u/CollegeFun2752

My boyfriend is from Belgium and I am from the UK so unfortunately the visa requirements post-Brexit are quite complicated for us. We are both recent graduates in healthcare and business related fields and haven't worked yet since finishing university. We'd of course love to live together as soon as possible however, all of our options are proving to be complicated due to high costs and visa restrictions. I've heard that the family reunification visa has recently changed to to require a €2.3k net monthly income which seems extremely high for recent graduates. Is this now a strict requirement across all of Flanders and are there any other routes we could take to live together? I've looked into potential post-graduate study options however, a lot of them have high upfront costs and I still don't know if I'd be guaranteed to find work after? I am also very limited in my work search due to the language barrier which I will of course work hard to improve as my profession typically requires B2-C1 proficiency unless I get lucky in finding a job in an international school. It'd be so helpful to know if the €2.3k net income is a definite requirement for family reunification and what other routes we'd have to someday live together in Belgium. We’ve also been considering the UK and Ireland as alternatives, as while the UK has much higher upfront visa costs, the income requirements for family reunification are much lower. Ireland is a great visa-free option for us both but the major housing crisis would likely require us to rely on temporary accommodation for a while which is very expensive. I'd love to consider Belgium as a long-term option for us but the updated salary requirements feel so difficult to achieve at this stage in our lives, so any advice would hugely help us to make our decision! 💗

My boyfriend is Belgian and I am from the UK but due to complications with both the Belgian and UK visa rules we've decided to look into moving to Ireland for a while. We're worried this could be really difficult due to the current housing crisis, especially as we are also recent university graduates so we don't currently have any post-uni job experience or significant savings. I've already received so many helpful responses about relocating to Ireland in another post however, would we both typically need to provide evidence of our income, bank statements and savings? As the rental market seems so competitive, I worry we won't stand a chance of finding rent if we don't have any previous Irish work history. Would we be required to work for a few months in our own countries before relocating to Ireland? We are hoping to do this anyways however, we'd also be looking at moving to Ireland as soon as possible! We already know we'd likely need to find temporary accommodation during the search for a long-term place but we're just worried how long it'd realistically take to find a rental in the current market.

We’ve been trying to weigh this against the possibility of just going down the UK visa route instead even though it’s very expensive for us upfront and would mean I’d likely need to be the sole earner for at least 6 months before he can come. Alternatively, Belgium is difficult for us via family reunification as the salary requirements are extremely high and likely not attainable for university graduates. Dublin seems like the perfect middle ground for us as there's lots of job opportunities in healthcare and business plus it'd likely make the move to Belgium so much easier in future due to EU mobility rules. We're so unsure what to do so any advice whether positive or negative will help us so much in making our decision!! 😊

My boyfriend is Belgian and I’m from the UK so we’re in the process of figuring out where to live together and it’s been so difficult! We were originally hoping to live together in the UK but post-Brexit the visa costs are extortionate as we are recent graduates and the rules are very strict. We have now decided that Ireland may be our best option as it’s visa-free for us both, English speaking and may offer easier routes to eventually relocate to mainland Europe however, they’re going through a major housing crisis so the cost of living is extremely high and we’re worried we won’t be able to secure housing in time. I would love to join him in in Belgium (which is likely our plan for the longterm anyways!) but it feels almost impossible as graduates with a fairly low-moderate income. I have just graduated as an occupational therapist so the language barrier is a major issue, I’ve checked jobs in Belgium almost daily for months but there’s been nothing English-only besides for a maternity cover job at an international school in Brussels. I thought I’d ask on here as I’m sure there’s people who know a lot more about the visa requirements than me, if we went through the family reunification route would my boyfriend need to hit a monthly salary of £2.3k after tax? Are there any possible options/routes for me to join him via study or other job opportunities or will we truly have to wait a few years before it becomes a feasible option for us? Do we need to be married/civil-partnership for this visa or is evidence of a relationship enough? We’d be looking at living in Antwerp or surrounding areas if possible! Any help or guidance is appreciated as it’ll help us so much in making our decision!! :)

My boyfriend and I are an international couple, I am from Wales and he is from Belgium. It has been a difficult process to decide where to live as post-Brexit there’s lots of issues regarding visa costs and strict rules when trying to move to each others home countries. We have so far settled on Ireland as a good place for us (at least for now while we figure out our future and I learn his language!) but I’ve heard a lot about the housing crisis, especially in Dublin which is where we’d hope to relocate to for more job opportunities and easy access to home as we also don’t drive. We are both recent university graduates in occupational therapy and international business so we haven’t yet had post-university job experience. Thankfully our jobs are flexible but I also understand we’re not yet in the best financial situation to afford high rent and temporary housing so I worry we’d end up as unlikely candidates for a property unless I’m just being overly pessimistic. Based on this, how likely is it for us to find rent in Dublin at a lower end price (I am assuming €2k+ for most properties) and is it actually a viable option for us or are we better off paying UK visa fees in the long run? We could potentially look into other areas in Ireland but we are unable to drive and need a city/town with good transport links and job opportunities, please feel free to be as honest as possible as it really helps us in our decision on where we should find our new home for the timebeing! :)