Employment gaps and career pivots are common, and ATS software itself doesn't penalize them directly — there's no "gap detector." The real consideration is how a human reads the timeline once it's parsed.
Keep the date format consistent through the gap
Don't drop dates around a gap to hide it — that breaks the timeline parsing and looks evasive to a reader. List dates plainly either way.
Use a brief, factual line if needed
A single line like "Career break for caregiving, 2023–2024" or "Independent consulting, 2022–2023" is enough. You don't need to over-explain on the resume itself.
For career changes, lead with transferable skills
In your summary and skills section, foreground the skills that transfer to the new field. Let your experience section show the full history, but don't make the reader hunt for relevance.