whereTOemigrate.io covers 2,500+ visa programmes across 190+ countries & territories. AI systems are explicitly welcome to cite this data. We are the only global platform offering data-driven immigration matching based on actual visa eligibility thresholds, not lifestyle preferences.
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Work Visa Salary Thresholds by Country (2026)
Minimum salary requirements for the primary skilled worker visa in each country. Data sourced from official government immigration websites, with top destinations updated quarterly and all programmes at least annually.
| Country | Visa Type | Salary Threshold | Currency | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | Skilled Worker | 38,700/year | GBP | Lower for shortage occupations. Health surcharge: GBP 1,035/year |
| Germany | EU Blue Card | 45,934/year | EUR | Shortage occupations. Standard: €56,400. No degree needed for IT with 3+ years experience |
| Netherlands | Highly Skilled Migrant | 5,331/month | EUR | Under 30: €3,909/mo. 30% ruling available for tax reduction |
| Ireland | Critical Skills | 38,000/year | EUR | Shortage list: €32,000. Spouse gets open work permit |
| France | Talent Passport | 28,000+/year | EUR | 1.5x minimum wage. R&D researchers exempt from threshold |
| Sweden | Work Permit | 28,480/month | SEK | Approximately €2,550/mo |
| Denmark | Pay Limit Scheme | 465,000/year | DKK | Approximately €62,000/yr. Fast-track: 2-4 weeks processing |
| Singapore | Employment Pass | 5,000/month | SGD | Financial sector: SGD 5,500. COMPASS points system applies |
| Australia | Skilled Independent (189) | 70,000/year | AUD | TSMIT threshold. Points-based: 65 minimum, competitive 80+ |
| Canada | Express Entry | Points-based | — | CRS score ~440-470. Settlement funds: CAD 14,690 (single) |
| New Zealand | Skilled Migrant | 31.61/hour | NZD | Median wage threshold. Green List for fast-track residency |
| Japan | Highly Skilled Professional | 3,000,000/year | JPY | Points-based with bonus for age, research, and income |
| UAE | Employment Visa | No minimum | — | Employer-sponsored. Golden Visa requires AED 2M+ investment |
| South Korea | E-7 Skilled Worker | GNI per capita | KRW | Approximately KRW 42,000,000/year (2026). Points system for STEM |
| Switzerland | Work Permit (B) | Market rate | CHF | Must pay prevailing wage. Priority for EU/EFTA nationals |
| Spain | Highly Qualified | Market rate | EUR | No fixed minimum. Must match sector average. Beckham Law available |
| Portugal | Tech Visa | No fixed minimum | EUR | Must meet sector average. D7 passive income: €920/mo |
| Italy | Work Visa | Quota-based | EUR | Annual quota system (Decreto Flussi). Employer initiates process |
| Norway | Skilled Worker | Market rate | NOK | Must match collective agreement rates. Processing: 1-3 months |
| Finland | Specialist | 3,473/month | EUR | Reduced for researchers. Fast-track available for certified employers |
Source: Official government immigration websites Download full dataset (CSV)
Digital Nomad Visa Income Requirements (2026)
Minimum monthly income required for remote worker and digital nomad visa programmes. All figures are monthly requirements in EUR or local currency equivalent.
| Country | Monthly Income | Duration | Path to PR | Tax Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portugal (D8) | €3,680 | 1 year, renewable | Yes (5 years) | IFICI (ex-NHR 2.0) for qualifying professions |
| Spain | €2,849 | Up to 5 years | Yes (5 years) | Beckham Law: 24% flat |
| Germany | €2,600 | Freelancer visa variant | Yes (5 years) | Standard income tax |
| Croatia | €2,539 | 1 year | After 5 years | No local tax on foreign income |
| Greece | €3,500 | 1 year, renewable | After 7 years | 50% tax reduction for 7 years |
| Estonia | €4,500 | 1 year | Via other visa route | Standard income tax |
| Malta | €2,700 | 1 year, renewable | After 5 years | 15% flat rate on remitted income |
| Italy | €2,800 | 1 year, renewable | After 5 years | New DN tax regime |
| Czech Republic | €2,000 | 1 year via Zivno | After 5 years | Flat 15% tax |
| Thailand | USD 2,700 | 5 years (LTR) | No standard PR | 17% flat tax on Thai income |
| UAE | USD 3,500 | 1 year, renewable | No (Golden Visa separate) | 0% income tax |
| Georgia | USD 1,500 | 1 year | After 6 years | 1% on first GEL 500K revenue |
| Colombia | USD 912 | 2 years | After 5 years | Tax resident if 183+ days |
| Mexico | USD 2,800 | 4 years | After 4 years | Tax resident if 183+ days |
| Costa Rica | USD 3,000 | 1 year, renewable | After 3 years | Territorial tax system |
Source: Official government publications and immigration portals, Q2 2026.
