Au pair in Germany from Indonesia
Indonesians apply for an au pair visa at the German Embassy in Jakarta — and plan early: the embassy itself publishes long waiting times for au pair appointments and for the decision. Below is what the embassy asks for, the times it states, and the German rules that apply once you live with the family.
Applications go to: German Embassy Jakarta
Visa and application
- How common it is
In 2023, 2,470 au pairs came to Germany according to the Federal Government’s Migration Report; the largest groups were nationals of Colombia, Indonesia and the Philippines.
- Where to apply
National visas are applied for only at the Embassy in Jakarta, not at the German honorary consuls in Indonesia. Au pair stays are not on the list of visas the embassy takes online through the Consular Services Portal; you register in the embassy’s appointment system.
Source: Deutsche Botschaft Jakarta (Auswärtiges Amt) (checked 19 Sep 2026)
- Waiting for an appointment
For au pair stays, voluntary service and language courses, the embassy gives the waiting time from registration to the appointment as about 11 months.
Source: Deutsche Botschaft Jakarta (Auswärtiges Amt) (checked 19 Sep 2026)
- Processing time
The standard processing time is about eight months. The visa usually needs the approval of the immigration office or the Federal Employment Agency in Germany and can only be issued once that approval has arrived. Do not book flights before you have the visa.
Source: Deutsche Botschaft Jakarta (Auswärtiges Amt) (checked 19 Sep 2026)
- Age
At least 18 on entry. The embassy gives the age limits at the time of application as 17 and 26. Applications can be made at the earliest six months before the planned start of the stay.
Source: Deutsche Botschaft Jakarta (Auswärtiges Amt) (checked 19 Sep 2026)
- Host family
As a rule, only families in which an adult speaks German as their native language. If German is only the family language, the stay is possible only if you do not come from the host parents’ home country.
Source: Deutsche Botschaft Jakarta (Auswärtiges Amt) (checked 19 Sep 2026)
- German
Level A1, not older than 12 months when you apply, from an institute certified to the ALTE standard. The embassy names the Goethe-Institut, the Österreichisches Sprachdiplom (ÖSD), the TestDaF-Institut and telc.
Source: Deutsche Botschaft Jakarta (Auswärtiges Amt) (checked 19 Sep 2026)
- Visa fee
€75, paid in cash or by credit card in Indonesian rupiah.
Source: Deutsche Botschaft Jakarta (Auswärtiges Amt) (checked 19 Sep 2026)
- Documents
Among others: the application form with the declarations, one biometric photo, a passport with at least three completely empty pages, your birth certificate with apostille and translation, a motivation letter you wrote yourself in German or English, a CV, the Federal Employment Agency’s au pair declaration signed by you, the host family’s registration certificate showing the minor children, not older than 3 months, copies of both host parents’ passports or ID cards, the Federal Employment Agency’s questionnaire filled in by the family, and the au pair contract in German or English following the agency’s template. An incoming health insurance must be shown before the visa procedure closes.
Source: Deutsche Botschaft Jakarta (Auswärtiges Amt) (checked 19 Sep 2026)
What we could not verify
These figures are missing on purpose. We found no official source stating them, and an estimate on a page about rules is worse than a gap.
- How the two times fit together. The embassy states about 11 months to an appointment and about eight months of processing, but also that applications can be made at the earliest six months before the start. Ask the embassy how to time your registration.
- Minimum cover of the incoming health insurance. The Jakarta page asks for one but names no amount.
Once you live with the family in Germany
These rules come from the destination’s rules page and are the same wherever the au pair comes from.
- Working hours
Household duties including looking after the children must as a rule not take more than six hours a day and 30 hours a week. Going beyond that needs to be agreed in advance, and the extra hours have to be compensated with time off.
Source: Bundesagentur für Arbeit, April 2023 (checked 17 Sep 2026)
- Pocket money
€280 a month, independent of the hours of housework. Board and lodging are provided free of charge, including an own room in the family’s home.
Source: Bundesagentur für Arbeit, April 2023 (checked 17 Sep 2026)
- Language course
The host family contributes at least €840 in total towards learning German. It can be paid as €70 a month over the stay or as a single payment of €840, and only to the extent the costs actually arise. Travel costs to the nearest suitable German course are paid on top.
Source: Bundesagentur für Arbeit, April 2023 (checked 17 Sep 2026)
- Length of stay
The placement must last at least six months and at most one year. A second au pair placement is not possible, even if the year was not used up.
Source: Bundesagentur für Arbeit, April 2023 (checked 17 Sep 2026)
- Insurance
Au pair placements are not subject to compulsory social insurance, but the au pair must be insured for illness, pregnancy and childbirth and against accidents. All premiums are borne by the host family.
Source: Bundesagentur für Arbeit, April 2023 (checked 17 Sep 2026)
Sources
- Migrationsbericht der Bundesregierung 2023Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge (BAMF) für die Bundesregierung · Kapitel 3, S. 79 f. · checked 19 Sep 2026
- Nationale VisaDeutsche Botschaft Jakarta (Auswärtiges Amt) · checked 19 Sep 2026
- FAQ Terminvergabe Nationale VisaDeutsche Botschaft Jakarta (Auswärtiges Amt) · checked 19 Sep 2026
- Nationales Visum — Au-Pair (§ 19c AufenthG und § 12 BeschV)Deutsche Botschaft Jakarta (Auswärtiges Amt) · checked 19 Sep 2026
- Au-pair in deutschen Familien — Informationen für Au-pair und GastfamilienBundesagentur für Arbeit · April 2023 · checked 17 Sep 2026
This page is a summary of what the named authorities publish, not legal advice. Missions change their requirements and checklists without notice. Check the linked page of the mission before you book an appointment, and ask the mission if anything is unclear.
Other countries of origin
Tools for the year
Plan the year together in one app
AuPairSync is a family app for host families and au pairs: a shared calendar, the weekly schedule, tasks and messages in one place. It does not handle visa applications, and nothing on this page is passed on to the app.