ASE is proud to donate 4% of your au pair placement fees (€939 in 2021) to UNICEF

What is an Au pair?

The status of the au pair programme as a cultural exchange has been clarified by the former Minister for Justice and Equality, Ms Frances Fitzgerald, in the Dail on May 27th, 2015:

An au pair is an individual who wishes to improve his/her knowledge of the English language by undertaking an au pair arrangement through residing with a family whilst attending English language classes. An au pair arrangement is a private, voluntary, shared understanding between the parties concerned, namely a private household or sponsor family and a private individual. An au pair is regarded not as an employee but is received by a family and treated as a family member in exchange for certain services, such as a limited amount of light housework or baby-sitting. This activity is regarded as primarily cultural rather than economic and its main focus is the learning of English by the au pair. The Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation does not issue employment permits to au pairs, child minders or domestic workers and accordingly, there is no immigration permission specifically assigned to these categories of activity. A non-EEA national who applied to do au pair work or for a visa on this basis would be refused. This does not prevent EU nationals the right to exercise free movement and engaging in this activity.

Former Minister for Justice and Equality (Frances Fitzgerald)

Tried and trusted caring for children

Aupair Service Europe specialises in the placement of German and Austrian au pairs in Ireland. ASE is the only agency which provides a unique bilingual service to au pairs while they are in Ireland. We offer bi-weekly meetings to au pairs at an “au pair-friendly” venue in Cork City in order to help them settle in, make friends, and meet their German-speaking programme supervisors. We organise two Au pair weekend trips per year, several day tours, whale watching trips, our au pair Christmas party and more, to help your au pair feel at home while she is in Ireland.

Spending a year as an Au pair in Ireland was the best decision of my life. It changed me as a person forever, and for the best!
Stephanie Müller from Stuttgart, who spent a year as an au pair with a Cork family

After the initial orientation period, our meetings continue throughout the year and provide not only follow-up help for au pairs who require information on a range of topics but also a valuable social outlet for the few who might be missing home and for the others who just want to have fun!

We have direct links with a language school here in Cork, Ireland’s second city (where our company is based), so we can help Au pairs perfect their English right from the start.

Before the Au pair arrives, we assist and help our families to prepare for this cultural exchange programme, thus ensuring that the Au pair’s stay will be an enjoyable and fruitful one, not only for her but also for her host family.

Please follow the links above to the various sections of our site to find out more about the services we provide.