au pair

Au Pair.com’s security and safety recommendations

⏱ Reading time: 11 min.
The Au Pair program can be a great adventure and the beginning of a life-long friendship between the Au Pair and the Host Family. Still, there are quite a few things that can go wrong during the Au Pair experience. What do you need to do to ensure that your Au Pair program will be as smooth as possible?
 
What do you need to keep in mind to stay safe during the whole Au Pair program? At AuPair.com you can find the most important safety precautions for Au Pairs and for Host Families.

Keep your family safe during the Au Pair program

If your family already decided that the Au Pair program is exactly what you need, now is the time to get things done. You need to register, fill in your search criteria and browse through a wide choice of Au Pair applicants. 
 
Let’s assume that you already met the one that seems to be a perfect match. What should you do now?

Have(multiple) video-interviews

The person you’ve chosen is going to spend some time with your family and, with a bit of luck, become an additional member of your family. The online profile you saw on AuPair.com won’t give you any guarantee that your impression about the Au Pair is right. The video interview with the Au Pair gives you much higher chances to actually get to know the person behind the screen.
 
Make a short call to your prospective Au Pair and, after some small-talk, offer the applicant a longer chat with your whole family during which you will be able to ask about everything you would like to know. It works both ways - prepare yourself for clarifying your Au Pair’s doubts. 
 
At AuPair.com you can find sample questions that you should ask to your Au Pair during the video-interview. You can also have a look at the examples of questions the Au Pair will most likely ask you - it may help you to get ready for the interview.
 
Make sure to arrange not fewer than 3 video-interview with the Au Pair. This way you really get to know the person before you decide to take further steps.

Verify candidate’s identity:

  • Before signing the contract, verify the identity of the Au Pair by asking him/her to show an official ID card or a passport during a video interview.  Check both sides of the document, make sure the photo matches the person you are speaking with. Ask him/her to wave the ID back and forth in the light to see the hologram in the ID. If the hologram is missing, it may indicate a forgery.
  • Verify the phone number by calling the person - contact only via messengers such as Whatsapp is not sufficient.
  • Ask for the Au Pair’s social media link and check them, be critical and pay attention to the history, followers, likes, etc.
  • When you are meeting them in person for the first time, ask them to show you their ID again.

Sign the contract with the Au Pair

The Au Pair contract is a legal document important for many reasons:
  • If your Au Pair needs a visa, the contract will be most likely a mandatory attachment to the visa application
  • If you need to register your Au Pair at the immigration office, the contract will be necessary too
  • If any misunderstandings during the Au Pair’s time in your house occur, the contract will help you a lot to clarify them
  • If things go really bad and you need to inform the authorities about it (e.g. report the Au Pair’s actions to the police) the contract will be an important piece of evidence
 
But most importantly, the Au Pair contract helps you to clarify the rules according to which you are going to cooperate. Before you sign it, you need to complete the document and discuss all the points together with the Au Pair during the video interview. That will help you a lot to assess the Au Pair’s approach and acquire the right expectations for the Au Pair. Premium members receive a version of the contract from us which contains additional questions to avoid misunderstandings. 

Get used to the new situation

When your Au Pair has already arrived, you need to make sure that your whole family has time to adjust to the new situation. In particular, your children should be well prepared for the changes. Make sure to speak with them before the program start date and ensure that they understand what is going on and who the new person in your household is.

Pay also attention to the Au Pair - she / he is going to be stressed and maybe overwhelmed with the responsibility. You can consider taking a few days off and staying at home with the Au Pair to help her / him get to know your daily routine and get adjusted to the Au Pair schedule.
Free Registration as Family

General tips to keep in mind

Communication is a key factor for a safe and successful Au Pair program. Try to look at the whole thing from your Au Pair’s perspective and imagine all the concerns she / he may already have or may encounter in the future. 
 
Speak with each other, but be prepared for asking about the Au Pair’s wellbeing more than once. Young people may tend to hide their insecurities and your support is priceless.

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Au Pair safety - stay safe as an Au Pair abroad

You’re about to start your stay as an Au Pair, but there are some things you have to take care of before you leave. Do you feel stressed to cope with everything? You’re probably thinking “where to begin?”. 
 
Au Pair safety
Don’t worry! At AuPair.com we have made a list with all the important things you have to remember before and during your period as an Au Pair to stay safe during the whole Au Pair program

Have (multiple) video-interviews and meet the children

The more chats you have with them, the more you will get to know the family before your arrival
 
You should have at least 3-5 video chats with the Host Family before making a decision. Both you and the family have to be really sure that you get on well with each other. Besides, you have to see if the kids feel comfortable with you and if they are willing to have you as the Au Pair. 
 
Also, ask your host family to show you your room and the whole house during the video-call, or at least to send you some photos. Many Au Pairs get disappointed when they arrive to their future home, and that makes their stay not as good as they expected.  Remember that you will live there for several months. 

