HOW TO HIRE · CHILDCARE & FAMILY

How to hire an au pair in the UK
The checks, the questions and the paperwork.

No register applies to au pairs, but minimum wage and right-to-work rules do. Here is what to check and agree before they arrive.

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THE 60-SECOND VERSION

Hiring an au pair in five steps

  1. Check the right to workUK nationality, EU Settlement Scheme status or a Youth Mobility Scheme visa, among the routes gov.uk lists.
  2. Work out the pay properlyMinimum wage applies, with accommodation counted.
  3. Write down hours and dutiesDays off, babysitting evenings, light housework.
  4. Ask about vettingDBS, PVG or AccessNI where they can get one.
  5. Prepare the roomPrivate, their own.

BEFORE YOU BOOK

Check before you book

No register applies

No compulsory register applies to au pairs in any UK nation. An au pair lives with your family and helps with the children; no childcare register covers that in any nation.

Rely on references you phone yourself, photo ID that matches, and the criminal record check the au pair holds.

Right to work

gov.uk lists who you can hire as an au pair: UK nationals, EU citizens holding status from the EU Settlement Scheme (the Home Office scheme), or holders of a Youth Mobility Scheme visa; otherwise check the visa conditions, and never hire someone on a visitor visa.

See the au pair's documents before they travel and keep a copy. gov.uk →

Minimum wage and tax

Minimum wage law (the National Minimum Wage Act 1998) covers au pairs, gov.uk confirms, with the room you give them counted in the sum; they may also owe Income Tax and National Insurance. As the employer you keep the records.

Work out pay against the current minimum wage rate, with the accommodation offset, before you agree pocket money. gov.uk →

Criminal record check — DBS, PVG or AccessNI

England and Wales: childcare can get the enhanced DBS check with barred lists, and Ofsted requires it of a registered au pair. Scotland: PVG scheme membership. Northern Ireland: an enhanced AccessNI check with the children's barred list, through an Umbrella Body for the self-employed. A parent cannot apply on a carer's behalf.

Ask to see the au pair's certificate — or proof of PVG membership in Scotland — and read the issue date; a DBS certificate has no official expiry. gov.uk →

VAT

Childcare is exempt from VAT only when a state-regulated provider (registered with Ofsted, CIW, the Care Inspectorate or the Health and Social Care Trust), a charity or a public body supplies it; otherwise it is standard-rated. A self-employed au pair is not a state-regulated provider, so the exemption does not reach them — but under £90,000 they are not VAT-registered and charge no VAT.

Treat the au pair's weekly pay as wages and check it against the minimum wage; no VAT belongs on it. gov.uk →

“What is your right to work in the UK?”

A good answer: Documents that match the routes on gov.uk — an au pair on a visitor visa cannot be hired.

“Have you looked after children of these ages?”

A good answer: Experience and references.

“How many hours a week do you expect to work?”

A good answer: Agreed in writing, with days off.

“How many evenings of babysitting?”

A good answer: A number written down.

“Do you drive?”

A good answer: Licence and insurance sorted.

“Do you have a criminal record check from home or the UK?”

A good answer: Whatever they can show, dated.

“What do you want from the stay?”

A good answer: Language, study, travel — so expectations match.

Booking by the hour

  • Weekly pay, checked against the minimum wage for the hours worked, with the accommodation offset
  • The hours a week, the days off, and what happens to pay in weeks the family is away
  • Room and board provided, and who pays travel, phone and language course costs
  • The duties agreed before the first day: school runs, children's meals, light housework, babysitting evenings
  • Holiday, and the notice to end the placement

Walk away if

  • Visitor visa or no right-to-work documents
  • Pocket money well below minimum wage with no accommodation offset worked out
  • No written hours
  • Expected to work nanny hours
  • No references
  • No private room
LOW
£70
TYPICAL
£85
HIGH
£90

What an au pair costs: £70–£90 per week

Au pairs are paid weekly, with the room and board counted towards the minimum wage calculation. Au Pair price guide →

Guide prices compiled by the Locufy team from published Irish and UK provider price lists and 2026/27 cost guides. Updated 2026.

KNOW WHAT TO LOOK FOR? NOW FIND ONE

Au pairs near you, with the badges that matter shown

ID checked, trader status and one score from every review — on the card, before you message anyone. Nearest first. No account needed to look.

Or post the job free and let them come to you.

  1. MatchVideo calls and references.
  2. Right to workDocuments checked.
  3. AgreementHours, pay, duties, days off.
  4. ArrivalSettling in.
  5. ReviewAfter the first month.

