits, outings, and which activities need asking about first.

Food and Allergies

Record what the children eat and anything they must avoid. Allergies belong in writing rather than in a passing conversation.

Visitors

Say whether the nanny may have guests at the house, or take the children to other homes and playdates.

This is the part of a nanny contract that matters most on the worst day.

Checks and References

Verify identity, qualifications, and references yourself rather than accepting copies. Speak to previous families directly, and ask about the ordinary days as well as the good ones.

First Aid Training

Confirm whether the nanny holds current paediatric first aid and CPR training, and who pays to renew it.

Emergency Authority

Give written authority to seek medical treatment when nobody can reach you. Keep a copy with the nanny. Include your contact numbers, a backup contact, the children’s doctor, and any relevant medical history.

Medication

Record any prescribed medicines, doses, and who may administer them. Nothing here should rest on a text message sent that morning.

Driving the Children

Check the licence, confirm your insurance covers them driving, and agree whose vehicle they take. Car seat requirements depend on a child’s age and size, and they vary by location. Confirm what applies, and that every seat fits correctly.

Who May Collect a Child

Keep a written list of people permitted to collect each child. Then agree how the nanny verifies anybody not on it.

Reporting Incidents

Ask for accidents, injuries, and near misses the same day, in writing, however minor they seemed.

A nanny sees a family’s private life, and the family employs somebody in their home. Both facts need handling.

Cameras and Recording

Disclose any cameras in writing before the nanny starts. Many places impose strict rules on recording, especially audio. Covert recording of an employee can be unlawful, so confirm the position where you live.

Confidentiality

Agree that the family’s private information stays private. Keep the wording proportionate rather than borrowing a corporate clause.

Photographs and Social Media

State whether the nanny may photograph the children, and whether anything goes online. Most families say no posting at all, and that is easiest to write down.

Regular Check-Ins

Schedule a short conversation every few months. Small frustrations raised early rarely become resignations.

Notice From Either Side

Set the notice each party gives, and say whether the family may pay in lieu. Somebody leaving a childcare job needs time to find another.

Final Pay and a Reference

Confirm how you settle final pay, unused holiday, and any belongings. Agreeing to provide a factual reference costs nothing and means a great deal.

Hiring a nanny is a working relationship wrapped inside a family’s daily life. A nanny contract template gives both sides something clear to return to.