Which Country Is Actually Worth Moving To?
Every year, thousands of software engineers ask the same question: which country is actually worth moving to? Higher salaries make headlines, but the full picture — visa accessibility, tax environment, quality of life, and path to long-term residency — tells a different story.
This guide covers the best countries for software engineers to relocate to, including the visa routes available, realistic salary expectations, and which destination offers the best overall package for your career and life goals.
Our Speciality
We specialize in helping software engineers and tech founders relocate to Portugal via the Portugal D2 Visa and Portugal Digital Nomad Visa — but this guide gives you the full picture so you can make the best decision for your situation.
Quick Comparison: Best Countries for Software Engineers at a Glance
| Country | Avg. Salary | Visa Without Job Offer | PR Timeline | Citizenship |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 🇵🇹 Portugal | ~$50K local / Keep foreign salary | ✅ Digital Nomad / D2 Visa | 5 years | 5 years |
| 🇺🇸 USA | $110K–$167K+ | ❌ H-1B lottery only | Decades (India/China) | 5 years PR |
| 🇬🇧 UK | ~$74K (London) | ❌ Employer sponsor required | 5 years | 6 years |
| 🇩🇪 Germany | $62K–$67K | ✅ Opportunity Card | 4–5 years | 5–8 years |
| 🇨🇦 Canada | $58K–$65K | ✅ Express Entry | Varies | 3 years PR |
| 🇪🇸 Spain | ~$52K local / Keep foreign salary | ✅ Digital Nomad Visa | 5 years | 10 years (2 for some) |
| 🇨🇭 Switzerland | ~$97K–$127K | ❌ Employer sponsor required | 5 years | 10 years |
| 🇩🇰 Denmark | ~$78K (Copenhagen) | Partial (Pay Limit / Positive List) | 4 years | 8–9 years |
1. Portugal — Best Overall for Software Engineers Who Want an EU Base
If you're a software engineer thinking about your long-term future — not just your next paycheck — Portugal deserves serious attention. It consistently ranks as one of the top destinations for international tech talent, and for good reason.
Why Software Engineers Are Moving to Portugal
- EU residency in 5 years — one of the fastest citizenship timelines in Europe
- Portugal Digital Nomad Visa: live in Portugal while earning your current salary from abroad
- Portugal D2 Visa: ideal for engineers who want to freelance, consult, or launch a tech startup
- NHR tax regime — flat 20% income tax on Portuguese-source income, plus exemptions on most foreign income for up to 10 years
- Lisbon and Porto consistently ranked among Europe's top startup and tech cities
- English widely spoken in the tech industry
- Cost of living 30–50% lower than London, Amsterdam, or Paris
- Warm climate, excellent food, and one of the world's safest countries
Visa Options for Software Engineers in Portugal
Portugal Digital Nomad Visa (D8)
Designed for remote workers and freelancers earning income from clients outside Portugal. You must earn at least 4x the Portuguese minimum wage (~€3,040/month). No need for a Portuguese employer. This is the most popular entry point for software engineers who are already employed or contracting remotely.
Portugal D2 Visa (Entrepreneur/Startup Visa)
The right route if you want to register a company in Portugal, work as an independent contractor with Portuguese clients, or launch a startup. The D2 is particularly powerful for engineers transitioning from employee to founder. After 5 years of D2 residency, you qualify for permanent residency and Portuguese citizenship.
Portugal Work Visa (D1)
For software engineers with a job offer from a Portuguese company. Your employer sponsors the visa and applies on your behalf.
Portugal Job Seeker Visa
A newer visa type allowing you to enter Portugal and spend up to 120 days searching for employment before switching to a work permit. Relevant for engineers who want to explore the local market before committing.
Average Software Engineer Salary in Portugal
Local software engineering salaries in Portugal average around $50,000 — lower than Northern Europe. However, this figure is misleading for most international engineers who choose the Digital Nomad or D2 Visa routes, as they continue earning their home-country rates (often $80,000–$150,000+) while benefiting from Portugal's low cost of living and favorable NHR tax status. For senior engineers on the NHR program earning foreign income, the effective combination of salary + tax savings + lower cost of living often outperforms what they would experience in the US, UK, or Germany on paper.
2. United States — Highest Salaries, Hardest Visa
The US offers the highest software engineering salaries in the world, with particular concentrations in Silicon Valley, Seattle, and New York. Average salaries range from $110,000 nationally to over $167,000 in San Jose. For senior engineers at major tech companies, total compensation packages can reach $250,000–$500,000+ when stock options and bonuses are included.
