Au pair-illegal imigrant?

[massivepants]

Can anyone advise me please on the rules for an american being an au pair in the UK. My american au pair told me she had a work permit, but it turns out she hasn't- she lied to imigration on her way in and told them she was back packing! thanks

why didn't you ask to see her passport?

www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/workingintheuk/othercategories/domesticworkers/

check that out
hth

it appears au pair visas have been replaced by a new scheme

When did she enter the UK?
Did she show you any type of visa, such as Working Holidaymaker? - note that scheme nolonger exists but it did exist in the past, thus date of entry to UK is I feel important to establish.

Get rid of her. If she lied to you about her work status, you don't really want her looking after your children anyway. And if she is caught, you (as her employer) will be in line for a 10,000 pound fine.

thanks everyone

Unfortunately it is your responsibility to check that anyone you employ (and this includes an Au Pair) is entitled to work in the UK.

Unless there is something significant you haven't mentioned (e.g. she has dual nationality, she has been working legally in the UK for a number of years or she is a full-time student at an eligible UK institution) it sounds unlikely that she is entitled to work in the UK. You can check this here.

The special Au Pair arrangements ceased to exist in the UK after November 2008 so the rule which applies now is the Youth Mobility Scheme, but only Australia, Canada, Japan and New Zealand participate in this.

Hana's link only applies to overseas employers moving to the UK bringing their Au Pairs with them.

Er, huge crosspost - don't know what happened there, sorry!

As ever MrA is spot on.

She cannot work in UK, you are liable to a large fine for failing to check her immigration status at commencement of employment.

Somebody else can probably advise on the consequences of informing the Border Agency now (i.e if you inform them now would they fine you?).

For future reference I tell all incoming au pairs before they arrive that I will checking their passports when I meet them at the airport and that if they are not enititled to be here I will be leaving them at the airport. However I also do all I can to make sure they have a visa (where required) before they arrive, have had tow come in on the new YMS and neither have had any problem getting the visa.

How long has she been with you? You may get some grace as she's here as an au pair so kicking her out when you found out would have left her alone and homeless.

What you do need to do is formally terminate her employment on the grounds that she is not permitted to work, not pay her and investigate the proper course of action.

Definitely not allowed to work. She will be on a 6-month tourist visa. Therefore she must have been with you for less than 6 months. It's up to you what course of action to take, as her visa is probably going to expire (i.e. she will need to leave the country soon anyway), or a more severe course of action.

This really incenses me as an American who went through all the proper channels to work legally here (at a cost of well over £2,000 not including flights/etc) that people come in and work illegally.

Please see www.universalaupairs.com/family/about_au_pairs__nannies.html#Visa.

As an employer it is your responsibility to ensure that the employee has the right to work in the UK. You should ask to see original documents (passport, visa, etc) and take and keep permanent copies of these (i.e. a photocopy or scanned image). If you employ an illegal worker you can be fined up to £10,000 per employee. You should take steps to satisfy yourself that all your employees are legally entitled to work in the UK, keeping copies of the documents will provide you with a statutory excuse should it transpire that the employee has been working illegally. We recommend you read the information on the Business Link website at www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/detail?r.s=m&r.l1=1073858787&r.lc=en&r.l3=1073981874&r.l2=10795 68262&r.i=1074603900&type=RESOURCES&itemId=1073791948&r.t=RESOURCES.

Hi
My (now)SIL is American and worked illegally as an au pair for an american family over here. She went to France and the boarder agency wouldn't let her back into the UK once they had found out she was working illegally (she got her luggage searched, they looked in her diary...).
The family was left without an au pair at short notice and this was followed up by the boarder agency, leading I guess to them taking action. And she's only allowed back into the UK at the UK boarder agencies discretion.

You really don't want to get roped up in this, there are plenty of au pairs able to work legally.

Rectify the situation sooner and not later. She must stop working for you immediately. And I expect this means you have been paying her CIH because you certainly souldn't have registered her as an employee. Oddly, this will probably save you as she can't prove you have paid her anything and therefore can't prove she worked for you.

Say good-bye as pleasantly as possible.