FAQ

These are the general conditions for au pairs in Germany:

• A maximum of 6 hours work per day; A maximum of 30 hours work per week;
• At least 1.5 days off (at once) per week and four evenings in addition. The day off should be Sunday at least once a month. (more information: Au-pair | Bundesagentur für Arbeit)
• You are expected to provide childcare and light housework for your host family.
• Pocket money is 280 euros per month.
• The host family provides 70 Euros per month for your German course and covers the cost of transport to the course.
• The host family is required to provide medical insurance for illness, pregnancy, childbirth and accidents.
• There is no specific rule on how often you can rematch / change your host family. If you have already done this several times and need to do it again, you can contact your local overseas office to make sure that they are OK with your rematch.

As an au pair from a non-EU country, you need a permit to stay in Germany. According to your permit, you are only allowed to work and stay with the host family named in your permit.

The pocket money is 280 Euro per month. Unfortunately, there is no official rule on whether 280 should be paid in cash or transferred to your bank account. We strongly recommend that it is paid by bank transfer.

Your host family will provide you with 70 euros per month for your German course and will pay for your transport to the course (see "German course").
There are no rules regarding your flight costs, mobile data costs or other expenses.

Host families are required to pay at least 840 euros towards the cost of the language course. This can be paid to the au pair as a lump sum of 70 Euros per month for the whole duration of the au pair placement, or as a lump sum of 840 Euros. 840 euros or 70 euros per month will only be paid if you attend a German course.
In addition, your host family will have to pay the necessary travel costs for you to attend the nearest German course suitable for you.

The host family is required to provide medical insurance for illness, pregnancy, childbirth and accidents.

As an au pair you are allowed to work a maximum of 6 hours per day and a maximum of 30 hours per week. You should have at least 1.5 days off per week (at least one Sunday per month must be free) and at least four free evenings per week. This means that the au pair has at least 5 evenings off (4 evenings + 1.5 days) and is only allowed to babysit two evenings.

Firstly, you will look after children and secondly, you may be asked to do some light housework for your host family. As an au pair, you can't be asked to look after elderly people, do gardening, construction work etc. If you are asked to do any of these tasks, or if you are not sure whether you are doing some non-aupair tasks, you can contact us.

If you stay for one year, you must have four weeks' holiday. Otherwise, you are entitled to two days' holiday for every full month. Naturally, you will take this holiday in consultation with your host family. During your holiday, your host family must continue to pay you your pocket money and you will never have to arrange your own replacement.

There is no specific rule on how often you can rematch / change your host family. If you have already done this several times and need to do it again, you can contact your local overseas office to make sure that they are happy with your rematch.

Aupair's space doesn't offer any matching service and can't find a host family for you. However, we can help you with tips on where to look, what to ask and how to choose.

Aupair's space offers you an "open ear" and listens to you in any case, where you need us. We can also support you by informing you about your rights and options. Please contact us so that we can discuss your situation.

Aupair's space offers you an "open ear" and listens to you in any case, where you need us. We can also support you by informing you about your rights and options. Please contact us so that we can discuss your situation.

There is no officially known place where you can report a breach of the rules. However, Aupair's space can help you to report evidence-based violations to the officials who grant host families permission to receive an au pair. In case of violence against you, Aupair's space can support you in filing a police report.

Yes, you can always contact us.

Yes, you can always contact us.

At the moment we can help you in English, German, Spanish, Portuguese and Russian. If you speak another language, we'll do our best to find someone who can translate for you. You can also ask the au pair community on Facebook:
www.facebook.com/groups/aupairingermanysupport

If you suspect that your rights are being violated, that you are working overtime, or that you are receiving unclear or contradictory instructions from your host family, we recommend that you write down and document as much information as possible.

To secure evidence of any online harassment you may have experienced after leaving your host family, you can try this service: www.netzbeweis.com

Fairwork, a Belgian NGO that supports au pairs and other workers, has a very good guide on their website on how to collect evidence. Most of it is applicable to the au pair situation in Germany. Click here for details: www.fairworkbelgium.be/en/faq/tips-for-gathering-documentary-evidence/

If your ex-host is spreading untrue information about you online, for example in Facebook groups, or revealing your very personal information, you may want to consider filing a police report at a later date. We recommend that you secure digital evidence such as: screenshots of messages and chats or any other documentary evidence (e.g. GPS tracking of yourself, IPhone family locator that your host family eventually convinces you to use).

Asking your host family about your schedule in advance and specifying some tasks that might not be clear enough can prevent misunderstandings, extra work hours and also help you learn German because there might be some practical German vocabulary and constructions that are often used 🙂 If you are afraid that your host family might feel intimidated by you asking questions and pushing them to give you certainty instead of being flexible, consider this as your homework for your German class. Which is true if you are doing the homework yourself 😉.