If you employ a domestic worker — a cleaner, gardener, nanny, cook or carer — you are an employer in law, and you must register as a domestic employer with the UIF at the Department of Employment and Labour, declare the employee, and pay contributions. This applies to private households, not only to businesses. The main exclusion is for employees working fewer than 24 hours a month for you.
There is no version of this where being a household rather than a company removes the obligation.
Am I really an employer?
If you pay someone regularly to work in or around your home, yes.
It does not depend on whether you think of yourself as an employer, whether the arrangement is informal, whether you pay in cash, or whether it has been running for fifteen years on a handshake.
The people covered include domestic workers, gardeners, drivers employed by a household, people caring for children, the elderly, the sick or the disabled in a private home, and similar.
The main exclusion is the 24-hours-a-month threshold. Someone working fewer than 24 hours a month for you sits differently. Above that, UIF applies — and someone working one full day a week is above it.
What do I actually have to do?
Four things, and none of them is difficult.
1. Register as a domestic employer with the UIF. This is a specific registration route for households, at the Department of Employment and Labour.
2. Declare the employee, with their details.
3. Pay contributions monthly. The employee contributes a percentage of earnings, you contribute a matching amount, and the total is paid over. Contributions are subject to an earnings ceiling that is adjusted from time to time. See UIF contributions explained.
4. Submit a UI-19 when they leave. This is what allows them to claim — and it is the step most often missed.
Keep the declarations current as things change, and keep a record of what you paid and when.
What else comes with being an employer?
UIF is not the only obligation, and the others are frequently overlooked entirely.
A written contract. Every employee is entitled to written particulars of employment. See what must be in an employment contract.
The minimum wage. Domestic workers are covered by the national minimum wage. See the national minimum wage explained.
Leave. Annual leave, sick leave and family responsibility leave all apply, pro-rated for part-time work. See annual leave entitlement and how sick leave works.
Payslips, showing hours, rate and any deductions.
Fair procedure on dismissal. A domestic worker has the same protection against unfair dismissal as any other employee, and "it is my house" is not a defence at the CCMA. See how to dismiss an employee legally.
COIDA. Domestic workers in private households have been brought within the compensation system, so an injury at work is covered rather than being a private dispute. Check your position — this is an area that has changed, and it matters for both of you. See what is COIDA.
What about PAYE?
Usually not applicable, but check rather than assume.
PAYE depends on earnings, and most domestic employment falls below the threshold at which employees' tax must be deducted.
Where a domestic employee earns above the threshold — a full-time nanny or carer on a substantial salary is the realistic case — the employer has an obligation to register for PAYE and deduct.
Do the arithmetic rather than assuming. See when must you register for PAYE.
What happens if I never registered?
Two consequences, and the first is the one that should motivate you.
Your employee cannot claim. When they are ill, have a baby, or the job ends, the UIF has no record of them. The benefit they contributed towards is not available to them, at the moment they need it, because of an administrative step you did not take.
And you carry the exposure. Unregistered employment is a contravention. Outstanding contributions may be recovered. A complaint or an inspection produces a finding against you.
Fixing it voluntarily is straightforward — register, declare, and take advice on the historic contributions position. It is a much better place to be than being found out.
Is this really enforced?
Yes, and increasingly so.
Domestic work is one of the sectors the Department of Employment and Labour actively inspects, and complaints from employees are a common trigger.
But the more persuasive argument is not enforcement. The contributions are modest. The registration is a form. And the difference it makes to a person who loses their job, or has a baby, or falls ill, is the difference between having something and having nothing.
Most households that have not registered have simply never thought about it. It takes an afternoon to fix.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to register for UIF if I employ a domestic worker? Yes. Employing a domestic worker makes you an employer, and you must register as a domestic employer with the UIF at the Department of Employment and Labour, declare the employee and pay contributions.
Does this apply if I am a household and not a business? Yes. There is a specific domestic employer registration route precisely because private households are employers too. Being a household does not remove the obligation.
Is there a minimum number of hours before UIF applies? The main exclusion concerns employees working fewer than 24 hours a month for you. Someone working one full day a week is above that threshold.
Who counts as a domestic worker? Broadly, people employed in or around a private household — domestic workers, gardeners, drivers employed by a household, and people caring for children, the elderly, the sick or the disabled in a home.
Do I have to give my domestic worker a written contract? Yes. Every employee is entitled to written particulars of employment, and the national minimum wage, leave entitlements and fair dismissal procedures all apply.
Do I need to deduct PAYE? Usually not, because most domestic employment falls below the threshold at which employees' tax must be deducted. Where earnings are above it — a full-time nanny or carer on a substantial salary — PAYE registration and deduction apply. Do the arithmetic rather than assuming.
What is a UI-19 and do I need to submit one? The declaration submitted when an employee's service ends. It is what allows them to claim, and it is the step most often missed.
What happens if I never registered? Your employee cannot claim when they need to, and you carry the exposure — unregistered employment is a contravention and outstanding contributions may be recovered. Registering voluntarily is straightforward and a far better position.
An afternoon of admin, and it matters to somebody
Most households that have not registered a domestic employee for UIF are not avoiding anything. They have simply never been told it applies to them.
Smartbook handles UIF registration for South African employers, including domestic employers — the registration, the declarations, the monthly contributions and the UI-19 when someone leaves.
Last reviewed: 28 August 2026. Written by the Smartbook team — SAIPA and SAICA accredited, SARS registered tax practitioners. UIF thresholds, contribution ceilings, minimum wage rates and the position of domestic workers under COIDA change from time to time — confirm the current position with the Department of Employment and Labour. General guidance, not advice on your circumstances.
Primary sources: Department of Employment and Labour — UIF · Unemployment Insurance Act 63 of 2001 · Basic Conditions of Employment Act 75 of 1997 · National Minimum Wage Act 9 of 2018 · Compensation Fund