One way to migrate as a domestic help is via the AU PAIR route, who is an aupair you might ask? An au pair is simply a person (most families prefer a lady, usually between the ages of 18-30 ) who temporarily lives with a host family (usually between 12 -24 months depending on the country) who is paid a salary by the host salary to babysit and do light household work for them.

What are the steps to secure this and am I required to pay money to the host family to sponsor me to come over?

No, you do not pay money to the host family, it is completely free and you should not pay anyone money to sponsor you, they need you to care for their child so they pay you not you paying them.

The steps involved are:

1. Decide which country or countries you want to go to and make sure your country is not on their ban list (tip: European countries have less complicated requirement), Check the visa and immigration requirements using Google or any search platform you use (e.g let’s say you are interested in Germany, type “aupair visa requirements for Germany”), many websites will pop up but make sure its the official immigration website of the country you are looking at because they contain more updated information for visa application and visa process. Requirements vary from country to country to make sure to check well.

2. Search for a host family: There are trusted free websites which connect families and aupair like: www.aupairworld.com,

www.greataupair.com and www.aupair.com. Create an account with them and start searching and contacting host families.

When talking to a potential host families, be professional and respectful but do not sound desperate. Tell them about your experience in childcare and even better provide proof and reference from previous families you helped with their children in your home country.

Discuss your expectations and listen to their expectations of you to see if you agree with it.

Some families might even require you to undergo a background check and provide police report to be sure you have a clean and crime-free record in your home country for the safety of their children.

3. Next step is signing of contract, visa application and arriving your host country. When you arrive, in your free time, make friends with the locals and integrate into the country but also with people from your home country for guidance. If there is an aupair association or group in your area, you can join them for support and information.

If your plan is to legally stay back in the country once your contract is over, there are videos of previous Au pairs on YouTube who were able to get a permanent stay eventually, you can listen to them for tips.

I would really like to point out one thing, the three websites I listed above are genuine websites for searching host families, it is open to everyone and millions have used it to secure host families but because it is open and free registration, some sc@mmer register too and pretend to be host families but this is how to know them:

i. They are offering you a salary or package that is too good to be true. Most aupairs are paid around 300-500 euros a month, if it goes way beyond this amount, its probably sc@m. Another is apart from the salary, they are promising you vacation to exotic places. Generally if its way too good to be true, run.

ii. They are trying to rush the process, they have not asked you deep questions to try to know you personally. A genuine family wants to get to know you properly because you would be caring for their child.

iii. They are asking you to send money to help you process one thing or the other to facilitate your arrival. Never send money to a potential host family no matter how little it is. No genuine family will ask you to send money for whatever reason.

iv. They are avoiding doing video calls with you. A genuine family wants to see your face and let’s you see theirs, if they are avoiding you, they are sc@mmers.

v. On these websites, some families get reviews and testimonials from au pairs they have hosted in the past, Check if they have it.

Just use your instincts and if you suspect a host family profile of being fake, there is always a section or button on these websites where you can report them to the website to investigate and remove them