Au Pair Contract: Template for Switzerland
Hours, free day, pocket money, board and lodging, language course: everything the authority checks is written into the contract as a clause. Fill it in, download the PDF, sign. Free, no account needed.
The template is in German
The compensation office and the migration office work in the national languages; a German contract is accepted throughout German-speaking Switzerland. This page explains every clause in your language, so you know exactly what you are signing.
With Clino you additionally get the contract bilingual, English included.
Interactive: no more copying by hand
Enter your au pair's details
The template fills in live, and right below you see immediately whether pocket money and hours stay within the limits. Nothing is required.
Guideline: 120 course hours a year, the contribution is up to you.
Your numbers, live
- Pocket money (cash)
- CHF 800
- Board & lodging (Art. 11 AHVV)
- + CHF 990
- AHV wage per month
- CHF 1'790
- Projected over the year
- CHF 21'480
- Simplified-procedure ceiling
- CHF 22'680
Within the simplified procedure · 95%
Up to CHF 900 pocket money keeps you in the simplified procedure over 12 months.
Still empty, the PDF keeps a line to fill in by hand:
The au pair's name and your postcode carry over.
Rather fill it in by hand?
The same 15 clauses as a blank template with lines to fill in, 3 A4 pages.
Note: this template is a starting point. Adjust pocket money, hours and cantonal specifics to your situation before signing.
Why a dedicated template
An au pair contract is not a normal employment contract
An au pair placement is a cultural exchange with employment elements. Four things are therefore settled differently than in any nanny or cleaner contract.
The pay is counted differently
Instead of an hourly wage: pocket money plus board and lodging. Room and meals count as CHF 990 a month of wage in kind (Art. 11 AHVV) towards the AHV wage. Registering only the pocket money means under-registering.
The criteria are written as clauses
At most 30 hours a week, at least one full free day, a parent at home half the time: the authority checks criteria, not titles. The contract makes them binding in black and white instead of leaving them to an information sheet.
The language course belongs in the contract
The course evidences the cultural exchange: guideline 120 hours a year. Your contribution to the costs is put in figures, and the course time must be freed up. Several cantons make the course mandatory.
One clause guards against reclassification
If a criterion falls away, the minimum wage of a household employee applies retroactively. The classification clause makes this consequence transparent, so both sides know what the arrangement depends on.
Every clause, explained
What goes into an au pair contract, and why
Eight building blocks decide whether your arrangement counts as an au pair placement. Tap through them: the contract line, the reason behind it, and the questions host families actually ask.
As written in the contract (German)
§ 1 · NATUR
Die Parteien vereinbaren ein Au-pair-Verhältnis: einen befristeten kulturellen Austausch, bei dem das Au-pair in der Gastfamilie lebt, die Landessprache lernt und im Gegenzug bei Kinderbetreuung und leichter Hausarbeit mithilft.
An exchange, not a job, yet with duties
Why it's in the contract
The contract first pins down what an au pair placement is: a cultural exchange with helping hands, not regular employment. Everything else follows from this, from pocket money instead of a market wage to the 30-hour cap.
Common questions
Is my au pair legally an employee?
For AHV, accident insurance and registration: yes. The compensation office treats pocket money plus board and lodging as wages. The special status only concerns the minimum-wage question, not social insurance.
Can't we just arrange this privately, without paperwork?
No. Without registration it is undeclared work, with back payments up to five years and fines. The written contract is also the basis for the permit and the registration.
As written in the contract (German)
§ 3 · EINSATZZEIT
Die Einsatzzeit beträgt höchstens 30 Stunden pro Woche inklusive leichter Hausarbeit und Abendbetreuung. Dem Au-pair steht mindestens 1 ganzer freier Tag pro Woche zu.
The line everything hangs on
Why it's in the contract
At most 30 hours a week, at least one full free day, and a parent at home for half the time: these are the criteria that separate an au pair from a nanny. They belong in the contract because the authority checks criteria, not titles.
Common questions
Does evening babysitting count towards the 30 hours?
Yes. Evening care, light housework, all of it counts as working time. A contract with 25 hours plus three fixed babysitting evenings is often over the line in practice.
We both work full time. Can we still have an au pair?
Risky. A parent must be present in the household for at least half of the au pair's working time. If both parents are out full time, it is in effect a nanny position, with a minimum wage.
As written in the contract (German)
§ 5 · TASCHENGELD
Das Taschengeld ist bewusst kein Marktlohn, sondern die Barkomponente eines Austauschverhältnisses; zusammen mit Kost und Logis bildet es den AHV-pflichtigen Lohn.
Deliberately not a wage, yet AHV-liable
Why it's in the contract
The contract explicitly calls the pocket money the cash component of an exchange. That wording protects both sides: it explains why no minimum wage applies, and makes clear the amount is settled together with board and lodging.
Common questions
Is there a prescribed minimum?
Not nationally; a few hundred francs a month is customary. The big exception is Geneva: a dedicated standard contract sets a minimum wage of CHF 24.59 an hour for au pairs aged 18 to 30.
How much pocket money is too much?
From about CHF 900 a month, over 12 months, pocket money plus CHF 990 wage in kind exceed the ceiling of CHF 22'680 a year, and the office bills the whole year through the ordinary procedure.
