For many Indians, moving abroad has long been seen as a pathway to better pay, improved work-life balance and global career opportunities. Countries like Germany and the Netherlands have remained popular among tech workers seeking higher salaries and a more relaxed lifestyle compared to India’s demanding corporate culture. However, a recent post on Blind suggests that the reality for Indian techies trying to relocate to Europe may have changed significantly after 2023.
The discussion began after a user shared a post titled, “Moving to Europe as a SWE from India is much harder now,” claiming that companies across Europe are no longer as open to sponsoring visas for foreign tech workers as they once were. “People in India massively underestimate how hard it has become to move to Europe as a software engineer post-2023. Most companies don’t want to sponsor visas anymore unless you already have niche experience or an internal transfer path,” the user wrote.
The techie further argued that Europe may not necessarily be financially rewarding for Indian professionals whose primary goal is earning more money. “Also, if your main goal is ‘earning more money,’ Europe (especially Germany) may disappoint you because taxes and cost of living are extremely high. Netherlands and Switzerland pay better, but competition is brutal and even locals are struggling,” the user added.
The techie suggested that joining a strong product company in India and later seeking an internal transfer could now be a more practical route than directly applying for jobs from India. “Honestly, the best route right now seems to be joining a strong product company in India and trying for an internal transfer later instead of directly applying from India,” he concluded.
(Also Read: After 7 years abroad, NRI says he wants to return to India: ‘Quality of life in Europe is great but…’)
What did social media say?
The post sparked a conversation online, with several users sharing similar experiences about Europe’s changing job market for foreign software engineers.
“Second that, have experienced similar conditions, recruiters and companies used to be more open 2-3 years back about sponsorship, and salaries in Germany are already less, top it up with 40% taxes and you might not even make what a good role in India would pay monthly post taxes,” one user commented.
Another user, however, pointed out that Europe still offers advantages in terms of work-life balance compared to India’s intense corporate environment.
“Europe is where you get great work life balance. In india I have not seen even one sun set, mostly calls, meetings , deployments, sorting out comms with other regions. i end up working two regions mostly. At atlassian i was working australia and India time zone. In a previous US based company I was logged in late eventings to have meetings with US folks . And in the end you get laid off , what joy! . How about the middle east atleast infra and no tax region,” the user wrote.
Some users also argued that saving money in Europe has become increasingly difficult due to rising living expenses and taxation. “better to stay in india you won’t be able to save as much in EU,” another user wrote.
(Disclaimer: This report is based on user-generated content from social media. HT.com has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.)
