There are J1 visas for au pairs, but don't know the details/requirements/limitations etc.
There are all kinds of limitations. If the OP wants to simply bring a particular person from her home country as a nanny, which is what it sounds like, that simply will not happen.
Au pairs have to apply through an agency, be accepted, be matched
by the agency to a host family, and have to study in a college-level program--so they have to be a high-school graduate equivalent and fluent in English, etc. The maximum length is 12 months renewable by up to a maximum of another 12 months.
You will not be able to bring a specific person over as a nanny; there is no shortage of nannies available within the United States so there is no nanny-visa program. Your nanny would have to qualify for a visa on some other basis, which would pretty much preclude her from working for you as a nanny. If she came over as an ordinary student she could not take pay, and she would not qualify for H1, etc. etc.
If I understand the question properly, the short answer is No.
If you just want a culturally-compatible nanny, then advertise or sign up with an au pair agency, that should not be a problem if you can afford it.
More details from the statute:
(d) Au pair selection . In addition to satisfying the requirements of Sec. 62.10(a) , sponsors shall ensure that all participants in a designated au pair exchange program:
(1) Are between the ages of 18 and 26;
(2) Are a secondary school graduate, or equivalent;
(3) Are proficient in spoken English;
(4) Are capable of fully participating in the program as evidenced by the satisfactory completion of a physical;
(5) Have been personally interviewed, in English, by an organizational representative who shall prepare a report of the interview which shall be provided to the host family; and
(6) Have successfully passed a background investigation that includes verification of school, three, non-family related personal and employment references, a criminal background check or its recognized equivalent and a personality profile. Such personality profile will be based upon a psychometric test designed to measure differences in characteristics among applicants against those characteristics considered most important to successfully participate in the au pair program.
(e) Au pair placement . Sponsors shall secure, prior to the au pair's departure from the home country, a host family placement for each participant. Sponsors shall not:
(1) Place an au pair with a family unless the family has specifically agreed that a parent or other responsible adult will remain in the home for the first three days following the au pair's arrival;
(2) Place an au pair with a family having a child aged less than three months unless a parent or other responsible adult is present in the home;
(3) Place an au pair with a host family having children under the age of two, unless the au pair has at least 200 hours of documented infant child care experience. An au pair participating in the EduCare program shall not be placed with a family having pre-school children in the home unless alternative full-time arrangements for the supervision of such pre-school childre are in place;
(4) Place the au pair with a family unless a written agreement between the au pair and host family outlining the au pair's obligation to provide not more than 45 hours of child care services per week has been signed by both; and
(5) Place the au pair with a host family unless a written agreement between au pair and the host family detailing the au pair's obligation to provide child care has been signed by both the au pair and the host family prior to teh au pair's departure from his or her home country. Such agreement shall clearly state whether the au pair is an EduCare program participant or not. Such agreement shall limit the obligation to provide child care services to not more than 20 hours per day or more than 45 hours per week unless the au pair is an EduCare participant. Such agreement shall limit the obligation of an EduCare participant to not more than 10 hours per day or more than 30 hours per week.
