How to Hire an Au Pair: 7 Steps for Families
Confirm the candidate has a legal au pair or right-to-work route for your country. Define a cultural-exchange role with light childcare, publish an honest family profile, interview more than once, verify identity and references, put pay, hours, duties and accommodation in writing, and complete any visa or sponsor process before travel.
How to hire an au pair in 7 steps
Define the role: hours, duties, children, school runs, babysitting, free time, language expectations, and pocket money.
Check visa and programme eligibility before interviews become serious.
Shortlist candidates whose age, nationality, timing, experience, and language level match your country route.
Run video interviews and involve the children where appropriate.
Check ID, references, and any relevant childcare or first-aid experience.
Agree the written arrangement before booking travel.
Build the full budget: pay or pocket money, private room, meals, transport, insurance, language classes, programme fees, and emergency costs.
The strongest matches come from clear expectations. Do not sell the role as easier or more flexible than it is. A realistic schedule and honest family routine reduce early breakdowns.
Country checks families must not skip
United Kingdom: confirm an eligible immigration route and right to work. A visitor, including someone visiting for six months or less, cannot be hired as an au pair; minimum-wage rules apply.
United States: use a designated BridgeUSA J-1 sponsor. The sponsor screens host families and au pairs, and the family and au pair sign an agreement.
Germany: EU, EEA, and Swiss citizens do not need Federal Employment Agency approval; many third-country nationals need a visa or residence title and its approval.
What to write down
Weekly schedule, expected babysitting, and how changes are agreed.
Pocket money, meals, room, transport, language classes, and holidays.
House rules, curfew expectations, guests, car use, phone use, and privacy.
Emergency contacts, child routines, allergies, medication rules, and safe handover process.
Follow-up questions
How early should a family start looking?
Start around three to four months before the preferred arrival date, and allow longer where a sponsor, visa, residence permit, or school-term timing is involved.
Does a family need an agency or sponsor?
In the United States a designated BridgeUSA sponsor is required. Elsewhere the route varies, so check the official destination-country rules before committing.
Can a family hire an au pair on a visitor visa?
Not in the United Kingdom: a visitor, including someone visiting for six months or less, cannot be hired as an au pair. Other countries require their own official route.
What checks should a host family make?
Verify identity, references, relevant childcare experience, first-aid claims, right-to-work or programme eligibility, and locally available safeguarding checks.