Most Au pairs arrive in Germany from Georgia and Ukraine
The program, whose name translates from French as 'mutual', provides for a multi-month stay in families abroad for young people who, in exchange for accommodation, meals, and language course attendance, perform light housework and look after children. The number of participants in this program in Germany continues to grow, according to a recently published survey. In 2014, it amounted to about 11,000 people, a thousand more than in 2013 and 2,600 more than in 2012.
According to the report, in 2014, 6,000 Au pairs in Germany were EU citizens and 4,881 from non-EU countries. The most Au pairs come to Germany from Georgia and Ukraine (16.1% each). They are followed by Nepal (11.8%), Russia (9.1%), China (8%), Colombia (4.3%), Kyrgyzstan (3.2%), Madagascar and Mexico (2.1% each), as well as Armenia and Italy (1.6% each).
Mostly girls go abroad under the Au pair program. As a rule, agencies arrange their stay in the country for 10 to 12 months. At the same time, almost every third German agency reported cases of premature termination of the contract: reasons included insufficient knowledge of German and unsatisfactory childcare skills.
Data on Au pairs from Germany are approximate due to a lack of continuous record-keeping. It is assumed that the trend is toward a decrease in the number of people wishing to spend a year abroad as an Au pair, if only because of options such as the Work and Travel program and opportunities to do internships abroad. In 2014, about 25,000 applications were registered on the AuPairWorld portal, 2,000 fewer than the previous year.
Among Au pairs from Germany, the most popular destinations are the United Kingdom (24.1%), France (15.2%), Spain (12.4%), Ireland (11.7%), the USA (8.3%), and Australia (7.6%). The survey was conducted by the insurance company Dr. Walter GmbH among 64 German agencies working with the Au pair system.