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Moving to Slovakia

Slovakia country facts, largest cities, hub labels and reports.

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Across 198 passports, 93 passports enter visa-free and 105 passports need a visa for Slovakia. Check your passport below.

Visa-free
93
Visa required
105

198 accepted passport rules · rules effective as of 2026-09-05

Visa and entry rules

Short stay and entry198 source-backed passport answersHighly SkilledOfficial route overview and current conditions.Self EmployedTemporary residence for business is available to a third-country national who conducts or intends to conduct business in Slovakia as a natural person, or acts for a trading company.Entrepreneur StartupA person conducting or planning business in Slovakia may qualify as a natural person or as a representative of a company or cooperative without an employment relationship.Permanent ResidenceSlovak permanent residence for five years may be granted to a third-country national who is a spouse or dependent direct-line relative of a Slovak citizen with permanent residence.WorkOfficial route overview and current conditions.

Sources checked through 5 Sept 2026.

Work and income

What is the unemployment rate in Slovakia?

The national unemployment rate was 5.4 % in 2025. Source: Eurostat — Unemployment by sex and age — annual data (une_rt_a)13

This is the Eurostat labour-force survey series used as the canonical national answer. Other published definitions exist and are shown in the table below.

What is the median gross salary in Slovakia?

The median gross salary was 1,281 EUR/month in 2022.

Half of employees earn less than this. Mean gross and national-accounts averages use different definitions and are shown in the table below. national-accounts average — shown in the table below.

  • Median gross salary, monthly: 1,281 EUR/month · Eurostat (Structure of Earnings Survey, earn_ses_monthly)14
  • Average gross salary, monthly: 1,414 EUR/month · 2026-07-25 · Eurostat — National accounts aggregates (nama_10_a10) and employment (nama_10_a10_e)12

What is the minimum wage in Slovakia?

The statutory minimum wage is about 5.26 EUR/hour, gross (as of January 2026). Source: SK official material for minimum_wage_hourly_gross_eur39

National statutory floor, gross, before tax and social contributions.

MetricValuePeriodSource
Median gross salary, monthly1,281 EUR/month31 Dec 2022Eurostat (Structure of Earnings Survey, earn_ses_monthly)14Official · national figure
National unemployment rate5.4 %31 Dec 2025Eurostat — Unemployment by sex and age — annual data (une_rt_a)13Official · national figure
Minimum gross hourly wage5.26 EUR/hour1 Jan 2026SK official material for minimum_wage_hourly_gross_eur39Official · national figure

Public employment service in Slovakia

Official job-search, registration, counselling and training routes. Private recruitment agencies are not included.

Central Office of Labour, Social Affairs and Family — Public employment service

Ústredie práce, sociálnych vecí a rodiny

Job SearchTraining
Search jobs

A national service does not prove that an office exists in every city. City pages show an office only after an exact address is linked to that city. Sources checked through 12 Aug 2026.

Taxes in Slovakia

National rates and comparable published scenarios. Personal tax depends on income, household and residence circumstances.

What does an average earner take home in Slovakia?

A single person on an average wage keeps about 14,835 EUR/year of about 19,590 EUR/year gross per year — 75.7% of pay.

Standardized OECD Taxing Wages (standardized scenario): single person, no children, earning the average wage. The same scenario is published for every covered country, so take-home shares compare directly.

Gross-to-net decomposition, 2025
ComponentAmount / year
Net wage earnings, kept14,835
Employee social contributions−2,625
Income taxes−2,130
Gross wage earnings19,590
  • Gross-to-net pay for a sample household: single person no children — 19,590 gross → 14,835 net a year (2025, national currency) · Taxing Wages 2026 — labour taxation decomposition
Top income-tax rate35 %
Corporate tax rate24 %
Employee income tax, yearly2,130 EUR/year
Employee social contributions, yearly2,625 EUR/year
Verified from the linked official or intergovernmental records. Open the primary source. Sources checked through 7 Aug 2026.

Benefits newcomers may qualify for in Slovakia

Public schemes where an official source defines an eligible migration or residence status. Amounts and conditions are kept in their native terms.

