It’s now mandatory! How to register domestic workers in the IMSS?

As of this week, people who hire a domestic worker have the obligation to register her at the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS). If the employees are on the floor, if they are from entrance to exit, but also if they work in different houses, the recent legal reforms mandate that they have the right to this protection.

“Historically, domestic workers have had restricted limited rights, both in the Federal Labor Law (LFT) and in the Social Security Law (LSS),” acknowledged Luisa María Alcalde Luján, head of the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare ( STPS).

“Proof of this is that for a long time their incorporation into social security was voluntary, it depended on the will of the employers, unlike other workers where incorporation is mandatory,” said the Secretary of Labor on Tuesday when participating in the morning press conference by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.

Although there is still resistance and even rejection from some employers to register domestic workers with the IMSS of those who use their services, many other people want to comply with their obligation, but do not know how.

First, if the employers do not carry out this procedure, they will be breaking the lawspecifically the new wording of articles 334 Bis of the LFT and 239-C of the LSS, among other regulations.

Then, the process must be carried out by whoever hires them. “Individual employers are required to register domestic workers from the first day of work. The payment will made by each employer according to salary and days worked,” said the official.

If they work via an employment agency, it is up to said companies to register them and pay their employer contributions.

In social security for domestic workers, the scheme is tripartite, that is, the people who hire them, the employees themselves, and the government contribute financially, and it includes access to five insurances offered by the IMSS:

1. Illnesses and maternity.
2. Work risk, which includes temporary disabilities.
3. Disability and life, so that, in the event of any damage that prevents them from continuing to work, they are permanently disabled with a pension, or that in the event of their death, their family has coverage.
4. Savings for retirement, unemployment in advanced age and old age.
5. Nurseries and social benefits.

Some of the benefits, such as medical care, are also extensive for the worker’s partner and his sons and daughters up to the age of 16 and up to 25 if they study. In the same way, they can enroll their father and mother, if they live with the worker and are financially dependent on her.

The four steps to enrollment

Although the process can be carried out in person at an IMSS subdelegation, the process is simple to do from the institute’s website. These are the steps to do it remotely:

» Paso 1. Enter the data of the employer to the platform. Information to have on hand is:

• Unique Population Registry Code (CURP)
• RFC (optional)

The system will also ask for an email, cell phone number and home address.

» Paso 2. Capture the data of the domestic worker. To do this, they must ask you to provide these data:

Then, the system will give you two options to choose from: payment per full month or payment per day.

» Paso 3. Calculate the payment. Enter the salary that is paid to the worker each day that she comes. Or her daily salary, in the case of those who work all month, for example, plant or meeting workers.

Based on this information, the system will indicate the quota of the employer and the quota of the worker. Whoever hires her should be in charge of withhold the employee’s feesince a single payment must be made that includes the amount that both parties have.

Example 1: Let’s say that the worker works entirely for a family somewhere in the country that is not the northern border. The option to choose is payment per month, which may not be less than 5,602 pesossince it is the minimum professional salary for this sector in most of the national territory in 2022. Based on that monthly salary, the employer’s contribution would be 1,180 pesos and the worker’s contribution would be 133 pesos.

Meanwhile, if the person works in one of the northern border cities, the minimum payment they must receive this year is 8,435 pesos per month, as it is the benchmark for this region. Based on this calculation for 2022, the employer’s contribution would be 1,468 pesos and the worker’s contribution would be 200 pesos.

The coverage that the insured person will have will be throughout the monthincluding days off.

Example 2: Now, let’s take the case that the worker attends her house two days a week —that is, eight days a month— and for each one she pays her 350 pesos. The employer’s fee will be 645 pesos per month and the worker will pay 85 pesos.

In this case, the employee will only be covered on the days that she goes to the home of each employer that enrolls her.

In any of the three modalities of employment for this sector —entry by exit, plant or stay and employment in different addresses— employers can use the IMSS calculator to determine the corresponding monthly payment.

» Paso 4. Make the payment. Once the system has indicated the amount of the fee, employers will be able to download the incorporation form and the capture line to make the payment in person at a bank or through online banking.

It is not necessary to carry out this procedure every month, since the system can indicate that it be carried out automatic renewal. The employer must withhold the worker’s contribution, since a single amount will be paid that includes both contributions.

Other considerations for employers

If the domestic worker works for different people, it is not necessary for the employers or employers to agree with each other to comply with their obligation to affiliate the employee. Each one pays their fees separately, these are not tax deductible.

Although the LFT indicates that one of the obligations of employers to sign a written contract by requiring the services of a domestic worker, this is not a requirement for incorporation into the IMSS.

Based on the salary recorded for domestic workers, their cash benefits will be calculated, such as disability and retirement savings. If an amount less than the real amount is reported to the IMSS, the worker will be harmed and her rights violated.

And at worker is migrantYou also have the right to be affiliated with social security. However, the Mexican legal framework only recognizes this right “as long as you prove your legal stay in the country and process your NSS,” according to information from the IMSS.