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Au Pair Visa Germany

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All important information and a guide for host families and au pairs on applying for an au pair visa in Germany

... what an au pair is and how you can apply for an au pair visa

... which documents you need to submit for an au pair visa

... which au pair placement agencies are reputable and how to find a reputable au pair placement agency

... what the au pair contract should look like and what working conditions apply to au pairs

Here you learn ...

Written by: Attorney at Law (Berlin)
Publication date: 20.04.2024
Estimated reading time: 9 min.

1. Au-Pair in Deutschland

1.1 What is an au pair?

Au pair comes from the French and means "on reciprocity". The au pair visa is intended to enable young foreign people to learn the German language and familiarise themselves with German culture in return for small-scale services within a German family. They are paid a small amount (pocket money) and are provided with free food and accommodation. In return, au pairs perform tasks such as

 

  • Childcare (e.g. supervision and playing),

  • Help with housework (e.g. laundry),

  • preparing meals.

 

The au pair stay can only take place in families that have a child. Married couples without children cannot employ an au pair (instructions of the Federal Employment Agency on § 12 BeschV).

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1.2 Purpose of the au pair visa

The au pair visa is basically intended to enable the au pair to familiarise themselves with German culture and the German language. For example, the au pair must have the opportunity to take part in a German language course. To this end, the host family must contribute 70 euros per month towards the costs of a corresponding course. For a stay of 12 months, the host family will therefore have to pay a total of 840 euros for a German course.

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2. Au pair Germany requirements

In order to apply for an au pair visa for Germany, various requirements must be met. These have been laid down by national legislation. There is also a "European Agreement on Au Pair Employment" adopted by the Council of Europe in 1969, which contains framework regulations on living and working conditions, language tuition, social security and the rights and obligations of the host family and the au pair. However, this agreement has not been confirmed by the Federal Republic of Germany and therefore has no legal status here. Nevertheless, the German authorities (embassies and immigration authorities) are partly guided by this agreement with regard to the requirements for au pair visas in Germany.

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In order to obtain an au pair visa, the following requirements must be met in accordance with § 12 BeschV:

 

  • The au pair must be between 18 and 27 years old,

  • German must be spoken in the family with the child,

  • the au pair has a basic knowledge of the German language (A1),

  • the au pair must not be related to a family member (no circumvention of family reunification regulations).

 

Apart from these requirements, numerous formal regulations must also be complied with in order to employ an au pair. These are described below.

3. Application process for au pair visa Germany

In order to apply for an au pair visa, numerous documents must be submitted to the Federal Employment Agency, the embassy and the immigration authority.

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3.1 Documents required for the au pair visa

The documents that need to be submitted when applying for an au pair visa generally depend on the country in which the au pair visa for Germany is being applied for. You can usually find the relevant information on the website of your country's embassy.

 

For example, if you are applying for an au pair visa for Germany in Georgia, the following documents must be submitted:

 

  • Au pair visa application form,

  • passport,

  • biometric photo,

  • Au pair contract with the host family

  • Questionnaire from the Federal Employment Agency for au pair host families,

  • Copy of the passport or identity card of the parents in the host family,

  • Letter of motivation (au pair),

  • Curriculum vitae in tabular form,

  • Proof of language skills A1 (e.g. language certificate),

  • Proof of educational qualifications (e.g. school or university),

  • travel health insurance.

 

The embassy or foreigners authority may request further documents in individual cases if the person in charge considers this necessary.

3.2 Au pair contract

According to the instructions of the Federal Employment Agency, the required au pair contract must contain at least the following elements:

 

  • Designation of the contracting parties (i.e. au pair and host family),

  • Start, duration and end of the contract,

  • mutual obligations of the host parents and the au pair,

  • Clause on payment of pocket money of EUR 280 per month,

  • Obligation of the host parents to support the au pair's participation in German language courses with EUR 50 per month,

  • Obligation of the host parents to insure the au pair at the expense of the host parents in the event of illness, pregnancy, birth or accident,

  • Working time agreement (max. 6 hours per day and 30 hours per week, min. 2 working days holiday per month).

 

The Federal Employment Agency provides a fillable template for an au pair contract in Germany as a PDF. It is advisable to use this template as it is usually accepted by the embassies and the immigration authorities. However, its use is not mandatory.

3.3 Host family questionnaire Au-Pair Germany

In addition to the employment contract, the host family must submit the so-called host family questionnaire to the embassy. The purpose of the questionnaire is to check the host family in order to protect the au pair. The questionnaire for the host family in the case of an au pair visa can be downloaded from the Federal Employment Agency as a fillable PDF form.

3.4 Working conditions for au pairs in Germany (pay, holidays, insurance)

The most important requirement for applying for a Blue Card is a legal employment contract with a German company. The employment contract must be lawful, i.e. in particular it must not violate employee protection regulations or provisions of residence law (e.g. with regard to salary (AufenthG), compliance with working hours (ArbZG) or the granting of minimum leave (BUrlG)).

 

In addition, the employment contract must be concluded with a German company. The company must therefore be based in Germany (so-called local employment relationship). Employment with a foreign company is not possible as long as this company does not have a branch in Germany. Whether the company is a German employer can be checked in the German commercial register.

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3.5 Processing time for au pair visa

The processing time for au pair visas varies from country to country. In principle, German authorities must process applications (including visa applications) within 3 months (§ 75 VwGO). After the 3 months have expired, you can file an action for failure to act. We have written a separate VISAGUARD article on this, which shows you the options for speeding up visa applications.

 

Regardless of the standard processing time, au pair visas are usually processed faster than other visa applications. In Tbilisi/Georgia , for example, the processing time is around 6 - 8 weeks according to the embassy.

4. Placement of au pairs and seal of approval

Neither the host family nor the au pair is obliged to make contact via a placement agency. Nevertheless, these agencies are regularly used as they considerably reduce the organisational effort. The placement agencies are also available to help both the host family and the au pair in the event of problems.

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However, au pair placement agencies should be chosen with care. In order to guarantee a high quality of au pair placement in Germany, the Bundestag, in cooperation with the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (BMFSFJ), has created a seal of quality in which common quality standards have been developed together with around 200 au pair agencies. The so-called "Gütegemeinschaft Au pair e.V." was founded for this purpose. This quality association issues the RAL quality mark"Au pair" (see picture on the right), which is registered with the German Patent and Trade Mark Office and published in the Federal Gazette. A total of around 50 au pair agencies carry the quality mark.

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The agency finder of the Au Pair Quality Association can be used to find reliable agencies for the placement of au pairs. In Berlin, for example, the agency "au-pair-berlin" is widely used (no affiliate link).

 

What does the placement of au pairs cost for the au pair?

According to the common standards of the Quality Association, au pair agencies should charge au pairs a maximum of EUR 150 (incl. VAT). The fee is only payable once the au pair contract with the host family has been concluded.

5. Au pair visa Germany FAQ

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