As written in the contract (German)
§ 6 · KOST & LOGIS
Kost und Logis gelten als Naturallohn und werden zum Ansatz von Art. 11 AHVV angerechnet: CHF 33 pro Tag, CHF 990 pro Monat.
The room is wages, with an official price tag
Why it's in the contract
Room and meals are not a gift but wage in kind. The AHV credits fixed rates for them: CHF 33 a day, CHF 990 a month (Art. 11 AHVV). The contract makes this amount visible so the registration is right from day one.
Common questions
I pay for the food anyway. Why does AHV apply to it?
Because board is part of the consideration. The office does not count what it costs you, but the official rate. Registering only the pocket money means under-registering.
What does the room have to offer?
A private room in your home that the au pair can lock. A flat outside the house or a room shared with a child does not meet the criterion.
As written in the contract (German)
§ 7 · AHV & ANMELDUNG
Die Gastfamilie meldet das Au-pair innert eines Monats nach Stellenantritt bei der AHV-Ausgleichskasse des Wohnkantons an.
One month to register, one bill a year
Why it's in the contract
Within one month of the start date the au pair must be registered with the compensation office of your canton, with pocket money plus wage in kind as the wage base. Up to CHF 22'680 annual wage this runs through the simplified procedure: one bill a year.
Common questions
What do the contributions cost me?
AHV/IV/EO, ALV and accident insurance, calculated on pocket money plus CHF 990. The contributions arrive once a year as a bill from the office; set the amount aside monthly.
What happens above CHF 22'680?
The ordinary procedure then applies to the entire calendar year, not just the part above: more admin, salary certificates, settling with the tax office. That is why our tool shows the ceiling live.
As written in the contract (German)
§ 8 · SPRACHKURS
Das Au-pair besucht einen Sprachkurs in der am Wohnort gesprochenen Landessprache, als Richtwert 120 Stunden pro Jahr.
The proof that it is an exchange
Why it's in the contract
The language course is the criterion that evidences the cultural exchange: as a guideline 120 hours a year in the local national language. The contract records your contribution to the costs and guarantees the time off to attend.
Common questions
Is the course mandatory?
It is an au pair criterion; without a course the exchange loses its basis. For au pairs from non-EU countries, several cantons make attendance mandatory.
Do I have to pay for the whole course?
The size of the contribution is negotiable and is put in figures in the contract. What is fixed: the host family contributes to the costs and frees up the course time; course time does not count as working time.
As written in the contract (German)
§ 10 · VERSICHERUNGEN
Die Gastfamilie versichert das Au-pair ab dem ersten Arbeitstag obligatorisch gegen Unfall (UVG). Das Au-pair braucht eine Schweizer Krankenversicherung (KVG).
Accident cover from day one, health insurance within three months
Why it's in the contract
Two insurances are non-negotiable: accident insurance (UVG), which the host family takes out from the first working day, and Swiss health insurance (KVG), which the au pair must join within three months of arrival. The contract additionally settles who pays the health premium.
Common questions
Isn't the European Health Insurance Card enough?
No. Anyone working in Switzerland falls under the Swiss insurance obligation, au pairs included. Joining a Swiss insurer must happen within 3 months of arrival.
Who pays the premium?
Up to you, with a checkbox in the contract: the au pair, the host family, or half each. Many families cover the premium as part of the overall package.
As written in the contract (German)
§ 12 · ABGRENZUNG
Fällt ein Kriterium weg, gilt das Verhältnis als hauswirtschaftliche Anstellung: Dann greifen die zwingenden Mindestlöhne, und die Differenz kann rückwirkend nachgefordert werden.
The clause that guards against the most expensive surprise
Why it's in the contract
This clause is the heart of the contract: it names the criteria and makes the consequence transparent. If one falls away, the au pair retroactively becomes a household employee with a minimum wage, and the difference can be claimed. Whoever reads the clause knows exactly what to watch.
Common questions
Who actually checks this?
The compensation office and the labour-market inspectorate can examine the relationship, at registration, during a check, or if the au pair comes forward. The yardstick is the criteria list, not the contract's title.
What would a reclassification cost?
The difference between what you paid and the NAV minimum wage, retroactively for the hours worked, plus the corresponding social contributions. Over a year at full scope that quickly reaches five figures.
The criteria as a checklist
All au pair criteria on one A4 page, to tick off before signing and keep with your records.
Not a paid placement, not a partnership.
Related tools and guides
Common questions about the au pair contract
Is the template really free?
Is there a minimum pocket money?
Do board and lodging really count as wages?
Do I have to register the au pair even for six months?
What happens if my au pair works more than 30 hours?
Does the template also work for au pairs from non-EU countries?
Which insurance do I need?
Contract signed? The next step is already waiting.
Within one month your au pair must be registered with the compensation office, pocket money plus wage in kind. Clino prepares the registration, produces the payslips and walks you through source tax and insurance: for CHF 19.90 a month.
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Sources
- · SECO: employment law and the NAV for domestic work
- · SEM: admission of au pairs (Art. 48 VZAE)
- · AHV/IV: information sheet 2.06, domestic work (wage in kind)
- · Tripartite Commission ZH: Au-Pair / Nanny / Household information sheet
- This template does not replace legal advice. Mind cantonal specifics, in particular Geneva with its own standard contract for au pairs. As of 2026.
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