Cultural Care Au Pair
Cultural Care Au Pair is a business that recruits young adults between the ages of 18-26 from outside the U.S. to spend a year working as an au pair with a screened American host family. Approximately 90% of Cultural Care's au pairs are female, and the agency's leading recruitment countries include Poland, Germany, Sweden, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Russia, South Africa and Thailand, among others. Cultural Care is a part of the global education and travel group EF Education.
Cultural Care Au Pair is the largest au pair organization in America; it has placed more than 60,000 au pairs in American homes since 1989. The company was originally titled "EF Au Pair" when it was first launched as part of EF Education, and renamed Cultural Care Au Pair some years later. Cultural Care, like all au pair agencies operating in the U.S., is regulated by the U.S. Department Of State. Au pairs are given a J-1 cultural exchange visa that allows them to travel to the U.S., work as an au pair, and take a mandatory 6 credits at an accredited American post-secondary educational institution. Cultural Care's au pairs offer childcare services for up to 45 hours a week in exchange for room, board, two weeks of paid vacation, and a regulated stipend of $157.95 per week. In addition, host families pay up to $500 per year towards au pairs' education in the U.S. For Cultural Care's program management, host families pays an annual placement fee to Cultural Care. The placement fee accounts for AbOUT half of the total cost.