Several countries are now offering job seeker visas in 2025, enabling skilled professionals to search for employment abroad without having a pre-arranged job offer.
Several countries are now offering job seeker visas in 2025, enabling skilled professionals to search for employment abroad without having a pre-arranged job offer. Germany leads with its structured Job Seeker Visa and Opportunity Card, targeting IT, healthcare, and engineering professionals. Austria provides a Red-White-Red Card based on a points system. Sweden allows master’s degree holders a nine-month stay to job hunt or launch businesses.
The UAE offers a 60- to 120-day Job Exploration Entry Visa for skilled workers in cities like Dubai. Portugal grants a 120-day visa, extendable by 60 days, although work rights are granted only after employment. Finland issues a one-year residence permit for highly educated professionals, particularly in tech and AI.
The Netherlands allows foreign graduates to stay up to a year under the Orientation Year Visa. These options are becoming increasingly appealing “as countries grapple with labour shortages across sectors,” Vanguard reports.