Au pair
A young person living with a family and helping with children.
Youth Mobility Scheme visa
A visa that lets young people from some countries work in the UK.
EU Settlement Scheme
Settled or pre-settled status for EU citizens.
Accommodation offset
How provided housing counts towards minimum wage.
Pocket money
The weekly payment — still subject to minimum wage rules.
Right to work
Proof someone may work in the UK.

AFTER

When the job is done

Keep pay recordsgov.uk puts that on the employer.
Review after a monthHours, duties, how everyone is getting on.
Plan the end dateNotice and travel.
Review the bookingTell the next family or client how the au pair did. Something to fix first? The make-it-right step gives them the chance before your review goes live.

STEP 1Raise it with the au pair as their employerTalk first, then write down what needs to change and by when. gov.uk expects an employer to discuss a conduct or performance problem informally before anything formal, and to have written disciplinary rules that follow the Acas Code of Practice (the Labour Relations Agency code in Northern Ireland); an au pair can raise a grievance with you, and may bring a companion to a formal meeting.
STEP 2Use Locufy's make-it-right stepIf you booked the au pair through Locufy and rate them under four stars, you are asked whether to send it to them first; we follow it through. Then you review.
STEP 3If the au pair's job endsFollow the notice in the contract: after a month in the job an employee must give at least a week's notice, and dismissing without proper notice is wrongful dismissal, so act fairly and keep records. Final pay includes wages owed and any untaken statutory holiday, even after gross misconduct; give the au pair a P45 and report the leaving date to HMRC through payroll. The Acas helpline (0300 123 1100) advises employers in England, Scotland and Wales.
STEP 4Booked through an agency, or self-employed?Then you are a customer, not an employer: the agency or the self-employed au pair is a trader who must use reasonable care and skill under section 49 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015. A money claim against them can go to small claims — up to £10,000 in England and Wales, £5,000 under simple procedure in Scotland, £5,000 in Northern Ireland.

Hiring an au pair: questions people ask

No. No register applies to au pairs in any UK nation.

Yes. gov.uk confirms minimum wage law covers au pairs, and the room you provide counts towards it.

A UK national, someone with EU Settlement Scheme status, or a Youth Mobility Scheme visa holder, among others gov.uk lists; otherwise check visa conditions. Never someone on a visitor visa.

£70 to £90 a week, typically around £85. Room and board, travel and a language course sit on top of the weekly money. Our au pair price guide explains the range; searching your town above shows au pairs who cover it.

Ask what check they can show; in Scotland childcare roles are PVG roles, and in Northern Ireland AccessNI applies.

Follow the notice you agreed in writing.

MORE GUIDES

More hiring guides in childcare & family

How to hire: NannyHow to hire: Live-In NannyHow to hire: Part-Time NannyHow to hire: BabysitterHow to hire: Mother's HelpHow to hire: School Run / PickupHow to hire: Evening BabysitterHow to hire: After-School CareAll 701 hiring guides →

Au pairs near you

Au pairs in LondonAu pairs in ManchesterAu pairs in BirminghamAu pairs in GlasgowAu pairs in BelfastAll au pairs on Locufy →

Sources — checked October 2026

  1. gov.uk — become a childminder or nanny (England)
  2. gov.uk — register as a nanny with Ofsted
  3. gov.uk — choose which Ofsted register to join
  4. Ofsted — registration exemptions (England)
  5. Ofsted — check if childcare is registered
  6. gov.wales — get up to 30 hours of childcare for 3 and 4 year olds
  7. gov.uk — registering as a childminder (Scotland)
  8. mygov.scot — the PVG scheme
  9. nidirect — home childcarers
  10. nidirect — AccessNI checks for the self-employed and personal employees
  11. gov.uk — DBS checks: levels and who can request one
  12. gov.uk — employing someone to work in your home
  13. gov.uk — National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage rates
  14. gov.uk — Tax-Free Childcare
  15. nidirect — help paying for approved childcare
  16. gov.uk — employing someone to work in your home: au pairs
  17. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 54 — consumer's rights for services
  18. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 49 — reasonable care and skill
  19. gov.uk — solve a workplace dispute
  20. gov.uk — taking disciplinary action against an employee
  21. gov.uk — dismissing staff (fair, unfair and wrongful dismissal)
  22. gov.uk — dismissing staff: how to dismiss someone
  23. gov.uk — handing in your notice: giving notice
  24. gov.uk — holiday entitlement: taking holiday before leaving a job
  25. gov.uk — what to do when an employee leaves
  26. Welfare services and goods (VAT Notice 701/2) — 2.2.1 Care and protection of children that are exempt; 3.3 State regulated providers
  27. GOV.UK — VAT rates
  28. GOV.UK — Register for VAT: when to register