General Policies for Consumer Employers

This sub-chapter identifies general policies for Consumer Employers in participant-directed programs served by a Fiscal/Employer Agent.

A participant need only operate as an employer or designate a representative to serve as an employer on the participant's behalf if the participant chooses to directly hire employees.  In general, any worker who is not employed by another entity when he/she provides service to a participant and does not have a specific license to provide the service provided to the participant and who the participant directs is an employee of the participant employer.

The Internal Revenue Service generally views consumers or their representatives as common law employers of workers that the participant or representative directs as part of the participant-directed program.

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For purposes of acting in the official capacity as the employer of workers who provide service to the participant, the participant or someone the participant designates can act as the employer.  If the participant chooses to designate someone to act on the participant's behalf as the employer, that individual is referred to as the 'employer' or 'representative.' 

Employer tax registration and F/EA authorization forms are completed using the employer's name and identifying information.  If the participant operates as the employer, the participant's information is populated on employer tax registration and F/EA authorization forms as the "employer."  If the representative operates as the employer, the representative's information is populated on employer tax registration and F/EA authorization forms as the "employer." 

In many cases throughout this manual, the employer may be referred to as the "employer", "participant", "participant employer" or "representative" depending on the context.

In programs served by the F/EA, participant employers are considered "Household" or "Domestic" employers by the Internal Revenue Service, Department of Labor and State Departments of Labor.