ProgrammePublished amountSource and application

Material-need assistance for asylum seekers and complementary-protection persons — Arrival and reception support

91.7–183.3 EUR / Monthly

Office of Labour, Social Affairs and Family (ÚPSVaR) under the Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family

Open official application
Eligibility and amount details

The 2026 activation allowance is EUR 183.30 for qualifying employment at least at the minimum-wage level, EUR 137.50 for qualifying education or retraining and EUR 91.70 for qualifying projects/programmes.

The Slovak Ministry expressly includes asylum seekers, aliens granted complementary protection and displaced persons with residence in the Slovak Republic based on a permit from the pertinent authority among persons entitled to material-need assistance, subject to special-law exceptions.

Material-need assistance (pomoc v hmotnej núdzi) — Minimum-income support

89.7–314.4 EUR / Monthly

Office of Labour, Social Affairs and Family (ÚPSVaR)

Open official application
Eligibility and amount details

The 2026 basic material-need benefit ranges from EUR 89.70 for one person to EUR 314.40 for a couple with more than four children; the official table lists separate household categories.

The Slovak Ministry states that aliens are among the persons entitled to material-need assistance, subject to the special-law exceptions. The same statutory list also names citizens, stateless persons, asylum seekers, persons with complementary protection and displaced persons with residence in the Slovak Republic based on a permit from the pertinent authority.

Prídavok na dieťa (Child allowance) — Family and child support

60 EUR / Monthly

Office of Labour, Social Affairs and Family (ÚPSVaR)

Open official application
Eligibility and amount details

Monthly child allowance: EUR 60 per dependent child.

The Slovak Ministry states that the claimant may be a non-national permanently or temporarily resident in Slovakia, or a person covered by EU social-security coordination, while caring for a dependent child.

Príspevok na bývanie within material-need assistance — Housing support

100.6–308.4 EUR / Monthly

Office of Labour, Social Affairs and Family (ÚPSVaR)

Open official application
Eligibility and amount details

The 2026 housing contribution component ranges from EUR 100.60 to EUR 308.40 across the statutory household categories in the official measure.

The Slovak Ministry states that aliens are among the persons entitled to material-need assistance, subject to the special-law exceptions; the housing contribution is a component of that assistance. The same statutory list also names stateless persons, asylum seekers, persons with complementary protection and displaced persons with residence in the Slovak Republic based on a permit from the pertinent authority.

Unemployment benefit — Unemployment support

Percentage-based / Monthly

Social Insurance Agency / Office of Labour, Social Affairs and Family

Open official application
Eligibility and amount details

40% of daily assessment base (DVZ) in month 4.

The official Slovak Social Insurance Agency cross-border route states that a person is entitled to unemployment benefits if they are an unemployed person after termination of employment in the territory of another EU Member State, Norway, Liechtenstein, Iceland, Switzerland or the United Kingdom (until 31 December 2020), and meet all conditions for entitlement to unemployment benefits according to Slovak legislation. The domestic entitlement page requires registration in the Register of Job Seekers and at least 730 days of unemployment insurance in the last four years. bounded cross-border worker with an EU/EEA/Swiss insurance period claiming Slovak unemployment benefit; it does not generalize to all foreign nationals.

ImmigrationDB shows published rules; it does not decide personal eligibility. Confirm your status, contribution record and household circumstances with the responsible authority before applying. Sources checked through 12 Aug 2026.

Can migrants receive medical care in Slovakia?

Yes — migrants can receive medical care in Slovakia when the official insurance or residence conditions are met.

Verified 2026-08-03. Open the official coverage rules.

Language courses and integration in Slovakia

Government programmes, public integration services and exact provider records. The section expands only from fields present in the source; missing prices, refunds or contacts are not replaced with estimates.

3verified programmes
2cities with exact local records
2verified location records
1listed providers

Integration of third-country nationals including migrants — national project — Integration course

Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family of the Slovak Republic

For third-country nationals, migrants.

SlovakIn Personnot_published
Open official information

Integration policy of the Slovak Republic — Welcome Program

Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family of the Slovak Republic / Government of Slovakia

For foreigners with long-term residence, third-country nationals.

SlovakIn Personnot_published
Open official information

Open Slovak-language courses for foreigners through the IOM Migration Information Centre — State Language Course

Migration Information Centre of IOM Slovakia, referenced by the Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family

For foreigners, third-country nationals.

