An au pair is neither a nanny nor a cleaner. The arrangement is a cultural exchange: you live with a Finnish family as a member of the household, help with the children and light housework, and in return receive a room, meals, pocket money and the chance to learn the language and the country from the inside. The French term au pair means "on equal terms", and Finland's rules are written to keep it that way.
Men do it too. Families with several energetic children sometimes prefer a young man, and nobody in Finland finds a male childminder unusual.
Who can come as an au pair
To obtain the residence permit for au pairing, you must:
- be 17 to 30 years old;
- never have worked as an au pair before, in Finland or anywhere else. It is a one-time permit;
- have a basic knowledge of Finnish or Swedish, or of Finnish culture, studied before you arrive, and prove this with a certificate. Self-study with a textbook does not count; a course at an educational institution or from an established online platform does;
- not be closely related to the host family. Siblings and first or second cousins are ruled out.
Most families also ask for a non-smoker with some experience of looking after children, and you will need enough English, Finnish or Swedish to understand the agreement you sign and to speak to the family before you commit.
What you do, and how much
The work consists of childcare and light housework: taking the children to nursery or school and collecting them, helping with homework, making them a meal when the parents are out, keeping their room tidy, and playing and going outside with them.
- At most 25 hours a week.
- At least one full day off every week, and two consecutive free days at least every second week.
- Time for your language classes, which the family has to fit around.
If the family expects more than this, what you are doing is not au pairing but domestic work. Home help is a job, and it requires a residence permit for an employed person rather than an au pair permit.
What the family provides
- A room and meals. You eat with the family.
- Pocket money of at least €340 a month (net) in 2026, on top of board and lodging.
- Health and accident insurance for the whole stay that covers medical and pharmaceutical costs without limits. An occupational accident policy on its own is not enough.
- A written au pair agreement setting out your tasks, hours, free time, pocket money, and room and board.
While in Finland, you also enrol on a Finnish or Swedish language course, or a course on Finnish culture. Agree in writing who pays for the course and the travel to it.
How long it lasts
You can be an au pair in Finland for one year at most. Six months is the shortest stay most families and au pairs find worthwhile: less than this, and you barely get past the first winter. If you want to stay on afterwards, you will need a residence permit on some other grounds, such as study or work.
Applying for the residence permit
EU citizens do not use this permit; they register their right of residence as an employed person instead. Everyone else applies for the first au pair permit from abroad, before travelling, and cannot start until it has been granted. Apply online via Migri's Enter Finland service, then book an appointment at a Finnish embassy or consulate to prove your identity.
The fee, as checked, is €530 online or €630 on paper.
Attach:
- your passport, and copies of the data page and every page with markings;
- a passport photo taken within the last six months;
- the written agreement with the host family;
- a health certificate less than three months old, confirming you have no infectious diseases such as tuberculosis, hepatitis, salmonella or measles (vaccination records can stand in for some of these);
- proof of the health and accident insurance;
- certificates of your Finnish, Swedish or culture studies abroad;
- proof that you have enrolled on a course in Finland.
The permit allows you to do au pair tasks only. It does not give you a general right to work alongside this.
If the placement breaks down, you can move to a new host family without applying for a new permit, as long as your current one is still valid.
Finding a family
Most matches are made through international au pair platforms and agencies, which allow families and au pairs to read each other's profiles and talk before committing. Families occasionally advertise on Job Market Finland too; search for "au pair". Speak to the family on video before you agree, ask to speak to a previous au pair if they have had one, and read an agency's fees and terms before you sign up.
Once you are here, the practical side of arriving is covered in first steps after moving to Finland, and the wider permit picture in moving to Finland. If you would rather have an ordinary job, see finding a job in Finland.
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