A faster way to find work that actually wants you
Platforms and tips that hold up whether you're in your first week or your first year somewhere new
Job hunting in a country you didn't grow up in is its own separate skill from whatever job you're actually looking for. The boards below got onto this list because they're genuinely open to migrants — through sponsorship, language flexibility, or a track record of hiring refugees and new arrivals — not because they bid the most for ad space.
Job boards worth your evening
EURES
01Run by public employment services across the EU and EEA. Free to use, available in every member-state language, and the closest thing to an official cross-border job board that exists.
Visit EURES →Welcome to the Jungle
02Mostly tech, design, and creative roles. Each listing comes with enough detail about the company culture that you can usually tell whether you'd actually want the job, not just whether you qualify for it.
Visit Welcome to the Jungle →ArbeitNow
03A German job board built around the fact that most users don't speak German yet. The sponsorship filter alone saves you from applying to roles that were never going to hire you.
Visit ArbeitNow →Refugees Welcome Jobs
04Employers here have actually committed to hiring refugees and recent arrivals, in writing — a smaller pool than a generic board, but a much more honest one.
Search Refugees Welcome Jobs →Talent.com
05A large general aggregator. Not specific to migrants, but it's a fast way to see what exists in a country you've just landed in and don't know yet.
Visit Talent.com →RemoteOK
06Worth a look if your visa allows remote work and your move disrupted your income — a role paid in euros or dollars can cover a gap while you find your footing locally.
Visit RemoteOK →Before you sign
Getting your diploma or qualification recognized
Most countries have a formal recognition process for foreign degrees and professional qualifications — sometimes called credential evaluation, equivalence, or recognition of prior learning. It's almost always slower than people expect, so start it early, even before you have a job offer that requires it. Medical, legal, and teaching credentials usually need the most time; general academic degrees are often the fastest to process.
If a recognition body says no, ask specifically what's missing — sometimes it's a single additional course or a notarized translation, not a full re-qualification.
Your rights on payday
Wherever you're working, a few questions are worth confirming before — not after — your first paycheck:
- Is there a legal minimum wage, and does your contract meet it?
- Do you have a written contract, in a language you actually understand?
- What's the legal process for sick leave, and is it paid?
If you suspect you're being underpaid or asked to work off the books, a labor rights organization or your country's labor ministry can usually advise confidentially — you don't have to go straight to your employer first if you're worried about retaliation.
Remote-first job hunting
If your visa or permit allows it, remote work paid in a stronger currency can be a real cushion while you settle in. Worth knowing: working remotely for a foreign employer while physically present in a country can still have tax and visa implications — it's not automatically a loophole, so it's worth a quick check against your specific permit conditions.