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List of 30 European Tech Visas and Work Permits

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Re: List of 30 European Tech Visas and Work Permits

#121

For some reason the UK Tech Nation visa isn't filled in. Proper name is Tier 1 (Exceptional Talent). Tech Nation are the 'designated competent body' for the tech specialistaion - it's a generic visa for specialists who've been endorsed by a body in the UK from their industry. It cost something like £600 all up for the actual fees, then they sting you with an NHS surcharge which is now £400 a year I think - another gi…

Is this Tier 1 visa the same as, or similar to, the earlier HSMP (Highly Skilled Migrants Program)?

Re: List of 30 European Tech Visas and Work Permits

#123

For some reason the UK Tech Nation visa isn't filled in. Proper name is Tier 1 (Exceptional Talent). Tech Nation are the 'designated competent body' for the tech specialistaion - it's a generic visa for specialists who've been endorsed by a body in the UK from their industry. It cost something like £600 all up for the actual fees, then they sting you with an NHS surcharge which is now £400 a year I think - another gi…

Oh yeah, can't edit my comment, but you've got the cost wrong. It's a two part application process, so when you apply to get endorsed, it's £456. Then, once you've been endorsed, you can apply for the actual visa using the endorsement you got from tech nation. That's £156. It used to be £268 for each stage, so split 50/50.

I'm also very confident there's only 400 a year. 2000 is the total for all the Tier 1 (Exceptional Talent) visas, across all industries and disciplines - so engineering, art, music, etc etc.

Details here: https://www.gov.uk/tier-1-exceptional-talent

Re: List of 30 European Tech Visas and Work Permits

#124
post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would be interested to know what these friends do. From my personal experience in game-dev in Berlin, the highest earning coding individual-contributor (so not a manager) salary I ever saw was 70-something €k per year (and it is quite rare to go above €65k even as a very senior programmer). You will literally have to be C-level at a large and succesful company to earn €120k+ as far as I can tell (in this sector).

Game development is famously underpaid. After all, you're competing with wide-eyed 23 year olds with no bills or family who have dreamed of making games their whole life. I was apparently pretty well paid at my last job (Game Dev) at 68k EUR a year. Also, note that a lot of Europeans quote salary after tax, which can make a big difference.

    you're competing with wide-eyed 23 year olds
Not for senior/lead roles (I've done hiring in several companies). There are lots of people competing for junior roles but its still not that easy to recruit true seniors (10+ years work experience).

Re: List of 30 European Tech Visas and Work Permits

#125

American in Paris for 1 year working as a Senior DevSecOps Engineer (or whatever they want to call us). Went from 225kUSD/yr in usa to 95kEUR in Europe (most senior devs are lucky to get 75k, paris tech salaries are lagging behind London, AMS and Berlin. I felt like I was getting underpaid until I figured out (awkwardly at a dinner) that i make more than a lot of doctors and government ministers. Plus the healthcare,…

Californian in Dublin - I feel embarrassingly overpaid in Ireland. But every time I go to the US, I feel embarrassingly underpaid. My wife and I went from California to Ireland, then back to California for a year, and when she used up her whole 1 week of vacation and we realized even in tech we'd never afford a house where our kids could walk to a decent school, we moved back to Ireland. I'd make 2-3x as much in the…

Do you mind sharing what role/salary you were offered in Dublin?

I was offered 35k for a junior role, but declined it as that seemed pretty low (especially taking into account housing difficulties there).

Re: List of 30 European Tech Visas and Work Permits

#126
post #5

Missing from the Dutch Highly Skilled Visa is that there is also an income requirement based on age. I don't recall the exact numbers but if you are 35+ the income requirement is significantly higher. In any case, the required level would not be a problem for most tech workers.

It's important to note that if you qualify for The Dutch Highly Skilled Visa you will typically also qualify for the great "30% rule" tax exception, this means that you get 30% of your income tax-free for 5 years, and the other 70% will fall mostly in the lowest tax bracket. (Ostensibly to help you move, but in practice really to make The Netherlands more competitive for highly skilled migrants)

To qualify you need a salary of €54K (lower if you're under 30), which is pretty easy to get in the tech scene so it's not uncommon for startups in Amsterdam to have all their foreign workers making more than their native Dutch colleagues.

Re: List of 30 European Tech Visas and Work Permits

#127

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That’s what he/she was making in the United States.

I understand that, but I still find that to be extremely high. I'm in Denmark, a country that's known for high cost of living and high saleries to match, and I wouldn't expect a senior dev/ops/sec position to pay more than half that.

It's normal for people to be paid $120k/y straight out of college in SF Bay Area. $225k/y is normal for seniors.

Re: List of 30 European Tech Visas and Work Permits

#128

Left the states a few years ago. After a 2 years stint in Toronto at a startup I now work for a Swedish development agency in Gothenburg. 6 weeks of paid vacation, great public transit, and affordable housing all mean I'm never going back to the states. If your considering moving to Europe, I'd highly recommend it. Salary isn't everything in life. Happy to answer any questions

What's so bad about Toronto? Ontario looks like a nice region to live.

I don't think anything is bad with Toronto per say (maybe housing prices), he explicitly said states, maybe life just pulled him to the EU

Re: List of 30 European Tech Visas and Work Permits

#129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because reducing the number of immigrants has been a hot topic politically for over the past decade.

I think in most of Western Europe "limit immigration" is just the politically correct code for "stop immigration of Muslims and other people from non-Western nations". Skilled workers from Western nations are usually welcomed with open arms.

In England at least, there seems to be a significant “EU immigrants took our jobs” factor as well. As I understand it, that perception was a significant factor in the Brexit vote.

For example see: https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/may/20/reality-che...

Re: List of 30 European Tech Visas and Work Permits

#130
Another addition suggestion - the Dutch American Friendship Treaty.

If you're a US citizen, you've got ~$7500 in savings, and can employ yourself, you can live and work in the Netherlands.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DAFT

I emailed this guy a few times and he was always happy to answer questions - http://shawnindutch.com/

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