Au-Pair Countries of origin
As a Host Family, you often have a certain idea from which Au Pair countries your candidate should come. However, statistics show that the individual wishes do not match the Au-Pairs's countries of origin. In fact, the Au-Pair countries are composed differently.
According to a study by Dr. Walter, which was published in May 2016, 12,000 Au-Pairs came to Germany in 2015. But only a few of the placed Au-Pairs came from Europe. Moreover, figures from the Federal Foreign Office show that mostly young people from other cultures come to Germany within the Au-Pair program. These include Ukraine, Georgia and Russia.
Au-Pair Countries: Which nationalities do Host Families look for?
According to statistics from the online matching agency AuPair.com, the UK and the USA are at the top of the list of desired nationalities. However, many are looking for an Au-Pair from Spain, France or Italy. Additionally, Au-Pairs from Sweden, Denmark, Australia and Finland are also among the top 10. Other popular Au-Pairs are from Switzerland, Norway, Belgium and Iceland.
A detailed overview of the preferred Au-Pair nationalities of international families can be found in the graph below.
Desired nationalities
[wpcharts type="barchart" max="240" legend="false" titles="Englisch, Amerikanisch, Spanisch, Französisch, Britisch, Italienisch, Schwedisch, Dänisch, Australisch, Finnisch" values="230, 227, 209, 185, 184, 175, 174, 172, 163, 146"]
Desired Au-Pair nationalities of international Host Families (Source: Online matching agency AuPair.com)
Which countries do the Au-Pairs come from?
Germany is becoming increasingly popular as an Au-Pair destination, also among young people outside the EU. For example, according to figures from the Federal Foreign Office, 5,374 Au-Pairs came from countries requiring a visa in 2015. Among those, 963 candidates from Ukraine applied for a visa to stay in Germany. Georgia came second with 736 approved Au-Pair visas. And from Nepal, there were 395 Au-Pairs requiring a visa, from Russia 393 and from Colombia 362.
[wpcharts type="piechart" legend="true" titles="Ukraine, Georgien, Nepal, Russland, Kolumbien, China, Tansania, Indonesien" values="963, 736, 395, 393, 362, 333, 258, 187"]
Au-Pair visa applications 2015 (Source: Federal Foreign Office)
On top of that, a survey of German Au-Pair agencies within the study by Dr. Walter provides similar results: Georgia (21, 08%), Ukraine (16, 27%), Nepal (9, 64%) and Russia (9, 04%) are among the most frequent countries of origin for Au-Pairs coming to Germany.
Besides, at the German agency MultiKultur, most Au-Pairs placed in German Host Families come from Madagascar, in addition to Ukraine and Russia. Apart from that, some placed Au-Pairs also come from Colombia, the Philippines, the USA or Canada. From the EU countries, MultiKultur most frequently places Au-Pairs from Poland or the Czech Republic. In general, the country of origin of the Au-Pair always depends on how strict the visa regulations of the respective country are.
The best Au-Pairs come from...
Above all, the selection of an Au-Pair should not only be based on the Au Pair's nationality. So you should first pay attention to the basic requirements that an Au-Pair has to fulfill. It is particularly important that the candidate has already gained experience in working with children about the same age as the host children. Furthermore, it is also an advantage if the Au-Pair has a driving license with sufficient driving experience.
For families who are applying for the first time as a Host Family, it is advisable to choose an Au-Pair for whom the cultural difference is not too big. Ultimately, however, it is important that the chemistry between you and the Au-Pair is right. Therefore, when making a decision, Host Families should rely on their gut feeling, not too much on the Au-Pair countries. Do you need more information? Then contact us directly!
