Skip to content

Hosting an au pair in 2026: cost, permit and registration

Salvador JovellsSources: Art. 48 VZAE, AHVV Art. 11

Work out your case

What does your au pair cost a month?

CHF 800

You pay per month

CHF 1,022

Pocket money, employer contributions and language course. Room and board come on top.

Your au pair keeps net

CHF 570

after AHV, ALV, non-occupational accident and 5 % withholding tax

AHV wage

CHF 1,790

Pocket money plus CHF 990 room and board. The compensation office bills on this.

Simplified procedure with VAVplus, 30 hours a week, 2026 rates as in the Clino payslip.

Next question: what goes into the au pair contract?

Create the au pair contract with these figures →

Checklist for hiring correctly, by email

AHV, accident insurance, contract, payslip. One page, no spam.

Three young women laughing in a bright room with large windows as they spread a green blanket over the bed together
Room and board are part of hosting, and for AHV they count as wage.

At CHF 800 pocket money you pay about CHF 942 a month (pocket money plus employer contributions), plus room, board and the language course. For AHV, room and board count as wage, CHF 990 a month (AHVV Art. 11): you register the au pair with the compensation office and insure them against accidents from day one. From a third country it only works through a licensed agency, aged 18 to 25 and for at most 12 months (Art. 48 VZAE).

Permit: EU/EFTA or third country

EU/EFTA

  • Registration with the municipality, which issues an L or B permit. No application by you, no quota.
  • Agency optional.
  • Age and duration are set by the canton; in Zurich 18 to 30 years, 1 year plus 1 extension.

Third country

  • Cantonal permit before entry, only through an organisation licensed under the Recruitment Act.
  • Aged 18 to 25, at most 12 months, no extension.
  • Not every canton grants third-country au pairs; Zurich currently issues no quotas.
The permit step by step, with the canton list

Your duties as a host family, in this order

  1. Sort out the permit: EU/EFTA registers with the municipality, a third country needs the canton's approval before entry.

  2. Written au pair contract: at most 30 hours, one whole day off a week, holidays, pocket money, room and board, language course.

  3. Take out accident insurance for household staff from the first working day. Without it, the UVG substitute fund pays and charges up to five years of substitute premiums (Art. 95 UVG).

  4. Within one month, register the au pair with the compensation office, on pocket money plus CHF 990 wage in kind.

  5. Health insurance: your au pair takes out Swiss cover within three months of taking up residence (KVG Art. 3).

  6. A payslip every month, and once a year the settlement with the compensation office.

When it is no longer an au pair

The minimum-wage exemption only holds while all criteria are met: at most 30 hours including evening care and housework, a room of their own, a language course, and a parent at home for at least half of the working time. If one is missing, the NAV household work applies at CHF 20.35 an hour, and the difference can be claimed back. In Geneva au pairs have a minimum wage of CHF 24.59 an hour anyway.

Au pair or nanny: the comparison in francs

Frequently asked questions

How many hours may an au pair work?
At most 30 hours a week, childcare and light housework together, with at least one whole day off (Art. 48 VZAE; Zurich Tripartite Commission information sheet). Holidays: five weeks up to the 20th birthday, four after that (OR Art. 329a).
How much pocket money is customary?
CHF 500 to 800 a month; Pro Filia recommends CHF 600 to 700 net depending on the canton. There is no legal minimum while all au pair criteria are met (documented for ZH, TI, BS and NE). Geneva is the exception at CHF 24.59 an hour. What an agreed net pocket money costs you gross is shown by the au pair pocket money calculator.
Do I have to register an au pair with AHV?
Yes, from the first franc. Contributions run on pocket money plus wage in kind: at CHF 800 pocket money that is CHF 1,790 a month. If the annual wage stays under CHF 22,680, everything runs in the simplified procedure, with 5 % withholding tax through the compensation office.
What does an au pair from a third country cost on top?
According to Pro Filia, for an au pair from a third country the host family also pays travel costs and health insurance, and the pocket money is agreed net. The licensed organisation's fee comes on top.
How long may an au pair stay?
From a third country at most 12 months, with no extension (Art. 48 VZAE). From the EU/EFTA the canton decides, in Zurich 1 year plus 1 extension. For longer care you need a nanny. How the switch works: hiring and registering a nanny properly.

Sources: Art. 48 VZAE (SR 142.201); AHVV Art. 11 and AHV information sheet 2.06 (wage in kind CHF 33 a day); Zurich Tripartite Commission information sheet Au-Pair / Nanny / Haushaltshilfe; Zurich Migration Office directive of 15.12.2021; KVG Art. 3; OR Art. 329a; Art. 95 UVG; Geneva «CTT-TPMaj», Art. 9; Pro Filia. Overview, not legal advice.

Salvador Jovells

Salvador Jovells, founder of Clino