The challenge for international engineers is the visa system. The H-1B Visa — the primary work visa for software engineers — is subject to an annual lottery, with acceptance rates often below 30%. Processing times can be lengthy, and the visa ties you to your sponsoring employer, limiting career flexibility.
The US also has no established path to citizenship through the skilled worker route alone — EB-2 and EB-3 green card backlogs for nationals from India and China can stretch to decades. For engineers seeking long-term security and freedom to move employers or start a company, the US system is significantly less flexible than European alternatives.
3. United Kingdom — Strong Ecosystem, Post-Brexit Complexity
The UK remains a major tech hub, particularly London, which has one of the deepest pools of tech investment outside the US. Average software engineering salaries in London reach approximately $74,000, with strong opportunities in fintech, AI, and gaming.
For international software engineers, the UK Skilled Worker Visa is the primary route. It requires a job offer from a Home Office-registered sponsor, with a minimum salary threshold of £38,700 (as of 2024). Once in the UK, engineers can apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) after 5 years — a pathway to British citizenship.
Post-Brexit, EU engineers no longer enjoy free movement to the UK, and UK engineers face the same visa requirements as other non-EU nationals when moving to Europe. This has pushed many international tech workers toward EU destinations like Portugal, Germany, and Spain instead.
4. Germany — Europe's Tech Giant with a Skilled Worker Shortage
Germany is actively recruiting international software engineers. The country has officially acknowledged a shortage of skilled tech workers and has made significant changes to its immigration system to attract talent — including a restructured Skilled Worker Visa and the EU Blue Card, which offers a fast track to permanent residency.
Cities like Berlin, Munich, and Hamburg have established tech ecosystems, with Berlin in particular earning a reputation as a more affordable alternative to London for startup founders and engineers alike. Average software engineering salaries range from $62,000 in Hamburg to $67,000 in Munich.
Germany's path to permanent residency is 5 years for EU Blue Card holders and 4 years for those who demonstrate German language proficiency. The citizenship process is lengthy, though Germany reformed its rules in 2024 to allow dual nationality.
5. Canada — Tech-Friendly Immigration, Growing Ecosystem
Canada has positioned itself as one of the most immigration-friendly destinations for software engineers in the world. The Global Talent Stream offers work permits in as little as 2 weeks for qualifying roles at eligible companies. Canada's Express Entry system also provides a points-based pathway to permanent residency for tech workers.
Cities like Toronto, Vancouver, and Montreal offer strong tech markets with average software engineering salaries between $58,000 (Montreal) and $65,000 (Toronto).
The path to Canadian citizenship is 3 years of physical presence after obtaining permanent residency, making it one of the faster citizenship timelines globally. Canada also allows dual citizenship, and a Canadian passport ranks among the world's strongest.
6. Spain — Warm Climate, Digital Nomad Visa, Growing Tech Scene
Spain has emerged as a serious tech destination, combining a warm Mediterranean climate with improving salaries and a popular Digital Nomad Visa launched in 2023. Average software engineering salaries in Spain sit around $52,000, but most international engineers on the Digital Nomad Visa retain their foreign salary while benefiting from lower Spanish living costs.
Barcelona and Madrid are the primary tech hubs, with Valencia and Malaga growing rapidly.
The main limitation for Spain is the citizenship timeline: 10 years of legal residency is required for most non-EU nationals. This makes Spain a weaker choice than Portugal if long-term EU residency and citizenship are priorities. The exception is nationals of Iberoamerican countries and the Philippines, who qualify after just 2 years.
7. Switzerland — Highest Salaries, Hardest to Access
Switzerland offers the highest average software engineering salaries in Europe, with an average of $97,518 and senior developer salaries reaching $127,693. Zurich in particular is a global financial and tech hub with exceptional compensation packages.
The major drawback: Switzerland is not an EU member, and its immigration system is strict. International engineers typically need a job offer from a Swiss employer who then applies for a work permit on their behalf. Quotas apply.
Switzerland also has one of the longest paths to citizenship — typically 10 years of residency — and the process is demanding, including cantonal assessments of integration. For most software engineers, Switzerland is an excellent destination if you already have a Swiss employer willing to sponsor you, but it is not a realistic self-directed move the way Portugal or Germany can be.
8. Denmark — Scandinavian Quality of Life
Denmark consistently tops quality-of-life rankings and offers strong software engineering salaries — Copenhagen engineers average $78,000, with Python and Java specialists earning over $100,000. Denmark's Pay Limit Scheme and Positive List visa routes offer accessible pathways for engineers with job offers. The main considerations: Denmark is expensive, Danish language skills become increasingly important for long-term integration, and citizenship requires 8–9 years of residency.
Which Is the Easiest Country to Immigrate to as a Software Engineer?