SlovakIn Personnot_published
Open official information
Country programmes describe the national or named local framework. Availability in a city is shown only when a source names that place exactly. Sources checked through 2026-08-10.

Living and moving context for Slovakia

Slovakia had GDP per capita of US$25,993 and life expectancy of 78.4 years in 2024. The national unemployment rate was 5.4% in 2025. Slovak is the official language. Average gross salary was €1,414 per month in 2024, while national median net income was €719 per month in 2024. Household electricity was €0.188/kWh in the second half of 2025. The gross hourly minimum wage was €5.259 from 1 January 2026. In 2026, the top income-tax rate was 35% and standard VAT was 23%. The corporate tax rate was 24% for the stated 2025 tax year or 2025–2026 financial year.

#1 by populationBratislava480,902 residents · Capital hub#2 by populationKošice222,286 residents#3 by populationPetržalka112,118 residents

Slovakia cities by population

The largest published cities appear first. Population is taken from the reusable official city layer; hub labels come from the existing city taxonomy.

Open city finder
CityPopulationNet rent, €/m²/monthMedian gross salary, €/month
BratislavaCapital hub480,902Population—Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
Košice222,286Population—Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
Petržalka112,118Population—Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
Prešov81,223Population4.67Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
Žilina79,873Population4.83Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
Nitra75,301Population3.93Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
Banská Bystrica73,054Population—Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
Trnava63,184Population—Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
Trenčín54,104Population—Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
Martin50,153Population—Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
Poprad48,034Population—Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
Prievidza41,959Population—Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
Zvolen38,747Population—Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
Považská Bystrica36,690Population—Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
Nové Zámky35,628Population—Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
Dúbravka35,300Population—Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
Michalovce34,894Population—Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
Karlova Ves34,746Population—Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
Spišská Nová Ves34,023Population—Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
Komárno31,560Population—Net rent, €/m²/mo—Median gross salary, €/mo
All published cities in Slovakia

Reports with this country

Accepted report pages with a row for this country.

All reports
Countries with the highest published family income after groceries and utilities Countries with the highest published single income after groceries and utilities Countries with the lowest published household electricity price Countries with the lowest published groceries and utilities total Language and integration programmes by country Least populous countries in the current ImmigrationDB coverage
Foreign residents65,673 people31 Dec 2025Official source · Eurostat
Population5,422,069 people31 Dec 2024Official source · World Bank
Median gross salary, monthly1,281 EUR/month31 Dec 2022Official source · Eurostat (Structure of Earnings Survey, earn_ses_monthly)
National unemployment rate5.4 %31 Dec 2025Official source · Eurostat — Unemployment by sex and age — annual data (une_rt_a)
Public healthcare access for foreign residentsConditional3 Aug 2026Official source · VšZP — Všeobecná zdravotná poisťovňa (General Health Insurance Company, Slovakia)
Area49,030 km²31 Dec 2023Official source · World Bank
77 country facts · 144 cities · Last checked 2026-09-06

Slovakia facts

Current source-backed observations, grouped the way the city pages are, with geographic scope and observation periods.

Population and profile

How many people live in Slovakia?

The published population was 5,422,069 people in 2024. Source: World Bank48

National, resident population scope. Foreign-resident and migration-background figures are separate metrics in the table below.

How many foreign residents live in Slovakia?

The foreign-resident population was 65,673 people in 2025. Source: Eurostat3

Residents without Slovakia citizenship. The migration-background population is a broader measure and appears in the table below.

MetricValuePeriodSource
Foreign residents65,673 people31 Dec 2025Eurostat3Official · national figure
Population5,422,069 people31 Dec 2024World Bank48Official · national figure

