Au Pair in America
Babysitter or Au Pair
An Au Pair is a young woman or young man, normally between 18 and 26 years old, who engage in a living language experience to provide community child care services in a host family’s home for a period not exceeding 18 months.
The au pair helps the family with daily household chores that do not require any special knowledge such as cooking, childcare, shopping, etc… The host family cannot ask the au pair to do heavy work or work requiring special skills. The au pair should not be considered a “jack of all trades”. The au pair is NOT a hired domestic worker. In general, the au pair must not work more than 30-45 hours per week and he or she must have at least one day off per week. Safe housing and food of decent quality are provided by the host family and for their work as a family helper, the au pair earns a weekly stipend from the host family.
A cultural exchange visa under sponsorship must be obtained and the host family must provide that the au pair can attend language courses of in the amount 6 credit hours. It is also advisable to have family insurance which also covers the au pair.
Au Pair Requirements
The au pair must have graduated with the equivalent of a high school diploma and be proficient in English. The au pair must be able to provide child care and character references and also pass a criminal background check in addition to completing the paperwork necessary to obtain the cultural exchange visa.
Au Pair in America
The Au Pair in America program is organized with the intent to permit foreign nationals with the opportunity to live with an American host family in the United States and participate in the home life of the host family while providing child care services while attending a US post-secondary educational institution.