How do I prepare for my Au Pair’s arrival?

First-Time Host Family? Don’t worry! Start preparing by creating a clear and welcoming profile that reflects your family life, expectations, and daily routine. Make sure to prepare a private room for your Au Pair and discuss house rules, schedules, and cultural differences in advance. Open communication and a warm, respectful attitude will help build a strong and positive relationship from day one.

If you keep the following points in mind, welcoming a new family member will be much easier:

Formalities
Contact with the Au Pair
Prepare your children
Your duties as a Host Family
The Au Pair’s room
The Au Pair’s first days

If you have already found and invited an Au Pair, one important step is done already. Nevertheless, there is still a lot coming. Before the Au Pair arrives, there are a few things you need to take care of and prepare. The following advice can be very helpful if this is your first Au Pair, but also if you have some experience with Au Pairs. You should think about the following points before the Au Pair arrives, or in the first days with an Au Pair.

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Formalities

Before the departure, there are still a few formalities you and your Au Pair need to take care of. Who is going to pay for the travel expenses? In most of the cases, the Au Pair is responsible for it. However, you could still refund the costs once the Au Pair joins your family. Click here to learn more.

Moreover, the Au Pair will need to get information about the validity of her health insurance abroad. You could support your Au Pair by gathering all the important information, organizing the most suitable insurance for her/him, and ensuring that it will be valid from the first day on. Do not forget to make a contract with the Au Pair and sign it. It is important that you discuss all the contract details in a video call with the Au Pair, and both of you sign it before the beginning of the stay. This way, you will avoid misunderstandings and get your stay off to a good start.

Contact with the Au Pair

Even before the Au Pair arrives you should stay in contact with the Au Pair to get to know each other better and improve the relationship. Skype and phone regularly or write E-Mails to each other. Having regular contact with your Au Pair will help you build a relationship with her even before she arrives. That way, when you pick her up at the airport, you will feel like you are picking up someone you already know, not a complete stranger! Beginning your Au Pair experience with a level of trust is crucial to a successful stay, based on mutual respect and communication.

Prepare the children for the Au Pair's arrival

Especially if this is your first Au Pair, you need to prepare your children for the new situation. Explain who this new person is who will be living with you, and make it clear that the Au Pair will be a family member, almost as a big sister/brother, but that the kids also need to respect the Au Pair.

Show the children pictures of the Au Pair and let them meet in a video call. This way, also their relationship will start to have a foundation and your child will be excited to meet the Au Pair.

Duties of the Host Family

Inform yourself about the Host Family’s duties beforehand. You need to make sure that you follow the requirements of the Au Pair program, especially concerning working hours, tasks, or pocket money. Click here to learn more about specific duties as a Host Family in your country.

Prepare the Au Pair’s room

Make sure that the Au Pair’s room looks welcoming and is well furnished before the Au Pair arrives. Make repairs, clean, and tidy up the room. Decorate the room with something you know she or he will like and buy some flowers or a small gift. This small gesture will make all the difference in your relationship!

Allow some time for the Au Pair to settle in

There are also a few things you should think about during the first few days after the Au Pair's arrival that may help you. Make sure that the Au Pair feels comfortable and welcome, and try to be understanding of her or his situation. The Au Pair needs time to adjust to the new situation with a new family and a new culture and you need to respect that.

Take your time with the Au Pair. It is a good idea to take the first few days off so that you can spend as much time as possible with the Au Pair to get him/her closer to the people, neighborhood, and tasks. Show the Au Pair the important routes, e.g. to school and nursery, and introduce the Au Pair there. Explain how the public transportation system works, as well as how appliances work in your home.

Do not forget to make family rules and a weekly plan, so the Au Pair routine is clear to all family members. According to your country’s regulations, plan in advance to register the Au Pair with the responsible offices and a language school and open a bank account.

How can an Au Pair get a visa?: AuPair.com is an online matching agency, therefore this question is beyond our scope of responsibility. But we will do our best to help you nonetheless! Usually the best source of information is the embassy of the host country placed in the Au Pair’s homeland. Requirements vary depending on both the Au Pair’s nationality and the host country, but usually a letter of invitation from the Host Family and a signed contract are needed to start the visa application. Other documents may be different depending on each individual case, and in case of the US, assistance of a local full-service Au Pair agency is also necessary.

How can I contact an Au Pair?: You need to visit the Au Pair’s profile and drop a message there. You can also add an Au Pair to your hotlist. In both cases, the Au Pair will get notifications from you instantly. If you have a basic account, you can send standard invitations to Au Pairs. The Premium Membership allows personalized messages as well. Please get more information here.

How long does it take to find an Au Pair?: It depends on several factors. Make sure your profile is full and interesting for other users. Make sure that you meet the Host Family requirements set by the Au Pair program. Be active and contact about 10-15 Au Pairs per day. If you follow the three tips above you can find a suitable match within one to four weeks. Check out our Host Family guide for more advice and ideas on how to find an Au Pair faster.

What are the requirements to host an Au Pair?: There are three most important requirements: the Au Pair accommodation, full board and monthly/weekly sum of pocket money. We recommend to go through the full list of requirements for Host Families. If you meet them, you can register as a Host Family today and find an Au Pair that matches your criteria.

How can I find a candidate that is already located in my country of residence?: Some Host Families need support very promptly. Therefore, we often get the question how to find candidates on our platform who are already located in the family’s country of residence and want to change Host Family.

To do this, you need to:

1) go to the dashboard menu on the left side after logging into your profile

2) click “Search” and then “Search criteria”

3) select for the option "Candidates currently living in" your country of residence

4) select "all” for the option “Nationality“

5) tag the box “Save preferences” and click on “Find”

6) make sure that your “preferences” match your search criteria