The au pair contract

The Royal Decree regulating the au pair programme in Belgium applies to the whole country, however its implementation and monitoring falls to the district authorities. Each region has implemented the provisions of the Royal Decree in its own model contract.

Behalve minieme verschillen bevat elke modelovereenkomst dezelfde wettelijke voorwaarden . In België vinden we 4 modelovereenkomsten terug: Vlaanderen, Brussel, Wallonië en de modelovereenkomst van de Duitstalige Gemeenschap. Deze overeenkomst is geen arbeidscontract, het gaat eerder over een overeenkomst in het kader van een cultureel uitwisselingsprogramma.

Model contracts, necessary documentation and all the information needed to apply for a work permit are available to host families and au pairs on the official websites of the relevant government departments. These documents are available free of charge:

The regions’ official model agreements are the only valid documents. Any other document that imposes unfair, abusive or illegal conditions is not valid. If a host family or an au pair agency force you privately to sign any ‘additional’ contracts, addenda, ‘family guidelines’ or ‘codes of conduct’, these are not valid documents, even if you have signed them.