Au Pair International

About us

THE AU PAIR PROGRAM EXPERTS

Au Pair International is a family-oriented agency dedicated to providing quality, trustworthy care for your children. We strive to provide the highest quality service to all our participants, and according to our satisfied host families and au pairs, we have succeeded. While many other au pair programs diversify, by simultaneously running high school programs and language schools, we stick to our specialty. The au pair program is our organizational strength and focus, and therefore, we are able to provide lower fees and happier program participants. When you are passionate about providing the best care for your children, you need a partner who has your family’s best interests in mind.

SATISFACTION GUARANTEE

As parents ourselves, we strive to offer only thoroughly-screened, highly-trained and experienced applicants that we would trust with our own children! When a host family chooses Au Pair International for their childcare needs, it is normally for the long run. Our participants’ satisfaction and the long-term friendship we develop with our host families, is why we love what we do. In fact, most our host families have been referred to us by friends, family, and colleagues of current host families. For this reason, your satisfaction is extremely important to us. If you are not satisfied with your au pair match, we will quickly assist you in finding a new au pair, or provide you with a refund per our contractual agreement.

QUALITY

Nobody beats our quality. With our multi-level screening process, we select only the best candidates for the program. The candidates are well prepared through our training program, which only uses courses accredited for certified childcare provider designation. We have a 95% success rate in the placement of our au pairs. This means peace of mind for you, and consistent, quality care for your children!

Au Pair Program 101

The Au Pair Program is a great option for your family’s childcare needs, but it is also a wonderful opportunity for your children to learn about foreign cultures and languages.

Program length

Au pairs come to the U.S. on a 12-month exchange program, with the potential to extend their time for 6, 9, or 12 months once they have successfully completed their first program year. After their program, (whether they complete 12, 18, 21, or 24 months) they have a 30-day grace period that permits the au pair to stay or travel in the U.S. Au pairs have the option of returning to the U.S. for new terms as an au pair participant, as long as they meet the requirements.

Childcare hours

Au pairs may provide childcare and light childcare-related housework for the host family, for up to 45 hours per week and up to 10 hours per day. Au pairs offer live-in childcare, and therefore, have more flexibility to care for your children at the times that accommodate your family’s schedule.

Childcare responsibilities

Au pairs may have a wide range of responsibilities related to your children. An au pair provides busy parents with a much needed “extra set of hands.” Duties can include childcare and light housekeeping related to childcare such as doing the children’s laundry and cleaning up after them.
Au pairs should not be expected to run an entire household. The responsibility for raising the children and the welfare of the children always remains with the parents/guardians.

Au Pair Selection: Host Families must review au pair applications and interview the au pair by phone before a match can take place.

Newborn children: An au pair cannot have the sole responsibility for an infant younger than three months of age. A parent or other responsible adult must always be present.

Children under two years of age: Au pairs who are to be placed with a family with a child younger than 2 years of age must have at least 200 hours of documented infant childcare experience.

Special Needs: As the care for special needs children varies, the host family must describe the special needs of the child and any special care needed, and have reviewed the au pair’s experience, skills and/or training and acknowledge this as suitable for the care of their special needs child.

Program Options

Whether you have an infant, toddler, pre-teen, or combination of the three, we have a program option to meet the individual needs of your family! In addition to those options listed below, Au Pair International recruits au pair candidates from more than 50 countries around the world. By working with such a diverse group of talented partners, we can accommodate most host family requests to help expose your family to a specific language or culture!

• Standard Program – This program option is our most popular, and perfect for families with children ages 2 and older. To qualify, applicants must provide proof of at least 200 hours of recent practical childcare experience with children over the age of 2.
• Infant Qualified Program – If you have a child/children under the age of 2, this might be the program option for you! Qualified applicants must have a minimum of 200 hours of recent practical childcare experience with infants or children ages 2 and under. *Please note that an au pair cannot be solely responsible for an infant under the age of 3 months. Another responsible adult must be present in the home at all times.
• Professional Program – The Au Pair Professional Program is designed for parents who would benefit from hosting an au pair with formal professional training.  Professional candidates will have obtained post-secondary degrees in child-related fields, along with professional experience in the field of their degree, or a minimum of two years of full-time childcare experience. This program option is perfect for families that home-school or have special needs children. It also gives the au pair the opportunity to use his/her program year to assist with career advancement upon return to their home country.