Au Pair Visa UK-Aupair Visa Rules For UK

 

The visa regulations for au-pair differ according to whether the Au-pair is from;

1. Western European Country (no restrictions)
   1. Eastern European Country (few restrictions)
   2. Romania And Bulgaria (more restrictions) 
2. A Non European Country  (full restrictions, visa and work permit required)

Au-pairs From European Countries 

Au-pairs from countries that are within the European Economic Area are free to travel and work in the United Kingdom under the  provisions of the  European freedom of movement regulations: these regulation permit the  free movement of goods, persons, services, and capital among the EEA nations i.e. the right for Europeans to work and live in any other European country of their choosing.

Accordingly, nationals of European Economic Area have little or not work restrictions placed up them.

However, the implementation of this law differs slightly accordingly to whether the Au-pairs is from

• Western Europe,
• Eastern Europe
• Romanian and Bulgaria.

UK Visa Rules For Au-pairs from Western Europe

1. Au-pairs from Western Europe do not have any restrictions placed upon them.
2. Free to enter, work and remain in the UK for as long as they want.
3. They are not required to  register with the Home Office or indeed notify any authority of their presence in the UK.
4. Accordingly they are not required to  have any documentation confirming their right to work or live in the UK.

 

The Western European countries are;

Austria / Belgium / Cyprus / Denmark / Finland / France / Germany / Greece / Iceland / Ireland / Italy / Liechtenstein / Lithuania / Luxembourg / Malta / Norway / The Netherlands / Portugal / Spain / Sweden / Switzerland

 

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1A . Au Pairs From Eastern Europe 

 

1. Free to enter and remain in the UK for as long as they wish.
2. Free to take up employment in any field and work for an initial 30 day ‘permit free period’.  
3. However, should they wish to work beyond the 30 days period then, they MUST register to obtain an Accession card. This is done by submitted form  WAR  to the Home Office.
4. Provided the WAR form is sent within a 30 day period of the au pair starting work they are permitted to continue working pending the arrival of the Accession card.
5. After 12 month of continuous work they are entitled to obtain full rights to work and live in the UK. i.e the same right of free movement granted to Western European nationals.

 

For further detail click Criteria For Applying For The WAR Card. 

The Eastern European Countries are;

Czech Republic / Estonia / Hungary / Latvia / Lithuania / Poland / Slovakia / Slovenia /

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1b. Visa Rules For Romanian and Bulgarian Au-pair

 

1. More or less free to enter and remain in the United Kingdom for as long as they wish. They are not required to obtain the permission of the Home Office to remain in the UK.
2. HOWEVER, prior to commencing work, the Au-pair must either have a work permit or obtain a worker’s accession card.   
3. The workers accession card is pretty easy to obtain and is given for an initial period of 12 month.
4. After 12 month of continuous work as an au pair, they are  entitled to apply for a permanent work permit. This card, once it is issued, will give them the same rights of work and residence as Western Europeans. I. e. the same freedom to work and live in the UK for as long as they wish.
5. They are free to take up any job that they wish to take up and their dependent partner will also be granted an automatic right to do any job of their choosing.

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Criteria For Obtaining 'Workers Accession Card' For Romanian And Bulgarian Nationals

1. has and intends to take up an offer of an au pair placement;
2. is aged between 17 to 27 inclusive;
3. is unmarried and is not in a civil partnership;
4. is without  dependants
5. must obtain a letter from the au pair family/ host family setting out the details of the job. The letter must include the name and address of the host family, the nature of the work that the au pair will undertake; I  Au pair duties.  ( click here for sample letter)
6. The applicant may apply for the card while in the United Kingdom and nothing in the Immigration rules prevents the Au-pair from residing at the host family home pending formal receipt of the accession card. Please note however that the Au-pair is not permitted to perform any  Au-pair duties till the accession card is received.

For details on how to obtain the accession card click here

If you would like more information from the Official Home Office Website about the Accession card then click here.

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Au-pairs  From Non Eu Countries

Au-pairs from  Non Eu countries  who do not  have a work permits  are required to obtain a work permit as an Au-pair prior to their arrival in the United Kingdom.  

