Become a host family
Become an a pair
🇫🇷 France
Become an au pair in France: requirements and steps
You want to be an au pair in France: learn the language, live with a family and fund your stay. Here are the real requirements, what you receive, what is expected of you and the steps to take, with no fluff.
2000
au pairs supported
20+
nationalities welcomed
4.7/5
on Trustpilot, over 240 reviews
2019
French agency since
The essentials
What to know before you apply
Four key figures are enough to tell whether the programme is right for you. They apply to every candidate, whatever their nationality.
3 to 12 months
of stay, extendable up to two years
25 h
of childcare per week, at most
€400
of pocket money per month, on average
9 m²
private bedroom at least, with a window
The French legal framework
The same rules for every candidate
Your stay is based on an agreement signed between you and the family. Childcare hours, pocket money, days off, French classes: the conditions are the same for everyone, whatever your nationality. Only the entry formalities depend on your home country.
For every candidate
What the agreement covers
- Be between 18 and 30 years old
- An agreement signed with the family before you leave
- 25 hours of childcare per week at most
- €400 of pocket money per month on average, on top of board and lodging
- One full day off per week, including one Sunday a month
- A schedule adapted so you can attend your French classes
- A stay of 3 months to 1 year, extendable up to two years
Before you leave
Entry formalities
- Depending on your nationality, a long-stay visa to obtain before you arrive
- The signed agreement, required for the visa application
- If needed, visa validation and then your residence permit at the prefecture
- No other job allowed during your stay
- Every form prepared with us, not for you
Your social security cover
You are registered with the French general social security scheme and with the supplementary pension fund for employees of private households. Contributions are paid by the family, not by you. They are calculated on a flat-rate basis, not on an actual salary. Your private supplementary insurance, which covers repatriation and civil liability in particular, is also paid for by the family.
Where to live in France
Eight cities, eight different daily lives
The rules are national: they do not change from one region to another. What changes is your daily life: transport, the choice of French classes and the number of families looking for an au pair in the area.
The largest number of host families, and French classes on every corner. Public transport means you do not need a driving licence, which is often required elsewhere.
Île-de-France
A student city with plenty of language classes and short trips between home and school. The Alps are two hours away.
Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
A city on a human scale, French classes at the university and a centre you can get around without a car. The ocean is an hour away.
Nouvelle-Aquitaine
A large student population, accessible classes and a climate that lets you go out with the children for much of the year.
Occitanie
On the doorstep of Belgium and Northern Europe. Brussels and London are less than two hours away by train.
Hauts-de-France
A young, compact city where everything is done by tram or bike. School runs are rarely an issue.
Pays de la Loire
The most requested destination among candidates. The point to watch is housing: the 9 m² room is harder to come by there.
Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur
The Basque coast, the ocean and a stay often aligned with the school year, outside the peak season.
Basque Country
France is more than its big cities
You can be an au pair in the mountains, in the countryside, by the sea or in the city: the country has enough climates for everyone to find what suits them. The Côte d’Azur, Brittany, Alsace, the Alps, the Basque Country and the Lyon area regularly welcome au pairs.
Being an au pair in Paris attracts the most applications, but that is not always where places open up fastest. Aiming for a mid-sized city often shortens the wait.
No particular city in mind?
That is the case for most candidates, and it is not a problem. Families contact us from cities and the countryside alike, from Paris flats to seaside houses. The framework is national and your social security cover is the same everywhere: only the competent prefecture changes, the one where the family lives.
Are you eligible
Requirements to apply
Three sets of criteria, covering your profile, your application file and your starting budget. They follow from the framework described above.
1
Your profile
- Between 18 and 30 years old
- Single, with no dependent children
- Some first experience with children
- Basic French, to be improved on site
- No other job during your stay
2
Your application file
- Valid passport or ID card
- Visa documents, if your nationality requires one
- Valid medical certificate
- Criminal record certificate
- Cover letter and childcare references
- Proof of enrolment in French classes
3
Your starting budget
- Around €1,500 in recommended savings
- Your plane or train ticket
- Your Butrfly support package, see our prices
- French classes, unless agreed otherwise with the family
Driving licence, English, experience: what opens the Premium+ offer to you
Families choose between two packages, Premium and Premium+, both part of our Privilège offer. Premium+ is for families looking for an au pair who holds a driving licence, is comfortable in English and already has childcare experience. If you tick all three boxes, highlight them in your profile from the start.
What you receive
What the family covers
An au pair stay is not a job: it is an exchange. Here is what the family pays for, and what remains your responsibility.
Paid by the family
- A private bedroom of at least 9 m², with a window
- All your meals, including on days off
- Monthly pocket money, €400 on average, paid no matter what
- Your social security registration and contributions
- Your private supplementary insurance
- Invitations
- A transport pass or a way to get around
- A schedule adapted to your classes
Paid by you
- The return journey
- Your Butrfly support package
- Your application documents: medical certificate, criminal record, translations
- Your personal expenses and outings
- Language classes, unless agreed otherwise
Your duties
What a family can ask of you, and what it cannot
This is the main source of misunderstanding in an au pair stay. The framework is clear, but you still need to have read it before signing.
