COLORADO (KOAA) — As au pairs help many military families tackle the childcare challenges they face, the Trump administration has paused new J-1 visa appointments, which affects those cultural exchange programs.
Au pairs are young people, usually from another country, who live with their host family and provide childcare for a year.
According to a cable obtained by Politico at the end of May–and since confirmed by State Department officials and American companies utilizing J-1 visa workers- the Trump administration is considering expanded social media vetting on the visas covering foreign students and exchange visitors such as au pairs.
As it does so, Secretary of State Marco Rubio directed U.S. Embassies and consular sections to freeze appointments for those specific visas, according to Politico.
It’s unclear what might be vetted, but the administration has earlier cracked down on students taking part in protests they deemed anti-Israel.
“We're told that there will be some updates quite soon on that there was a temporary pause on new visa appointments, but existing appointments have continued forward. Au pairs have been getting their visas and traveling to the United States,” said Natalie Jordan, senior vice president at Cultural Care Au Pair.
“While a pause is not ideal, it is temporary, and we're looking forward to an update soon and getting back to business so that more and more au pairs can arrive and start their journey together with their American families,” said Jordan.
Military families often have varying childcare challenges, ranging from active-duty parents or households where both parents work, financial barriers, and the difficulty of moving command posts due to PCS orders (permanent change of station).
According to survey data from the Alliance for International Exchange, 1 in 8 families participating in an au pair program have some degree of military affiliation, meaning hundreds of military families are taking part.
“The au pair program can be a really unique way to address that need for military families, because au pairs live with families, and they can move with families,” said Jordan with Cultural Care Au Pair. “As long as we are in the location that the family has moved to, we're able to continue to service them, and we have many military families who move from post to post within the United States. And that au pair support doesn't change just because of a change in location.”
Jordan said they offer discounts for military families, which helps ease the financial burden they might be facing.
According to data from TOOTRiS, a software tech company focusing on childcare, the average cost of childcare in Colorado for one child is $13,809. For a family with one infant and one four-year-old, the average annual cost of center-based childcare is $33,382.
Through Cultural Care Au Pair, the estimated annual cost of hosting an au pair is $21,424, regardless of how many children a family has.
“For many families, it's been a solution. It's also become a solution for many families who are facing back-to-office mandates–federal workers and otherwise,” said Jordan. “And so, when flexibility ceases in other areas, the need for flexibility in their care plan becomes ever more important, and that's where this program can really be helpful.”
President Trump also issued a new travel ban last week, targeting 12 mainly African and Middle Eastern countries. That’s set to go into effect Monday, with seven other countries facing heightened restrictions.
Cultural Care Au Pair said their au pairs come from over 30 countries, but none of them are impacted by the new travel ban.
Jordan dismissed concerns with the visa pause and President Trump’s crackdown on immigration.
“The program has always received bipartisan support throughout its almost 40 years of existence,” she said. “It is a program that's really important, not only to help keep American families working and help to support their families, but also to share American traditions and values globally.”
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