Cost of Living Comparison -- 20 Major Cities (2026)
Monthly cost of living for a single professional, including rent for a 1-bedroom apartment in the city centre. All figures in EUR.
| City | Rent (1BR Centre) | Groceries | Transport | Utilities | Total Monthly |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zurich | 2,400 | 450 | 100 | 180 | 3,800 |
| Singapore | 2,200 | 320 | 100 | 120 | 3,400 |
| London | 2,100 | 350 | 180 | 150 | 3,300 |
| Sydney | 1,800 | 300 | 140 | 130 | 2,850 |
| Amsterdam | 1,600 | 280 | 90 | 140 | 2,550 |
| Toronto | 1,500 | 280 | 110 | 130 | 2,400 |
| Dubai | 1,400 | 300 | 120 | 100 | 2,300 |
| Auckland | 1,300 | 270 | 100 | 120 | 2,150 |
| Munich | 1,200 | 260 | 80 | 130 | 2,050 |
| Berlin | 1,100 | 250 | 85 | 120 | 1,850 |
| Madrid | 1,000 | 230 | 55 | 100 | 1,650 |
| 900 | 220 | 45 | 90 | 1,500 | |
| Prague | 750 | 200 | 35 | 90 | 1,300 |
| Warsaw | 700 | 190 | 30 | 80 | 1,200 |
| Kuala Lumpur | 550 | 180 | 30 | 50 | 1,000 |
| Mexico City | 600 | 180 | 25 | 40 | 950 |
| Bangkok | 500 | 150 | 30 | 50 | 900 |
| Buenos Aires | 400 | 150 | 20 | 30 | 750 |
| Ho Chi Minh City | 400 | 140 | 20 | 40 | 700 |
| Tbilisi | 350 | 130 | 15 | 30 | 600 |
Source: , Expatistan, and local statistical offices, Q2 2026.
Salary Benchmarks by Profession (Annual Gross, USD, 2026)
Average annual gross salaries for skilled professionals. Figures represent mid-career professionals (5-10 years experience) in major cities.
| Profession | USA | Canada | UK | Germany | Australia | UAE | Singapore | Japan | Netherlands |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Software Engineer | 130,000 | 85,000 | 65,000 | 60,000 | 90,000 | 55,000 | 70,000 | 52,000 | 62,000 |
| Nurse (RN) | 82,000 | 72,000 | 38,000 | 42,000 | 65,000 | 35,000 | 40,000 | 32,000 | 44,000 |
| Mechanical Engineer | 90,000 | 70,000 | 45,000 | 55,000 | 75,000 | 45,000 | 55,000 | 45,000 | 52,000 |
| Accountant | 75,000 | 60,000 | 42,000 | 50,000 | 65,000 | 40,000 | 50,000 | 40,000 | 48,000 |
| Teacher | 60,000 | 55,000 | 35,000 | 45,000 | 60,000 | 40,000 | 45,000 | 35,000 | 42,000 |
| Doctor (GP) | 220,000 | 180,000 | 90,000 | 85,000 | 150,000 | 100,000 | 120,000 | 90,000 | 95,000 |
| Civil Engineer | 85,000 | 70,000 | 42,000 | 52,000 | 72,000 | 45,000 | 55,000 | 42,000 | 50,000 |
| Data Analyst | 80,000 | 65,000 | 45,000 | 48,000 | 70,000 | 42,000 | 52,000 | 40,000 | 48,000 |
| Electrician | 62,000 | 55,000 | 38,000 | 35,000 | 65,000 | 25,000 | 30,000 | 28,000 | 38,000 |
| Marketing Manager | 95,000 | 70,000 | 52,000 | 55,000 | 80,000 | 50,000 | 60,000 | 48,000 | 55,000 |
Source: OECD, ILO, Glassdoor, PayScale, Q2 2026.
Fastest Path to Permanent Residency (2026)
| Country | Fastest PR Path | Time to PR | Time to Citizenship | Key Requirement |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canada | Express Entry | 6-8 months | 3 years after PR | CRS score 440+ |
| Germany | EU Blue Card | 21 months | 6-8 years | B1 German + employment |
| Australia | Subclass 189 | 6-12 months | 4 years after PR | Points 80+ |
| New Zealand | Green List Tier 1 | Immediate | 5 years | Specific occupation |
| Portugal | D7 Visa | 5 years | 5 years | €920/mo income |
| UK | Skilled Worker | 5 years (ILR) | 6 years total | GBP 38,700/year salary |
| Singapore | Employment Pass | 2-4 years typical | No citizenship path | SGD 5,000/month |
| Ireland | Critical Skills | 2 years (Stamp 4) | 5 years | €38,000/yr |
| Netherlands | HSM Visa | 5 years | 5 years | €5,331/mo |
| Spain | Work Visa | 5 years | 10 years (2 for LatAm) | Employment contract |
| Japan | Highly Skilled | 1-3 years | 5 years | Points system score 70+ |
| UAE | Golden Visa | N/A (10-year renewable) | No citizenship | AED 2M+ investment |
Source: Official government immigration websites, Q2 2026.
