Welcoming an au pair this fall

If your family is in the medical or research field helping to combat COVID-19, or if your child has special needs, or if hosting an au pair would prevent the loss of employment, you may qualify to welcome an au pair this fall.

Who qualifies?

Families who believe they could fall into one of the below three categories may have their au pair apply for a National Interest Exception visa to arrive this fall:

  1. The au pair would care for a child with particular needs (e.g., medical, special education, or sign language) and the au pair possesses skills to care for such child.
  2. The au pair would prevent the family from needing to go on government assistance (ie. Unemployment or other public services.)
  3. The au pair would care for a child whose parents provide medical care to individuals who have contracted COVID-19 or perform medical research at United States facilities to help combat COVID-19.

Read the full description of this opportunity on the U.S. Department of State website under “J-1 applicants”.

Next steps:

If you believe you could qualify, follow the steps below to get started:

  1. Sign up below to let us know you’re interested.
  2. Register and complete your host family application with as much detail as possible to help you match with an au pair.
  3. Schedule your host family interview with a Local Childcare Consultant (LCC).
  4. Connect with au pairs until you find a good match for your family. We have a population of au pairs ready to travel this fall.
  5. Once you have a confirmed match, your Matching Specialist will advise you on what documentation to provide your au pair prior to the visa appointment.
  6. If your au pair’s visa is approved for a National Interest Exception, we will book a flight for your au pair to travel to your home within 30 days of visa approval.

What our families are saying…

Stephanie Lueckel, Trauma Surgeon
“[My au pair] has truly been a lifesaver because I don’t know what we would have done if we were not in this program with an au pair. We wouldn’t have been able to do it.”
The Kulkarni family, CO
“[Our son] was deemed ‘medically fragile’ as an infant, and he still has in-home therapy visits several times per month. Our au pair, Julie, has been a rock through all of this. In ways that are sometimes easily observable and at other times harder to appreciate from the outside, Julie has become an integral part of our family, our kids’ upbringing, and our broader community.”
The Heidger family, NY
“Our two-year-old twins had some significant development delays. My husband and I had full schedules so not only would Camille work with the therapists each day, learning how to manage non-verbal two year old twins, but she would spend her evenings teaching us everything she had learned.”

Sign up to get started

Sign up here to let us know that you think you could qualify to welcome an au pair this fall. We will contact you soon with more information and next steps.

We value your privacy. Read our privacy policy here.

Benefits of hosting an au pair:

Flexibility

Au pairs provide up to 45 hours
of care per week

You can schedule hours according
to your needs

Trust

Your au pair lives with you
as a family member

They become a trusted and
loving caregiver

Culture

Children are exposed to
different languages

They also develop a more
global perspective

Support

Au pair screening, training,
and travel

Year-long support for
program participants

Worry-Free

Your $300 processing fee is refundable up to 30 days prior to your au pair’s arrival.*

Au pairs arrive with a
legal J-1 visa

*Match with your au pair worry free: your $300 processing fee is refundable until 30 days prior to your au pair’s arrival. Please note, this applies to all families who match between September 4, and December 31, 2020