This is one of the most searched questions for engineers considering a move, and the answer depends on your profile:
| Your Profile | Best Route |
|---|---|
| Fastest path to permanent residency | Canada (Express Entry) or Portugal (D2 Visa — 5 years to citizenship) |
| Move without a job offer | Portugal Digital Nomad Visa or Germany Opportunity Card |
| Freelancer or startup founder | Portugal D2 Visa — most flexible and founder-friendly option in Europe |
| Highest salary, willing to navigate a lottery | United States H-1B |
| Filipino or Latin American national | Spain and Portugal offer preferential citizenship timelines (2 years for Spain) |
Key Factors to Consider When Choosing a Country
- Visa accessibility: Can you get there without needing an employer to sponsor you first?
- Tax environment: High gross salaries don't always mean high take-home pay. Portugal's NHR regime can make a $100K income go significantly further than the same income in Germany or France.
- Path to permanent residency and citizenship: If you want to build long-term roots in Europe, Portugal's 5-year citizenship route is uniquely fast.
- Cost of living vs. salary: A $50K salary in Lisbon provides comparable or better purchasing power than a $70K salary in London.
- Work-life balance: Germany and Portugal consistently rank higher than the US and Japan for work-life balance and employee protections.
- Startup ecosystem: If you're planning to build a company, Portugal's D2 Visa and active startup incentives make it the most founder-friendly choice in Southern Europe.
- Language: English is the working language in most Portugal and Germany tech environments; local language becomes more important for long-term integration.
Why Portugal Is Our Top Pick for Software Engineers
We specialize in helping software engineers and tech founders relocate to Portugal — and it's not because Portugal pays the highest salaries. It's because Portugal offers the best total package for engineers thinking about their career and life over a 5–10 year horizon.
The Portugal total package:
- ✅ Move without a local job offer (Digital Nomad Visa)
- ✅ Keep your existing salary and clients while living in Europe
- ✅ Benefit from NHR tax advantages on foreign-source income
- ✅ Build toward EU citizenship in 5 years
- ✅ Live affordably in a safe, beautiful, English-friendly country
- ✅ Launch your startup using the Portugal D2 Visa if and when you're ready
No other European country offers this combination of accessibility, tax efficiency, quality of life, and speed to citizenship for non-EU software engineers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which country is easiest to immigrate to as a software engineer?
Portugal and Canada are generally considered the most accessible. Portugal's Digital Nomad Visa allows entry without a job offer, and both countries offer clear pathways to permanent residency within 5 years. Germany's Opportunity Card is also a newer self-directed option for qualified tech workers.
Does Portugal have a specific visa for software engineers?
Yes. Software engineers can use the Portugal Digital Nomad Visa (D8) for remote workers with foreign income, the Portugal D2 Visa for freelancers and company founders, or the Portugal D1 Visa for engineers with a job offer from a Portuguese employer. The Digital Nomad Visa is the most popular entry route for international tech professionals.
What is the Portugal D2 Visa and how is it different from the Digital Nomad Visa?
The Portugal D2 Visa (Entrepreneur Visa) is designed for founders and independent professionals who want to register a company or work as a contractor in Portugal. The Digital Nomad Visa (D8) is for remote workers who earn income from clients or employers outside Portugal. Both lead to Portuguese residency and eventually citizenship, but the D2 is more suitable for engineers transitioning to freelance or startup work.
How long does it take to get Portuguese citizenship as a software engineer?
After 5 years of legal residency in Portugal — which begins from the day your D2, Digital Nomad, or other visa becomes active — you are eligible to apply for Portuguese citizenship. Processing typically takes an additional 1–2 years. A Portuguese passport provides EU citizenship and visa-free access to over 185 countries.
Is it worth moving to Germany or the UK instead of Portugal?
It depends on your priorities. Germany and the UK offer higher local software engineering salaries, but also significantly higher taxes and costs of living. Portugal offers lower local salaries but allows most international engineers to keep earning abroad via the Digital Nomad Visa — combined with NHR tax benefits and a lower cost of living, the effective financial outcome is often comparable or better. Portugal also offers the fastest citizenship timeline in Western Europe for most non-EU nationals.
What is the skilled worker visa and does Portugal have one?
The "skilled worker visa" is a general term used by multiple countries — including Germany (Fachkraftvisum), the UK (Skilled Worker Visa), and Canada — for work permits targeting professionals in high-demand occupations. Portugal does not have a visa specifically called "skilled worker visa," but the D1 (employment visa), D2 (entrepreneur visa), and Digital Nomad Visa collectively serve the same function for software engineers and tech professionals.