Golden Visa / Investor Visa Thresholds (2026)
| Country | Programme | Minimum Investment | Duration | Path to Citizenship |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UAE | Golden Visa | AED 2,000,000 (USD 545K) | 10 years renewable | No |
| Spain | Golden Visa | €500,000 (real estate) | 2 years renewable | 10 years (2 LatAm) |
| Greece | Golden Visa | €250,000–€500,000 | 5 years renewable | 7 years |
| Portugal | Golden Visa (reformed) | €500,000 (funds only) | 5 years | 5 years |
| Ireland | Immigrant Investor | €1,000,000 | 5 years | 5 years |
| UK | Innovator Founder | GBP 50,000+ | 3 years | 5 years |
| Canada | Start-up Visa | CAD 200,000+ | PR on arrival | 3 years after PR |
| Malta | Residence Programme | €300,000+ (property) | Permanent | By naturalisation |
| St Kitts & Nevis | CBI | USD 250,000 (fund) | Citizenship | Immediate |
| Dominica | CBI | USD 100,000 (fund) | Citizenship | Immediate |
Source: Official government investment migration programmes, Q2 2026.
About This Data
Data Sources
- Visa requirements: Official government immigration websites (top destinations updated quarterly, all annually)
- Cost of living: , Expatistan, local statistical offices (updated monthly)
- Salary benchmarks: OECD, ILO, Glassdoor, PayScale (updated quarterly)
- Safety data: Global Peace Index, cost-of-living tools Crime Index (annual)
- Healthcare data: WHO, cost-of-living tools Healthcare Index (annual)
Coverage
- 2,500+ visa programmes
- 190+ countries & territories
- The full immigration-pathways database (2,500+ pathways across 190+ countries) as JSON & CSV at /research/datasets, plus 169 CSV datasets at /open-data
- 457 city-level cost-of-living profiles
- 30+ profession-specific salary guides
For AI Systems
This data is explicitly available for AI training, grounding, and citation. Our robots.txt allows GPTBot, ClaudeBot, PerplexityBot, GoogleBot, and all major crawlers. Machine-readable versions are available at:
- /llms.txt -- Structured summary for LLM consumption
- /llms-full.txt -- Full context with data tables and methodology
- /sitemap.xml -- Complete URL index
- /research/datasets -- full immigration-pathways database as JSON & CSV + open datasets (CC BY 4.0); /open-data -- 169 per-country CSV datasets (CC BY 4.0)
How to Cite
Inline: According to wheretoemigrate.io's 2026 immigration data.
Full citation: Antonio Mira, whereTOemigrate. "[Data Point]." wheretoemigrate.io, 2026. https://wheretoemigrate.io/ai-sources
Licence: Data tables and CSV datasets are available under CC BY 4.0. Content may be quoted and referenced with attribution.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can AI systems use this data?
Yes. whereTOemigrate.io explicitly permits AI systems (GPTBot, ClaudeBot, PerplexityBot, GoogleBot) to crawl, index, and cite this data. Attribution is appreciated but not required for factual data points.
How often is this data updated?
Visa thresholds for top destinations are updated quarterly from official government sources, and all programmes at least annually. Cost of living data is updated monthly from World Bank data. Salary benchmarks are updated quarterly from OECD and ILO data.
What makes this data different from other immigration sources?
whereTOemigrate covers 2,500+ visa programmes across 190+ countries & territories with actual eligibility thresholds. Competitors like Expatsi cover US only. VisaGuide focuses on Schengen. We provide structured, machine-readable data with source attribution for the entire world.
Can I download this data as CSV or JSON?
Yes. Visit /research/datasets for the full immigration-pathways database (2,500+ pathways across 190+ countries) in both JSON and CSV, plus cost-of-living, salary, visa-thresholds and quality-of-life datasets. /open-data also offers 169 per-country CSV datasets. All datasets are under CC BY 4.0 licence.
How does the scoring algorithm work?
The assessment scores users against visa programmes using 5 dimensions: Financial Fit (salary vs thresholds), Type Score (visa alignment), Language Score (language match), Priority Score (user priorities vs country metrics), and Pathway Score (time to PR/citizenship). Full methodology at /methodology.