The departure of an au pair after her stay is an important transition period at the end of the program. Logistics such as deregistering from town hall, closing bank accounts, switching off phone plans, canceling memberships, and packing are all involved to ensure that the program is finished successfully. Host parents should help guide the au pair in these steps as they prepare to head back to their home countries.
Preparing for departure might also include things like goodbye gifts, seeing friends for the last time, looking through pictures, or having a last family dinner together. This is a great time to thank the au pair for their contributions and impact during the au pair program.
Sometimes, host families will choose to have their current au pair and new au pair overlap to ensure a smooth transition for everyone. The current au pair can help the new au pair learn about the routines, local play areas, and favorite activities of the children.
This will hopefully help the new au pair to feel more comfortable and allows the current one to say goodbye and pass on the torch of her responsibilities to the person replacing her. When the au pair leaves, she knows the children will be in good hands.
Au pairs must follow a series of steps in their host country to ensure that they will depart with everything in order. As an agency, we guide you along the way to close outstanding accounts at your phone company, health insurance, and bank. Departing au pairs must also deregister from the municipality in your city so that the government knows you have finished your program year and does not place any fines for you overstaying your visa. We give our au pairs a full departure checklist so you know each step you need to take, not to worry.
When you know your return flight, make sure to notify your host family and the agency of your departure date and share the details. This allows everyone to know the timeline so they can prepare appropriately. When returning home, you may experience what is known as reverse culture shock where your home country feels unfamiliar or uncomfortable in some way, similar to how you experienced first starting in your host country. Give yourself time to adjust back and get in touch with your favorite things from home.
When an au pair departs, it can be difficult for au pairs and host families as it is quite a large change to their homes. This can be particularly true if this was the first au pair for the host family because they have welcomed an additional member into their family for a year, and now they have to say goodbye.
As you get ready for the departure, make sure to prepare the children for the shift that will occur and allow them time to share last memories or go on a fun outing together. Explain what the change will look like for them and if a new au pair will be coming in place of the current au pair.
