After arrival – the first official steps

With your au pair's arrival, it is not only shared family life that begins. A number of official and organisational things also need to be sorted out in the first days and weeks.

It is worth being structured about it. Some steps build on one another, and certain documents are only needed or issued once earlier formalities have already been completed.

Not everything has to happen on day one

After arrival, various matters need to be sorted out – from the Anmeldung (registering your address with the local authority) to residence documents, insurance, a language course, and other organisational matters.

That sounds like a great deal of bureaucracy at first. With the right order, however, it can be managed well.

Above all, it is important not to book appointments or submit applications at random, but first to check which steps are actually necessary in your au pair's individual case.

Especially important: checking the documents you already have

Which official steps are actually required after arrival can depend, among other things, on which visa your au pair entered with and for what period it was issued.

That is why the documents you already have should be carefully checked first.

Not every au pair automatically needs the same appointments or additional applications after arrival.

Everyday life needs organising too

Alongside the classic official matters, there are other things that need to be settled in the first period.

These include, for example, arranging your au pair's insurance, organising the language course, and other formalities required for a stay in Germany.

Some documents are also only sent out automatically after the Anmeldung has been completed. So it is entirely normal that not everything can be finished within the first few days.

Our tip from Besondere Sterne

Do not try to book every appointment on spec before your au pair has even arrived.

That is why the host families we place receive concrete information from us about what needs to be done after their au pair's arrival, in which order the individual steps make sense, and which documents are needed for them.

This way, you do not have to work your way through different pieces of information and different authorities yourself – you simply know what to do next.