Can you be a self-employed carer?
Yes, if the way you work is really self-employment. The label on a contract does not decide it; the reality of the work does. GOV.UK says you are probably running a business if you:
- take responsibility for its success or failure;
- have several customers at the same time;
- can decide how, where and when you do your work;
- can hire other people at your own expense to help or to do the work for you;
- provide the main items of equipment for your work;
- charge an agreed fixed price for your work.
If one family tells you exactly when, where and how to work, and you work only for them, you may in law be their employee, and they would have employer duties. HMRC’s Check employment status for tax (CEST) tool gives a view for a specific arrangement. You can also be employed and self-employed at the same time, for example a part-time job in a care home plus your own private clients.
What you need before you start
Families and care organisations will ask for the same core evidence before they let you into someone’s home. Have it ready:
- Proof of identity and your right to work in the UK.
- An enhanced DBS certificate with the adults’ barred list check, for personal care. Since 21 January 2026, self-employed people can apply for their own enhanced check through a DBS umbrella body; from 5 October 2026 the DBS fee is £41, and the umbrella body may add its own charge. The DBS guide for carers explains the routes.
- Training certificates: the Care Certificate standards if you are new to care, and current mandatory topics such as safeguarding, moving and handling, infection control and first aid. See the mandatory training list.
- Insurance certificates (next section).
- Two references, ideally from previous care work.
- A written agreement you can use with each client (see contracts below).
Insurance you need
As a self-employed carer you arrange your own cover. Three kinds matter:
- Public liability insurance covers injury to someone, or damage to their property, caused by your work. It is not generally a legal requirement for a sole trader, but most clients, organisations and platforms ask for it.
- Professional indemnity insurance covers claims that your care or advice caused harm or loss. VerriPro asks every Professional for it before approval. Registered nurses must also have an appropriate indemnity arrangement under the Nursing and Midwifery Council’s rules.
- Employers’ liability insurance is compulsory only if you employ someone, for example another carer to cover your visits. GOV.UK says it must cover at least £5 million, and you can be fined £2,500 for every day you are not properly insured.
Many insurers sell a combined policy for carers. Check that it names the work you actually do, such as personal care, medication support or overnight care.
Registering with HMRC, tax and National Insurance
You register for Self Assessment as a sole trader. GOV.UK sets the deadline as 5 October after the end of the tax year in which you started: if you started between 6 April 2026 and 5 April 2027, register by 5 October 2027.
| Item | 2026 to 2027 |
|---|---|
| Trading allowance | The first £1,000 of trading income a year is tax-free; above that you register and report it. |
| Personal Allowance | £12,570 of income before Income Tax; then 20% basic rate up to £50,270. |
| Class 4 National Insurance | 6% on profits between £12,570 and £50,270, and 2% above £50,270. |
| Class 2 National Insurance | Treated as paid if your profits are £7,105 or more, so nothing to pay. Below that you can pay voluntarily, £3.65 a week, to protect your State Pension record. |
| Return and payment | Online return and the tax due by 31 January after the tax year. Payments on account, by 31 January and 31 July, once your bill is £1,000 or more. |
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax applies to sole traders by income. HMRC says you must use it from 6 April 2026 if your qualifying income was over £50,000, from 6 April 2027 if it is over £30,000, and from 6 April 2028 if it is over £20,000. It means keeping digital records and sending quarterly updates through compatible software.
Set money aside as you are paid. A simple habit is to move a fixed share of every payment into a separate account for tax and National Insurance.
Records and expenses
Keep a record of every payment you receive and every business cost. GOV.UK says you must keep your records for at least 5 years after the 31 January submission deadline of the tax year they cover.
Allowable expenses reduce your taxable profit. For a carer they commonly include:
- uniform and protective clothing;
- training courses that keep your skills current;
- insurance premiums;
- the business share of your phone;
- business travel by car: with simplified expenses, 55p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles in a tax year and 25p after that, from 6 April 2026 (it was 45p before).
GOV.UK does not allow travel between your home and a regular place of work. Driving between clients during your working day is business travel.
Contracts and invoices
A short written agreement with each client protects both of you. It should cover:
- the care and support you will provide, and what you will not do;
- days, times and how changes are agreed;
- your rate, any different rate for nights or weekends, and how and when you are paid;
- cancellation and notice, on both sides;
- that you are self-employed and responsible for your own tax and insurance;
- confidentiality, and what happens in an emergency.
If you invoice clients yourself, each invoice needs your name and contact details, the client’s name, the dates and hours worked, your rate, the total and when payment is due.
On VerriPro the booking holds the agreed times and rate, the client pays through the platform, and you are paid to your own account after each visit once the timesheet is approved or the review window passes without a problem being raised.
Do you need to register with CQC?
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) registers anyone who carries on a regulated activity in England, and personal care is one. CQC’s guidance on personal care says registration is not needed by a carer or personal assistant “directly employed by a person or a related third party … and you work wholly under the direction and control of that person”.
That wording is about carers employed by the person they care for. It does not settle every self-employed arrangement. CQC also says carers must work as individuals, not in partnership, to be exempt; that partnerships providing personal care must register; and that a carer who sets up a limited company may be in scope. If you take on other carers, form a company or run rotas for others, your position changes.
Read CQC’s personal care guidance against your own situation, and ask CQC if you are unsure.
Finding clients
Most self-employed carers find work through word of mouth, local community groups, GP surgeries and community noticeboards, care directories and platforms. A platform does the finding and the payment handling, in exchange for a fee.
On VerriPro you set your own rate and choose your clients. Clients and care organisations near you can find you once the VerriPro team has reviewed your documents. VerriPro’s 13.5% platform fee is added on top for the client, so you keep the rate you set.