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Au Pair and EduCare
Au Pair
Regulations pertaining specifically to the Au Pair category are found
at [22 CFR 62.31].
Through the Au Pair program foreign nationals between 18 and 26 years
of age participate directly in the home life of a host family by providing
limited childcare services for up to 12 months. Childcare is limited to
no more than 10 hours per day, and to a maximum of 45 hours per week.
Au pairs are compensated for their work according to the Fair Labor Standards
Act as interpreted and implemented by the US Department of Labor. Participants
in the Au Pair program must be proficient in spoken English, and are required
to complete at least six hours of academic credit or its equivalent at
an accredited US post-secondary educational institution. Host families
are required to pay up to $500 toward the cost of the au pair's required
academic course work.
Au pair participants may not be placed with a family having an infant
aged less than three months unless a parent or other responsible adult
is at home. Neither may au pairs be placed in homes with children under
two years of age unless the au pair has at least 200 hours of documented
infant childcare experience. Au pairs are not to be placed in families
with a special needs child, so identified by the family, unless the au
pair has specifically identified prior experience, skill, or training
in caring for special needs children and the host family has reviewed
and acknowledged the stated prior experience, skills, or training in writing.
Please refer to the regulations for details.
Sponsors are required to screen and select both host families and au
pairs as program participants according to selection criteria stated
in the regulations. Interested parties should contact the sponsoring
organizations directly to obtain additional information regarding their
program. All au pairs are to receive specific orientation and program
information from the sponsor prior to departure from their home countries
for the United States. Please refer to the regulations for details.
Pre-arrival information for all exchange visitors is defined at [22
CFR 62.10(b)(1-8)] and specifically for au pairs at [22
CFR 62.31(f)]. Orientation material (post-arrival) is defined
at [22 CFR 62.10(c)(1-7)]. Selected host families also
receive specific information from the sponsor. Orientation for host
families is discussed in the regulations at [22 CFR 62.31(i)(1-4)].
The sponsor is to provide au pairs with training in child development
and child safety prior to their placement with a host family. A minimum
of eight hours of child safety instruction, of which at least four relate
to infants, and a minimum of 24 hours of child development instruction,
of which at least four relate to children under two years of age, are
required.
Host families and au pairs must sign a Host Family-Au Pair Agreements
prior to the au pair's placement in the host family's home. In the event
of questions regarding refunds or other adjustments host families and
au pairs should refer to their agreements. The Department of State does
not have jurisdiction over contractual obligations.
EduCare
The Au Pair program includes the EduCare component. The EduCare component
is only for families who have school-aged children and require childcare
before and after school hours. Accordingly, au pairs participating in
the EduCare component may not be placed with families having preschool
children, unless alternative, full-time arrangements are in place for
their supervision. The EduCare au pair may work no more than 10 hours
per day, and a maximum of 30 hours per week. Au pairs participating in
the EduCare component receive 75 percent of the weekly rate paid to au
pairs. EduCare au pairs must complete a minimum of 12 hours of academic
credit or its equivalent during the program year. The host family is required
to provide (up to) the first $1,000 toward the cost of the au pair's required
academic course work. Please refer to the regulations for details.
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