If you are providing care at your home, you can report your earnings on Schedule C as a self-employed caregiver. If you are providing care in the children's home, you could be determined to be a household employee, the employer would report household employee wages, and could be required to pay associated employment taxes. Check with your state agency as well regarding their rules for license-exempt care and taxes. Here as an example is a link to the California webpage for license exempt care.
Schedule H is required for the employer if at least $2,800 is paid to a single employee in the 2025 tax year, or if cash wages to all household employees total $1,000 or more during any three-month calendar quarter of the tax year. The three taxes covered by household employment taxes are the Social Security tax, Medicare tax, and federal unemployment tax (FUTA). See this tax tips article for more information.
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