Maid and nanny interview questions, including video calls on WhatsApp

Ask about five things: her experience, the work your home needs, how she would handle real situations, her visa and when she could start, and what she expects in pay and time off. Put the same questions to every helper, start with a WhatsApp video call, then meet in person and check her references before you decide.

An interview works both ways: she is deciding too, so tell her about the job as well as asking your questions. On MaidMatch, you can read a helper's profile and, if she has one, watch her video CV before you get in touch, so your first call can go straight to the questions that matter.

What should you ask a maid in an interview?

Ask about her past jobs, her routines and how she would handle real situations, in questions she can't answer with a yes or a no. Use the same questions, in the same order, for every helper, and note her answers so you can compare them afterwards. These suit any role:

When an answer is vague, ask 'Can you give me an example?' Specific answers tell you far more than general ones, and they make it easier to compare helpers fairly. If you're still deciding which role you need, our guide to maid, nanny, caregiver or housekeeper helps, and choosing a helper explains why skills and experience matter more than nationality.

What questions should you ask a nanny?

Ask which ages she has cared for, how she runs a child's day and what she would do in an emergency. You're looking for real childcare experience, a calm manner, some first-aid knowledge and good references from other families. Questions that bring those out:

• What ages have you looked after, and for how long?
• Can you walk me through a day with a toddler, from breakfast to bedtime?
• How do you handle a tantrum, or two children who are fighting?
• What would you do if a child had a high fever at night, or started choking?
• Have you done any first-aid training? When was it?
• How do you keep children safe near a pool, on a balcony and in the car?
• What do you do when a child won't eat or won't sleep?
• How much screen time do you think is right, and what do you do instead?
• How would you let us know about a problem during the day?

Good answers put the child's safety first and fit your rules, not only her own habits. If a routine matters to you, such as nap times or no sweets before dinner, describe it and ask how she would keep to it.

Extra questions for a newborn or a baby under two

Ask about newborns specifically, because caring for a baby of a few weeks is different from caring for a toddler:

• How many newborns have you cared for, and from what age?
• How do you prepare and sterilise bottles?
• How do you put a baby down to sleep safely?
• Have you helped with night feeds? How did you get your rest?
• Can I speak to a family whose baby you looked after?

Agree who covers the nights before she starts, because night feeds eat into her rest, and Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2022 protects it. A domestic worker is entitled to at least 12 hours of rest a day, of which at least 8 must be consecutive.

What should you ask about cooking, cleaning and other duties?

Ask about each duty on your list, and ask her to talk you through how she does it. The questions depend on the job:

MaidMatch's filters let you narrow the list before you interview anyone, including by cooking style, driving, experience with babies under 2 and care for an elderly parent. For an elderly parent who needs medical care, ask their doctor what kind of help is right before you choose.

What should you ask about her visa and start date?

Ask what visa she holds, who sponsors her and when her current contract ends. Her answers tell you which hiring route applies and whose agreement you need. Under Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2022, the UAE's domestic workers law, she can start working for you only once she holds a work permit from MOHRE, the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation, for the job with you.

These points come from that law, MOHRE's work permit service card and, on changing employer, the International Labour Organization (ILO). As of September 2026:

• What visa do you hold now, and who sponsors you? This tells you which route applies, and what MOHRE will ask for. When the worker is already inside the UAE, MOHRE asks for the worker's tourist visa, if they are on one, or for the cancellation of their previous visa. If she says she has her own visa, find out exactly what visa it is before you agree anything; our guide to own-visa, visit-visa and part-time help explains what is legal.
• When does your contract end, and does your employer know you're looking? The ILO's May 2024 brief on UAE rules, citing Ministerial Resolution No. 674 of 2022, says a domestic worker's move to a new employer during the contract term needs the current employer's written consent. While another family sponsors her, she may not work for you. Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, a domestic worker may not work for anyone other than their employer, except as its Executive Regulations or MOHRE decisions allow. We found no official page that lists those exceptions.
• When does your passport expire? For a new domestic worker work permit, MOHRE requires that the worker does not already hold a valid work permit and has a passport valid for at least three months.
• Her age. It matters for the permit. A domestic worker must be at least 18, and MOHRE applies an upper age limit of 60 for a new work permit. MOHRE can exempt a domestic worker who is already in the UAE from its upper age limit if their domestic-worker residence was cancelled no more than three months earlier.
• When could you start? Only once her work permit for the job with you is issued, whatever her answer. She may not start work on a visit or tourist visa. Employing a domestic worker without a work permit for that job is punishable by a fine of AED 50,000 to AED 200,000.

Our guide to hiring a helper who is already in the UAE covers the steps from here, and how to hire a maid in the UAE compares the routes, including a Tadbeer centre.

What should you tell her about the job?

