You are an employee

Working as an au pair in South Africa

South Africa treats au pair work as ordinary employment, which means the law is on your side in a way it is not everywhere else.

This is a guide, not legal or immigration advice.

Rules change, vary by region and depend on your exact arrangement and nationality. Everything here was researched from official sources and dated, but figures go out of date — check the official links on this page before you rely on any of it, and get proper advice on your own visa position.

Where you stand

Au pair work in South Africa is generally understood to fall under the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, the same law that covers domestic work. You are an employee. You are entitled to a written contract, a minimum wage, overtime, leave and notice.

What makes South Africa different: South Africa is the only country in this guide with a statutory overtime premium. Everywhere else, extra hours are whatever your contract says.

The numbers

Minimum wage

R30.23 an hour

from 1 March 2026

Ordinary hours

45 a week

BCEA s9

Overtime

1.5× your rate

capped at 10 hours a week

UIF

1% from you

matched by your employer

Can you go?

If you are South African you need no permission to work here — this is home.

Most people reading this page are South African and already have the right to work. If you are not, you need a work visa before you start; a visitor visa does not allow it.

Three things worth doing

Get the overtime agreement renewed

An agreement to work overtime signed when you started, or in your first three months, lapses after a year. After that you can lawfully decline overtime until it is renewed in writing. Almost nobody knows this.

Agree the kilometre rate before you drive

There is no legal rate for using your own car. Whatever you agree is what binds. Agree it in writing before the first school run, not after.

Write down the hours as you work them

Nobody reconstructs four weeks of late pickups from memory. You cannot claim what you did not record.

Check it yourself

Every figure on this page came from these. Rules change — if something matters to you, read it at the source.

Keep your own record

Whatever the rules say where you are, they only help you if you can show what you actually worked. NannyTank counts your hours as you work them, works out overtime at the legal rate where there is one, and turns the month into a claim your employer approves in one tap.

Start logging free for 14 days

Other countries

United Kingdom Ireland Germany France Netherlands Spain Switzerland United States Canada Australia New Zealand

Researched from official sources and last reviewed 2 September 2026. Employing an au pair instead? See the rules for host families in South Africa.