Along with room and board, au pairs are paid a salary or stipend. To maintain the J-1 Visa au pairs must enroll in at least six hours of college credit classes or 80 lifelong learning hours in classes such as cooking, photography, pottery etc. at a local community college. Au pairs in good standing may apply for an extension of stay to continue participation in the program an additional 6, 9 or 12 months. The DHS allows J-1 visa holders to take an additional month at the conclusion of the exchange to travel in the United States. During that time, participants are free to travel independently of the program.
Au pairs placed with families who have children under 2 years old must have at least 200 hours of child care experience with infants under 2. Au pairs may only be placed in a family with an infant under 3 months old if a parent or other adult caregiver is also home and fully responsible for the infant.
The Au Pair Program is administered by the US Department of State. A typical 12-month program may have fees that resemble these from Au Pair USA:
Program Fees | Amount | Due | Au Pair USA Services Covered |
Application Fee (Non-Refundable) |
$250 | With application | Processing of the host family application and program approval |
Deposit | $2,500 | Upon matching with an au pair | Recruitment and screening of au pair, police clearance report, medical history, interview, matching and placement |
Program Fee Balance | $4,400* | Upon the au pair's arrival or according to payment plan | Au pair's visa, most of the au pair's round trip transportation, year-long support services of a local coordinator, a portion of the au pair's medical insurance and the au pair's training and orientation program |
Basic application criteria vary from agency to agency, but there are a few typical requirements:
It is the families responsibility to choose an agency that offers adequate screening of an au pair's background and mental make-up. The best situations are those in which the family and au pair truly like each other. It is also the families responsibility to be able to offer adequate room, board, and salary for the au pair as they are not a servant, but a valued employee.
The designated US agencies are: