Household staff for families in Germany, selected in Spain
Munich, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Düsseldorf and Berlin
Live-in housekeepers, Spanish-speaking nannies and domestic couples for families in Grünwald, the Taunus, the Elbchaussee, Meerbusch and Grunewald. EU candidates move freely; for anyone else we tell you what the German residence rules allow before we start.
- Placement agency licensed by the SNE, no. 1300000318
- 4.8 · 79 Google reviews
- One-off fee · 6-month guarantee
Why German families hire live-in staff through a Spanish agency
Germany has almost no tradition of live-in domestic staff. Households employ a cleaner for a few hours, a Kinderfrau for the children, a gardener; the person who lives in the house and runs it all week is a Spanish, Portuguese or Filipino habit that German families discover in Mallorca, Marbella or through a Spanish spouse. When they want it at home in Munich or Frankfurt, the local market has few candidates and no agencies used to the role. That is where we come in.
Frankfurt and Munich are where most of our German placements have gone: banking families in the Taunus and the Westend, executives in Grünwald and Bogenhausen, often with a Spanish connection and children in bilingual or international schools. Hamburg, Düsseldorf and Berlin follow, with the same profile of family: international, used to staff, and wanting someone who speaks Spanish or English at home.
Germany is also a straightforward destination legally for an EU candidate: no permit, no quota, a published minimum wage and a family that registers as employer with the Minijob-Zentrale or the regular payroll. That combination — free movement, a published floor and a clear payroll route — is what makes a German search easy to run from Madrid, and it is why we can tell you on day one what the job will cost you.
Munich, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Düsseldorf and Berlin
Five cities, each with the residential districts where the families who employ live-in staff actually live.
Munich
Grünwald, Bogenhausen, Solln and the villas along the Isar and Lake Starnberg. Munich families ask for a housekeeper who also cooks and for a Spanish-speaking nanny; many have a second home in Mallorca and want continuity between the two houses.
Frankfurt
The Westend, Sachsenhausen and the Taunus towns of Kronberg, Königstein and Bad Homburg, home to the international banking community. Our most frequent German placements are here: live-in housekeepers for large houses, often with English as the working language.
Hamburg
Blankenese, Othmarschen and the Elbchaussee, plus the Alster villas of Harvestehude. Hamburg families tend to want formal, discreet housekeepers and, for the larger properties on the Elbe, a domestic couple with a driver.
Düsseldorf
Oberkassel, Meerbusch and the Rhine side of the city, where many Japanese and international executives live. Requests here are usually for an English-speaking housekeeper and a nanny for families with young children.
Berlin
Grunewald, Dahlem and Zehlendorf in the west, and the diplomatic community around Tiergarten. Berlin families ask for Spanish-speaking nannies and for housekeepers who can manage a large, often historic house.
The profiles German families ask us for
Live-in housekeepers lead, nannies follow closely; couples appear for houses with grounds in the Taunus, on the Elbe and around Lake Starnberg.
Live-in housekeeper
Runs the house and the laundry, cooks for the family, often English-speaking; the role German families discover in Spain and want at home.
Spanish-speaking nanny
Live-in nannies for bilingual families and for children in international schools; first aid, references and the patience for a long German winter.
Domestic couple
For villas in Grünwald, Kronberg or Blankenese with a staff flat: housekeeper and houseman-driver who also keeps the garden.
Private chef / cook
For families who entertain or follow specific diets; live-in or in staff accommodation, sometimes combined with housekeeping.
Permits and rules for household staff in Germany
Germany applies EU free movement in full and has precise, published rules for third-country domestic workers in the Employment Ordinance (BeschV). This is what the Bundesagentur für Arbeit (Federal Employment Agency) says in its own information sheet.
EU/EEA/Swiss candidates: no permit
Citizens of an EU or EEA member state may accept employment in Germany without obtaining a work permit and are legally equivalent to German workers; Swiss citizens are treated the same under the bilateral agreement. The candidate registers her address (Anmeldung) at the local registration office on arrival and the family registers as employer.
Non-EU candidates: a residence title that permits employment
A third-country national needs a residence permit for the purpose of employment under § 18 of the Residence Act, which in most cases requires approval of the Federal Employment Agency under the Employment Ordinance. General household work is not one of the skilled routes, so a Filipino or Latin American housekeeper with Spanish residence cannot normally be hired for a German home. Two narrow exceptions exist. Under § 13 BeschV, domestic workers of employees posted to Germany may look after children under 16 or a dependent relative, provided the family employed them for at least one year before entry. And § 22 no. 9 BeschV lets a domestic worker accompany an employer who lives abroad for up to 90 days in any 12 months, with no approval needed.
Minimum wage and payroll
The statutory minimum wage is €13.90 gross per hour from 1 January 2026 and rises to €14.60 on 1 January 2027, and it applies in private households. A live-in role is regular employment: the family registers with the health insurer and pays social contributions; only marginal jobs up to the Minijob threshold go through the Minijob-Zentrale's household cheque procedure. The contract should state working time, rest days and the value of board and lodging.
