How many hours does an au pair have to work?

(Also to be found with keywords Working hours and Hours per week)

There is no standard au pair working schedule that is applicable all countries. In Germany or the United States there are official rules. In Australia there is no official au pair programme. According to our basic idea of au pairing an au pair should never work more than 30 hours per week. In most host countries official au pair working hours include time spent babysitting.

A stopwatch held in the palm of a hand

Au pair working hours overview per country

Australia25 - 40 hours/week
Austria18 hours/week
Belgiummaximum of 20 hours/week
Canada25 - 30 hours/week
Denmark18 - 30 hours/week
Finlandmaximum of 30 hours/week
France25 hours/week
Germany30 hours/week
Ireland30 hours/week
Italy15 - 30 hours/week
Netherlands30 hours/week
New Zealand30 - 40 hours/week
Norway30 hours/week
South Africa30 hours/week
Spain30 hours/week
Swedenmaximum of 40 hours/week
Switzerlandmaximum of 30 hours /week
United Kingdom30 hours/week
USAmaximum of 45 hours/week

Working hours - Frequently Asked Questions