Verify Host Family's identity

  • Before signing the contract, verify the identity of the Host parents by asking them to show an official ID card or a passport during a video interview.  Check both sides of the document, make sure the photo matches the person you are speaking with. Ask them to wave the ID back and forth in the light to see the hologram in the ID. If the hologram is missing, it may indicate a forgery.
  • Verify the phone number by calling the family - contact only via messengers such as Whatsapp is not sufficient.
  • Ask for their social media link and check them, be critical and pay attention to the history, followers, likes, etc.
  • When you are meeting them in person for the first time, ask them to show you their ID again. 

Signing the contract before the stay begins

Make sure that you and the family have signed the contract before the stay begins. Don’t take the risk of waiting until you’re there to sign it. That way you will be sure that you will spend your Au Pair time with that Host Family officially and legally, and you won’t have any possible problems with the local authorities.

Getting in touch with other Au Pairs in the area

A beginning in a new place and in a new country can be tough. Fortunately, it is very easy nowadays to establish contact with people through social media. You can always try to reach other Au Pairs in the area. Some of them might have been living there for a while, so they could help you to get used to the new situation. 
 
There will be also other Au Pairs who don’t know anybody, like you. Our advise: type on Facebook something like: “Au Pairs in (your area or city)” and you will surely find a group. Social media are a good way of meeting people, especially when someone is new in the area.

Bring cash and your credit card to your host country

You should always have some cash before flying to your destination. You always have to be ready for any kind of mishap (e.g. your Host Family cannot pick you up at the airport and you have to take a taxi or the bus). Also remember that you need to exchange your money to the currency of the host country. Do not wait until you have landed in the country to do so. Be foresighted.

Credit Cards

Using an ATM in another country can be very expensive. First of all you should go to your bank and get informed about the taxes you pay if you take out money in another country, or maybe your bank offers special credit cards to those clients who want to go abroad. As an alternative you might want to open a new bank account in another entity in your country that has better conditions for its clients living abroad. 
 
Finally, online banks can be an interesting option too. Given that they have no physical headquarters, you can always solve any inquiry with the bank via online.
Free Registration as Candidate

Getting an insurance before the stay begins

Every country has its own healthcare system so gather all the necessary information about which specific health insurance you may need in the country regarding your Visa.  If you’re European and will spend your Au Pair time in another EU country, you can always get your European Health Insurance Card. However, in all the other cases, you will have to pay for a special health insurance. 
 
You must keep in mind that, in both cases, you should have obtained your health insurance and you should have all your documents ready before flying to your destination. 

General tips to keep in mind 

Remember that you are going to a distant country and the culture and customs may be surprising to you. In case of any doubts, ask your family for advice - communication and mutual understanding will help you a lot to avoid any inconveniences. When going out, always have with you your mobile phone and phone numbers of your Host Family, your family, police and even your country embassy in case of any emergency.
 
Remember also to keep your documents safe - in particular your ID card, passport and credit card. Don’t hand them over to anyone else!

Find a Host Family with AuPair.com!

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Do you check your users?
Yes! Although we can’t interview them personally as an online matching agency, we do our best to check as many details as possible. Nonetheless, AuPair.com follows the same rules as many other Internet communities. To ensure that you are in touch with a real, reliable person, arrange a video-call and ask about all the important details in person. If you ever feel uneasy, contact us! We will be glad to share our feedback about any user if you find him/her suspicious.    
How to avoid scammers?
If you are contacted by someone who seems to be unreliable, pay attention to the following:
  • If there is an email address in the profile picture
  • You have been asked to make a transfer through MoneyGram, Western Union, or to set up some deposit account.
  • You have been contacted by some agency or a lawyer. They might have sent you a visa application or sample contract.
  • Someone advises you to pay rent for a flat. 
  • The Au Pair just asked you to pay for the flight ticket. Although some Au Pairs expect Host Families to help them with travel costs, there are certain rules of cost refund. 
  • The Host Family contacts you on Facebook. 
These are some of the most popular scam situations. If you encounter any of these before our administrators, or if you ever feel uneasy, please get in touch with us so we can take measures against scammers. Learn more about Au Pair scam schemes that might happen.
My Au Pair stay went wrong! Can you help me?
We always recommend to have an honest conversation with your Host Family about the problems occurred and find a solution together. Most of the troubles can be solved through communication and feedback! If you can’t find a way out, you can consider contract termination. We recommend you to respect the notice period that is mentioned in your Au Pair contract. During this time both you and your Host Family can find an alternative solution. E.g. you can reactivate your profile at AuPair.com and try to find another Host Family. Be supportive to each other in any case.  AuPair.com can’t help you personally in this case as we are an online matching agency with no external offices in the host countries.


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