New Au Pair Rules for 2009
As of the 27th November 2008, the former Au Pair programme run by the British government for many years was superseded by the new, shiny Youth Mobility Scheme (YMS).
The Youth Mobility Scheme was introduced as a way of rationalising lots of different ways young people come to the UK for a temporary period; to work, study or learn English - and Au Pairs is one of those categories.
New Rules
The YMS has also evolved as part of the Home Office change to a points-based entry system for immigrants as a more efficient way of controlling entry to the UK. So, although the spirit of the au pair scheme remains the same for host families, agents and applicants alike, there are nevertheless, some rules which have changed.Age
Young people wishing to come to Britain as an au pair, now have to be a minimum age of 18 at the time of application (it used to be 17) and a maximum age of 30 (a welcome expansion of the age range from 27). Because a stay in the UK can be for up to 2 years, an au pair may now work up to a maximum age of 32.Sponsors
Under the new scheme, an au pair must now have a sponsor to apply for the Youth Mobility Scheme.The sponsor is actually the government of their country and if from an EU or EEA country, then the governments have long-standing sponsorship agreements as members of the European Community and nationals need not apply for a visa. However, if from a non-EU country, your government will need to have specific sponsorship arrangements with the UK.
Sponsoring Countries Outside the EU
The only countries which have so far made arrangements with the UK to be sponsors for the Youth Mobility Scheme are, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and Japan.This probably throws up the biggest change to au pair rules for 2009 because non-EU countries which had previously enjoyed arrangements with the government under the old au pair scheme, have either been refused membership, or have not yet re-applied under the new system.
These countries include most notably Turkey, Croatia, and Macedonia, although the full list at the time of writing includes:
- Andorra
- Bosnia-Herzegovina
- Croatia
- Faroe Islands
- Greenland
- Macedonia
- Monaco
- San Marino
- Turkey
Are ‘Old’ Visas still Valid?
If you are an au pair - or family who has an au pair - who has a visa obtained under the old rules (i.e. by or before 26th November, 2008), then it is perfectly legal to host or work as an au pair until the visa expires. Similarly, agents may still place au pairs who have valid visas, with families.The most common au pairs in this situation are Turkish and if they weren’t granted a visa prior to the cut-off date, they are currently no longer legally able to enter the country under the Youth Mobility Scheme.