Individuals wishing to work in Denmark as an au pair are generally between 17-29 years old. Au pairs from any of the Nordic countries are not required to get a residence permit and can freely travel to and work in Denmark. Au pairs from other EU countries (excluding the eight new Eastern European EU members) should apply for a residence certificate to work in Demark. This can be obtained from the local authority “statsamt”.

Au pairs from the eight new eastern European EU members (the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia) are required to apply for an au pair residence permit. This residence permit allows the au pair to work in Denmark for 12 months after which a six month extension can be applied for. An au pair must ensure that they apply to the Danish Embassy in the applicant's home country or where the applicant has been residing for the past 3 months before he/she travels to Denmark.

In order to obtain a residence permit, an au pair is required to meet the criteria listed below:

An au pair must be between 17 and 29 years of age
They are required to be able to speak and understand a reasonable level of Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, English or German.
A contract must be drafted between the au pair and the host family.
The au pair may not be married or be accompanied by dependants
Au pair must not have held a Danish residence permit previously

The host family taking on the au pair must also agree to fulfil various conditions in order for the au pair to receive a residence permit and to work for the family. These are:

The family must agree to pay the au pair at least €335/month (DKK 2500/month)
They must provide the au pair with free room and board and the au pair must be provided with his/her own private bedroom that is located in the family’s residence
At least one of the parents must be a Danish citizen

For more information please see the Danish Immigration Service’s pages on Au pairs and on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark’s page on being Au pair in Denmark.

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