Aupair/Nanny Visa & Regulations
Germany
General information about the au pair programme in Germany
In Germany exists an au pair programme for young people aged from 18 to 25 years.
Au pairs from the following countries may even enter into Germany until the age of 30 years:
Belgium, Denmark, Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales), Finland, France ,Greece, Ireland Italy, Spain, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Sweden as well as from Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and from Switzerland.
German nationals may not be employed as au pairs in Germany. They must be declared as baby sitters and must be registered under the social security system.
Hints on safety concerning au pairs from certain countries:
Please read also our information about au pairs from Cameroon andMorocco.
Duration of stay: An au pair may work in Germany 12 months at the longest. People who already worked in Germany as an au pair may not work as an au pair in Germany again, no matter how long their first stay was.
Language skills: Au pairs must have basic knowledge of the German language. The German embassies must decide about whether the au pair's language skills are sufficient. There is no common rule about how much knowledge you need to have to be acknowledged.
Conditions for host families
Families with at least 1 child younger than 18 may be host families. Single parents may host an au pair, too. One parent must have the German nationality. In exceptional cases a family with no German nationals among the parents may be a host family if German is mainly spoken within the family.
Families with 4 or more children may host 2 au pairs at the same time.
Information about working hours and amount of work, insurance, travel expenses, accommodation, pocket money, holidays, free time and language course
Child care/house work:
30 hour of help with child care and house work per week, including 1-2 evenings of babysitting
Help with house work does not include:
-Independent management of the whole household by the au pair,
-Ironing of complicated clothes (such as shirts or blouses),
-spring cleaning,
-doing the whole cooking for the family alone,
-doing the whole washing for the whole family,
-the washing of the family's underwear is not the task of an au pair as well as the cleaning of the toilet unless it is exclusively used by the au pair.
Insurance
The host family has to take out health insurance and a third party insurance for the au pair (the costs amount to approximately € 23 to 40 per month). If the au pair needs a visa, we recommend to adjust the au pair insurance contract to cover potential expulsion costs.
For further information we recommend a Google search.
Travel costs:
The au pair must bear the travel costs herself/himself. Please make no advance payments. If you as a host family want to bear a part of the costs, please do this after a successful stay of the au pair of at least 50% of the stipulated time.
Accommodation
An au pair should have his/her own heatable room which has a window and can be locked, at least 8 sq.m
The au pair can take part in the family life and in the common meals.
Pocket money:
€ 260 per month
The au pair also gets the pocket money during his or her holidays and in case of illness.
Holidays:
The au pair is entitled to 2 days of paid holiday per month.
Spare time:
The au pair is entitled to at least one day off per week; once per month this should be a Sunday.
Language course:
The au pair should have the opportunity of attending a language course. The au pair has to pay for the fees.
Further information from the German labour office (Bundesagentur für Arbeit)
Visa requirements
EU / EFTA
- Accession to the EU before 2004
For au pairs from those EU countries the German labour office (Bundesagentur für Arbeit) does not indicate age restrictions anymore. They can enter the country with a valid passport. According to the information provided by the foreigners' registration office (Ausländerbehörde) and the German labour office (Bundesagentur für Arbeit) it is sufficient to register the au pair at the local residents' registration office (Einwohnermeldeamt). Au pairs from these EU-countries do neither need a residence permit nor a work permit. In respect of tax law the duration of an au pair's stay might still be restricted to 12 months and a maximum age might still apply. Unfortunately we have not yet found out more about this. So if you would like to employ an au pair who is older than 25 years or you want to employ this person for longer than 12 months, please ask your tax consultant or the tax authority in your federal state.
-Accession to the EU in 2004
Au pairs from those countries which joined the EU in 2004 (Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Malta and Cyprus) do not need a visa any longer. They need a work permit which is issued for a minimum of 6 months. Basic knowledge of the German language is required, some labour offices (Arbeitsämter) check the au pairs' language skills. The age restriction is still at 24 years when filing the application.
-Accession to the EU in 2007
For au pairs from Romania and Bulgaria applies the same procedure as for those from EU countries which joined the EU in 2004.
For au pairs from non-EU states:
Au pairs from non-EU states need a visa. They may not be older than 24 years when filing the application. The employment of the au pair according to the au pair contract may not begin later than 6 months after the application for a visa. The scheduled duration of stay must be at least 6 months.
The future host family sends an invitation letter to the wanted au pair. This letter must contain:
- the complete addresses of the family and of the au pair
- the duration of the stay
- the description of the job
- the maximum working hours
- the amount of the pocket money
- the type of accommodation
- the commitment of the host family to take out health insurance and third party insurance for the au pair (per month about € 30).
The au pair goes to her/his embassy with this document. The embassy will check if the au pair has basic knowledge of the German language and will contact the German authorities. When the visa is granted, the au pair may leave her country. Depending on the country, this takes between 2 weeks up to 3 months. When the au pair has entered the country, it must be registered at the foreigners' registration office by the family. The foreigners' registration office will contact the employment office in order to ask for an employment permit. The host family must enter into a commitment in written form to look after the au pair during the duration of her/his stay and to pay the costs if it is necessary to expel her/him (e.g. if the au pair has committed a crime). You can hedge against the risk by effecting an au pair insurance.
Special arrangements for au pairs from Australia, New Zealand, Israel, Japan, Canada, the Republic of Korea and the United States of America
Nationals of Australia, New Zealand, Israel, Japan, Canada, the Republic of Korea and the United States of America may enter the Federal Republic of Germany without having a visa. If they want to stay in Germany longer than for 3 months, they need to apply for a residence permit at the foreigners' registration office.
These au pairs may only apply for a residence permit before their 25th birthday.
If they want to stay longer than for 3 months, it is mandatory that they have adequate knowledge of German.
Tax law for au pairs in Germany
The costs for an au pair are tax-deductible.
Attention: The pocket money can only be recognized if it is transferred to the au pair’s bank account. The account can be opened at any bank in Germany.
As you might know already Sauveauapirs regulations and visa requirements differ from country to country. To find out more simply click on the links below.
We cannot guarantee that all information we gathered is correct or complete even though we have researched on this subject. We appreciate any comments.. Thank you. |