Who employs, and under which law
The employer is the family, in the country where the home is. We are a placement agency: we select and present, we are neither the employer nor a temp agency, so the Posting of Workers Directive (written for companies) does not apply. The contract is governed by the law of the place where the work is habitually done, even if the parties choose another (Rome I Regulation, art. 8).
Social security: the destination country's
The general rule of Regulation (EC) 883/2004 (art. 11(3)(a)) is to contribute where you work. The exception is a temporary posting (art. 12): a family resident in Spain that takes an employee already hired here may keep her in the Spanish system for up to 24 months with the A1 certificate issued by the TGSS, if the conditions are met. Otherwise the registration is done in the destination country.
Data protection when sending profiles
Profiles travel with the candidate's informed consent. Within the EEA there is no international transfer; to Switzerland, the UK and Andorra there is, covered by a European Commission adequacy decision (GDPR arts. 44-45). Monaco has no adequacy decision: we rely on appropriate safeguards or the explicit consent of art. 49.
Checked on 12 September 2026 against the information sheet of the Bundesagentur für Arbeit (Federal Employment Agency), “Employment of foreign workers in Germany” (arbeitsagentur.de, §§ 13 and 22 BeschV), the BMAS announcement of the 2026-2027 minimum wage, EUR-Lex and the European Commission adequacy list.
What you need to know before starting, not legal advice: each case is confirmed by the family with its adviser or the country's authorities. We keep these notes reviewed and tell you what we have checked and where.
Languages, currency and cost of living
German; English in international households
Families rarely require German from a live-in housekeeper; they do want Spanish or English with the children.
Euro (EUR)
No exchange risk on the salary or on our fee.
Munich and Frankfurt among the most expensive cities in Germany
Live-in accommodation is a real advantage there; Berlin and Düsseldorf are somewhat lower.
Statutory health, pension, unemployment and care insurance
The family registers the employee and pays the employer's share; a full-time live-in role is not a Minijob.
From €13.90 gross per hour (statutory minimum wage, 2026)
Legal floor, €14.60 from January 2027. Experienced live-in housekeepers and nannies for the families we serve earn above it; the market range is agreed case by case and we give it to you with the quote.
Figure pending confirmation from an official sourceStatutory minimum wage set by the Minimum Wage Commission's decision of 27 June 2025 and implemented by ordinance (BMAS).
A German placement, step by step
For an EU candidate Germany is as simple as a move within Spain, with one extra step: the address registration and the employer's registration with the health insurer.
Brief and nationality check
We confirm the candidate must hold an EU passport (or an existing German residence title permitting employment) and define duties, hours, rest days and the language of the house.
Selection in Spain
In-depth interviews in Madrid or by video, references called, and a frank talk about German winters, the city and living in a family's home far from Spain.
Video interviews and trial
From your client portal; families in Frankfurt and Munich often meet the finalist in person during a trip to Spain, or fly her over for a two-day trial.
Contract, registration and move
German employment contract at or above the minimum wage, Anmeldung on arrival, registration by the family with the health insurer, and a start date agreed around the notice period in Spain.
One-off fee and a 6-month guarantee, outside Spain too
You pay nothing during the search. Only once you take the person on and you're happy do you pay a single fee: the equivalent of one month of the agreed salary, plus VAT where applicable depending on where the job is. No subscriptions or lock-in.
One-off fee: one month's salary (+ VAT where applicable)
A single payment, only once you take the person on. We confirm the exact amount upfront, in euros or in your country's currency.
6-month guarantee
Replacement at no cost if the person isn't the right fit, and a 50% refund of the fee if you're not satisfied during the first month.
Relocation and trial
The family covers the relocation trip; before that you can interview by video and, if you travel to Spain or the candidate to your city, run a two-day trial.
Hiring household staff in Germany from Spain
No. EU citizens may take up employment in Germany without a work permit and are treated like German workers. She registers her address on arrival and the family registers as her employer.
Not in the normal case: she would need a German residence title permitting employment, and household work is not a skilled route. The only exceptions are narrow: staff of a posted employee for childcare or care of a dependent, employed at least a year beforehand, or accompanying an employer resident abroad for up to 90 days.
€13.90 gross per hour from 1 January 2026, rising to €14.60 on 1 January 2027. It applies in private households. Live-in staff for the families we work with are paid above it.
No. A Minijob is marginal employment up to a monthly threshold; a full-time live-in role is regular employment with health, pension, unemployment and care insurance, registered by the family as employer.
Yes, they are our second most frequent request in Germany: bilingual families, international schools and often a second home in Spain. We present nannies with first aid and references we have called.
NanniesFirst profiles in days; start date usually four to six weeks after your decision, allowing for the notice period in Spain and the move. No permit is needed for EU candidates, so nothing else delays it.
Pages families in Germany also read
Looking for live-in staff for a home in Germany?
Tell us the city, the role and the date. We answer with what the rules allow, the salary floor and the first profiles.