Within the scope
What is part of your role
- Taking the children to school and picking them up
- Playing with them, taking them to their activities
- Helping with homework, speaking your language with them
- Tidying their room, making breakfast or an afternoon snack
- Helping with everyday household tasks, occasionally
Out of scope
What you cannot be asked to do
- Deep cleaning of the whole house
- Gardening, DIY, the weekly shopping
- Caring for an elderly or dependent person
- More than 25 hours a week, or extra work
- Replacing nursery or school as the main form of childcare
French families
What they really expect
Nobody writes it down anywhere, yet it is what makes or breaks a stay. These four traits come up in almost all the feedback we receive, from both sides.
They expect initiative
A French family appreciates a proactive, organised au pair. Taking the lead on snack time or homework, without being asked, counts for more than perfect French.
They are strict about upbringing
House rules are not negotiated with the children. You are expected to uphold them the way the parents do, not to invent your own.
They want your full attention
During time spent with the children, the phone stays away. It is the number one source of friction, and the one that is resolved fastest if it is discussed beforehand.
They welcome you at the table
Dinner is eaten together. That is where your French improves fastest, and it is also what families expect from an au pair stay rather than from childcare alone.
Your steps
Five steps, from application to departure
We do not do the paperwork for you: we do it with you, form by form.
1
Your profile
You create your au pair profile and upload your documents: ID, medical certificate, criminal record, references. It is free.
2
The matching
We introduce you to families whose plans match yours. You talk by video call before any decision.
3
The agreement
Hours, pocket money, days off, French classes: everything is written down and signed before you leave.
4
The visa
If your nationality requires it, you apply for a long-stay visa from your home country, with the agreement as supporting document. We prepare the file with you.
5
Arrival
Enrolling in classes, opening a bank account, transport and, if needed, validating your visa and then applying for a residence permit.
Who supports you
A French agency, born from first-hand experience
We do not describe the au pair programme from the outside: we lived it, on both sides, before making it our profession.
Manuela Dizier Chanfreau
Co-founder of Butrfly
She studied in Mexico, where she lived with a host family, and founded Butrfly in 2019 with Anne-Claire. A mother of two girls, she hosts au pairs in her own home: the advice on this page comes from everyday life, not from a brochure.
Why you can trust us
- French company founded in 2019, a social and solidarity economy start-up
- Approved personal services provider: families get a 50% tax credit on the Families package
- Over 1,500 families and 2,000 au pairs supported
- Over 20 nationalities welcomed by French families
- 4.7/5 on Trustpilot, over 240 public reviews
- A dedicated contact, reachable throughout your stay
- Visa and prefecture procedures handled with you, not for you
Frequently asked questions
What candidates ask us most
Between 18 and 30. You also need to be single, with no dependent children, and have some first experience with children.
€400 per month on average, paid by the family. The amount does not depend on your nationality: the rules are the same for everyone. Board and lodging come on top of this amount.
It depends on your nationality. When a visa is required, it is a long-stay visa, to be obtained before you arrive from your home country, with the agreement signed by the family. We prepare the file with you.
Creating your profile is free. Our packages, from certification to support throughout your stay, are detailed on our pricing page. Board, lodging, pocket money, social security and private insurance are paid by the family.
Twenty-five hours per week at most, whatever your nationality. You get at least one full day off per week, including at least one Sunday a month. No other job is allowed alongside.
We recommend setting aside €1,500 before you leave. This covers your ticket, your application costs, the first weeks before your first pocket money payment, and the unexpected. You spend nothing on housing or food once there.
A basic level is enough to apply. Once there, your French classes are included in the agreement, and the family adapts your schedule so you can attend them.
Anything to do with the children and everyday home life: taking them to school, playing with them, tidying their room, making breakfast. You are neither a childcare professional nor a housekeeper: deep cleaning, gardening and caring for elderly people are out of scope.
From three months to one year. It can be extended with a new agreement, up to a total of two years at most. The length is set from the start, in the contract between you and the family.
Other destinations
Going somewhere other than France
The programme exists in about a dozen countries, each with its own rules. Still hesitating? Compare.
🇪🇸
No visa, tickets from €80 and a language you pick up quickly.
European Union · no visa
🇮🇪
English with no visa, an hour and a half by plane. They drive on the left.
European Union · no visa
🇺🇸
The most regulated and demanding programme: 40 hours, a driving licence and experience.
J-1 visa · €150
🇦🇺
Wide open spaces, a working holiday visa and the chance to travel afterwards.
Working holiday · €380
Let’s go
Ready to go?
Create your au pair profile, it is free, and we will call you back to plan your project.
They trust us