Everything she needs to decide: the duties, the hours, her day off, the salary, where she will sleep and your house rules. Tell every helper the same things. As of September 2026, Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2022 sets these rules, among others:

• A domestic worker is entitled to one paid day off a week.
• If a domestic worker works on the weekly day off, the employer must give another day off or pay cash instead.
• A domestic worker is entitled to at least 12 hours of rest a day, of which at least 8 must be consecutive.
• A domestic worker is entitled to at least 30 days' paid annual leave for each year of service.
• If a domestic worker spends annual leave in their home country, the employer pays for a return ticket once every two years.
• A domestic worker's wages must be paid monthly in UAE dirhams, within 10 days of the due date.
• Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, the employer must provide a domestic worker with suitable accommodation.
• Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, the employer must provide a full-time domestic worker with meals and work clothing, unless they agree otherwise.

Salary is for the two of you to agree. Each helper lists her own salary range on her profile. The UAE sets no statutory minimum wage for domestic workers: any floor comes from her home country and applies only to contracts verified through that country's system. Our salary guide shows what helpers ask for.

Describe the whole job now, including any cooking, driving or childcare, and make sure her contract states it later. Two rules in the Decree-Law explain why:

• A domestic worker's contract must be on MOHRE's standard form and state, among other terms, the nature and place of the work and the worker's total pay and how it is paid.
• An employer may not give a domestic worker a different kind of work from the contracted job unless the worker explicitly agrees and the new job is one of the listed domestic occupations.

Our guides to days off and working hours and the domestic worker contract have the detail.

How do you interview a maid on a WhatsApp video call?

Agree a time by message, then run the call like any interview: introduce the job, ask your questions in order, let her ask hers and say what happens next. Families contact helpers directly on WhatsApp, through the Hire button on each profile, and you can start the video call from that chat. Step by step:

1. Read her profile and watch her video CV. Note anything to ask about, such as her experience or a skill you need.
2. Send a short first message. Say who you are, which area you live in, what the job is (live-in or live-out, and your children's ages) and when you could talk.
3. Let her pick a time. If she works for another family now, she may be free only on her day off or in the evening. If she is abroad, check the time difference.
4. Get ready. Find a quiet spot with good light and a steady connection, keep your questions and a pen to hand, and tell her if anyone else will join, such as your partner.
5. Start with your family and the job. A minute on who you are and what the work involves lets her answer about your home, not homes in general.
6. Ask your core questions, then the role questions. Ask for examples, and let her finish before you move on.
7. Let her ask questions. What she asks tells you what matters to her.
8. Close clearly. Tell her what happens next and when she will hear from you, and let her know either way.

Plan on about half an hour. The call is also a good test of how easily you understand each other in the language you will use at home. Write your notes straight after, while her answers are fresh.

Keep documents out of it for now. Don't ask her to send photos of her passport or Emirates ID before you've decided to go ahead; you can look at them together when you meet.

What are the red flags in a maid interview?

A story that doesn't add up, or pressure to skip the legal steps. One odd answer proves nothing, so ask about it before you decide. Watch for these:

• Her answers don't match her card. What she tells you about where she worked or what she cooks differs from her card in the results. It may be a simple mistake, so ask her about it.
• She can't describe work she says she has done. Someone who has cared for a newborn can usually talk you through a night feed.
• The details keep changing. Her visa, her start date or her salary shift between the messages and the call.
• She offers to start straight away on a visit or tourist visa. She may not start work on one, and employing her without a work permit is punishable, as the visa questions above explain.
• Someone else answers for her, or asks you for money before you've met. Stop and read our guide to maid-hiring scams. MOHRE warns that hiring from unauthorised sources can make a family liable for employing and illegally sheltering a worker who is in breach of the rules.

What should you do after the interview?

Compare your notes, meet your favourite helpers in person, and check references and documents before any paperwork starts. In order:

1. Compare your notes. Go through the same questions for each helper while the calls are fresh.
2. Meet in person if she's in the UAE. Most helpers listed on MaidMatch are already in the UAE and ready to work. Invite her to your home, with the children there if the job includes childcare.
3. Look at her passport and visa with her. Under the Domestic Workers Decree-Law, a domestic worker has the right to keep all their official documents, including their passport and ID, and an employer may not hold them. Our guide to checking references and documents shows what to look at.
4. Call her references. Ask a previous employer what she did, how long she stayed, why she left and whether they would hire her again.
5. Agree the terms, then apply for her work permit. Put the job, the hours, her day off and the salary in writing. She starts only once the permit for the job with you is issued.

How can MaidMatch help?

By letting you shortlist, message and interview helpers before anyone commits. MaidMatch is a free platform for families: they can browse every profile at no cost, with no registration or subscription required.

On the helpers page you can filter by skills such as cooking or driving, live-in or live-out, and nationality, sort by salary, and watch helpers' video CVs. You can also shortlist your favourites without signing in. Families contact helpers directly on WhatsApp, through the Hire button on each profile.

Sponsorship is the employer's responsibility; families can manage the visa themselves or ask MaidMatch to connect them with its visa partners. MaidMatch's visa partner offers a two-year employment visa, with the visa, medical test, Emirates ID and insurance handled end to end. Ask the partner who sponsors her on that visa, and what that period covers. Our partners page has the details and the current price.