The best route in is to obtain a visa under the

1. Youth Mobility Scheme. 

 

(This scheme was introduced in 2008 and replaces the obsolete Working Holiday maker visa)

However the United Kingdom only permits Au-pairs from certain participating countries to obtain this visa.
The countries are;

Australia / Canada / Monaco / New Zealand /   Japan British Overseas Citizen / British Overseas Territories Citizen /  British National (Overseas) /

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Requirement for entry under the Youth Mobility Scheme

1. National of one of the participating countries.
2. Aged between 18 and 30.
3. No children under the age of 18 who live with the applicant and whom the applicant is financially responsible for
4. Not have previously worked in the United Kingdom under the Working Holidaymaker visa.
5. Have sufficient funds, held in applicant bank account,  to support themselves for duration of stay
6. In the United Kingdom: currently set at £1600.
7. Not already in the United Kingdom  

 

For information on this please go to the Home Office page for Youth Mobility Scheme.

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Medical Treatment for Au-pair in the United Kingdom.

 

Health insurance and treatment  
Au-pairs can be registered under the National Health Service NHS .

We have to differentiate between non urgent treatment and emergency treatment (i.e. if the Au-pair is rushed to a local hospital) 

Emergency treatment â€"
All Au-pair are entitled to emergency treatment for the duration of their stay in the United Kingdom

Non emergency treatment
Au-pairs from EU and associate countries can receive free treatment should they fall ill during their stay.
Au-pair from non EU and associate countries but whose Countries have reciprocal agreements for treatment of their citizen with the United Kingdom can receive free treatment. All other may have to pay for non emergency treatment. It advisable for Au-pair families to check with their local GP prior to employing non EU citizen what the GP policy would be for non emergency treatment would be.

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Requirements for the EEA national to obtain the War card

1. The Au-pair is not entitled to apply for the War card prior to starting work. This means that the Au-pair MUST actually be in the employment of the host family before he/she actually makes the application to the Home Office.
2. The application must be made within 30 days of the Au-pair starting work for the Host family.

 

These are the only requirements for the application and it’s pretty easy to obtain the card. The Home Office states that   70 per cent of the cards are issued within two weeks of receipt of the application and that  90 per cent of applications are issued within 4 weeks.

The form can be downloaded from the Home Office web site.  Click here to obtain the form from Home Office website. 

 

Alternatively a form will be posted if you call the following number;  0117 344 1471
    

Under European Union law, the Worker Registration Scheme cannot continue beyond the end of April 2011.

 

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Procedure To Obtain The Accession Card for Romanians and Bulgarians

The applicant may apply for the card while in the United Kingdom and nothing in the immigration rules prevents the applicant from actually residing at the Au-pair families/host family’s home pending formal receipt of the accession card. Please note however that the Au-pair cannot perform any actual Au-pair duties till the accession card is obtained.

Next step is to obtain and complete form BR3 from the home office. This form can either be downloaded from the Home Office website or posted to the host family or the Au-pair.

To obtain the form from the Official Website for the UK Immigration service click here

On completion of the form it should be returned to the Home Office with the required documents. (It is advisable to return the form by recorded delivery)

 
The required documents are;

1. Two recent passport size photographs of  the Au-pair
2. Current passport or ID Card.
3. The letter from the Host family/Au-pair family.

 

The permit is usually issued about 2-4 weeks later but can arrive much earlier or may take slightly long to arrive.  No interview or other formalities are generally required.

 

Sample letter that Host families give to Romanian/Bulgarian Au-pairs

The letter must confirm the full name and address of the host family. Nothing in the immigration rule requires the host family to have permanent residence or work permits in the United Kingdom.  It is of course implied and expected that the Host family are legally resident in the UK.

The letter should clearly state;

• You will help in the home in which you are being placed for up to five hours a day
• You will get at least two days off a week;
• You will get an allowance and your own room; and
• You are being placed with an English speaking family

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Aupair World Disclaimer Notice

 

Please note that the aupair visa rules given by Aupair world are meant for guidance purposes only and are not to be relied upon. Au pair world cannot be held liable for this information and reader are strongly advised to seek legal advice from the appropreiate channels in the country they wish to work in.

 

 

Aupair World - Aupair Visa Rules

 

Au-pair Visas for North America

 

Aupair Visa USA- America/ Canada

 

Au-pair Visas for Europe

 

Aupair Visa Austria / Aupair Visa Belgium / Aupair Visa Denmark / Aupair Visa Finland/ Aupair Visa France / Aupair Visa Germany / Aupair Visa Ireland/ Aupair Visa Italy / Aupair Visa Liechtenstein / Aupair Visa Luxembourg / Aupair Visa Netherlands / Aupair Visa Norway / Spain / Sweden / Aupair Visa Switzerland / Aupair Visa United Kingdom /

 

Aupair Visas for Australia

Aupair Visa Australia / Aupair Visa New Zealand/