Minimum income for a specialist
08.09.2021Standard income requirements for highly skilled migrants and for European Blue Card applicants in 2022:
Highly skilled migrant 30 years and older
monthly gross income € 4.840
Highly skilled migrant under 30
monthly gross income € 3484
Reduced wage criterion
gross income € 2497
European Blue Card
monthly gross income € 5567
A highly skilled migrant qualifies for the same wage age criterion as long as he continues to work for the same employer, even after he turns 30. If a highly skilled migrant changes the old employer to a new one, then the salary criterion is applied according to the age of the highly qualified migrant at the time when he switched to the new employer.
An exception to this rule applies to highly skilled migrants who qualify for reduced wages. This rule continues to apply even if the highly skilled migrant subsequently changes employer. The criterion for reduced wages is not related to age.
Reduced wage criterion
The criterion for reduced wages applies in the following 3 cases:
- An application for a residence permit to work as a highly skilled migrant is submitted during or immediately after the academic year.
- The migrant no longer has a residence permit under the condition “a year to look for work for graduates”. An application for a residence permit to work as a highly skilled migrant must be submitted within 3 years of graduation, the date of completion of a doctoral degree, or the date of expiration of the residence permit for scientific research.
- The high-skilled migrant has never had a residence permit under the condition “a year to find a job for graduates”, but meets the conditions for this purpose of residence. For example, he graduated from the university, received a doctoral degree, or conducted scientific research. An application for a residence permit to work as a highly skilled migrant must be submitted within 3 years of graduation, the date of completion of a doctoral degree, or the date of expiration of the residence permit for scientific research.