Legal, tax and other context

MetricValuePeriodSource
Public healthcare access for foreign residentsConditional3 Aug 2026VšZP — Všeobecná zdravotná poisťovňa (General Health Insurance Company, Slovakia)45Official · national figure
Area49,030 km²31 Dec 2023World Bank49Official · national figure
Cost level against the capital76 index (EU27=100)31 Dec 2024Eurostat — Comparative price levels and HICP (prc_ppp_ind, prc_hicp_midx)9Official · national figure
Gross-to-net pay for a sample householdsingle person no children — 19,590 gross → 14,835 net a year (2025, national currency)31 Dec 2025Taxing Wages 2026 — labour taxation decomposition43Official · country household scenario
Population by year5,434,712 people (2022)1 Jan 2022Population on 1 January by age and sex (DEMO_PJAN)33Official · country annual series
Religious affiliation of residentsOrthodox — 0.93 % (2021)31 Dec 2021UNdata Table 28 — Population by religion, sex and urban/rural residence44Official · country religion category
Salary by professionManagers — 2,058 EUR/month (2024)31 Dec 2024ILOSTAT — Average monthly earnings of employees by sex, occupation and currency (annual)23Official · country occupation
Doctors per 1,000 residents317.2 per 1,0002025SK official material for doctors_per_100035Official · national figure
Household electricity price0.188 EUR/kWh2025-S2SK official material for electricity_household_eur_per_kwh36Official · national figure
Employer social contribution rate25.2 %8 Aug 2026Slov-Lex / Ministry of Justice of the Slovak Republic42Official · national figure
People employed in agriculture, forestry and fishing66,930 people2024ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure
People employed in mining and quarrying3,610 people2024ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure
People employed in manufacturing503,420 people2024ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure
People employed in electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning17,340 people2024ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure
People employed in water supply, sewerage and waste management25,230 people2024ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure
People employed in construction191,770 people2024ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure
People employed in wholesale and retail trade; motor vehicle and motorcycle repair368,890 people2024ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure
People employed in transportation and storage141,300 people2024ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure
People employed in accommodation and food services98,560 people2024ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure
People employed in information and communication82,230 people2024ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure
People employed in finance and insurance44,360 people2024ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure
People employed in real estate29,680 people2024ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure
People employed in professional, scientific and technical services153,830 people2024ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure
People employed in administrative and support services116,610 people2024ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure
Unemployment across cities in SlovakiaOf 143 cities with data, 99 have unemployment of 0 to under 5%.

Typical city (median): about 4.1%

unemployment rate, % · measured cities in Slovakia per band99 cities: 0% to under 5%990–536 cities: 5% to under 10%365–107 cities: 10% to under 15%710–151 city: 25% to under 30%125–30

Unemployment rate (%)

Common questions

Answered from the published values on this page, each with its source and date.

What is the unemployment rate in Slovakia?

The national unemployment rate was 5.4 % in 2025. Source: Eurostat — Unemployment by sex and age — annual data (une_rt_a).

How many people live in Slovakia?

The published population was 5,422,069 people in 2024. Source: World Bank.

What is the median gross salary in Slovakia?

The median gross salary was 1,281 EUR/month in 2022. Source: Eurostat (Structure of Earnings Survey, earn_ses_monthly).

What is the minimum wage in Slovakia?

The statutory minimum wage is about 5.26 EUR/hour, gross (as of January 2026). Source: SK official material for minimum_wage_hourly_gross_eur.

Cite this page

Open a format to select or copy this ImmigrationDB compilation citation. The native disclosure and text fallback work without JavaScript.

APA citation
ImmigrationDB. (2026, September 12). Moving to Slovakia: salary, cost of living [ImmigrationDB compilation; snapshot approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0; version approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0]. ImmigrationDB. https://immigrationdb.com/countries/slovakia/ Retrieved 2026-09-12. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
BibTeX citation
@misc{immigrationdb_immigrationdb_moving-to-slovakia-salary-cost-of-living_08bd839b7cf1,
  author = {ImmigrationDB},
  title = {Moving to Slovakia: salary, cost of living},
  publisher = {ImmigrationDB},
  year = {2026},
  date = {2026-09-12},
  version = {approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0},
  snapshot = {approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0},
  url = {https://immigrationdb.com/countries/slovakia/},
  note = {Retrieved 2026-09-12. ImmigrationDB compilation. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/},
}
Markdown citation
[Moving to Slovakia: salary, cost of living](https://immigrationdb.com/countries/slovakia/) — ImmigrationDB; ImmigrationDB; snapshot approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0; version approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0; retrieved 2026-09-12; built 2026-09-12.

This citation identifies the ImmigrationDB compilation/page. Underlying source publishers and datasets retain their own terms; inspect the Sources section and cite those records separately. View the underlying source records.

Sources

Every number above comes from one of these records. Open the original source for its geographic scope and publication date.

  1. ec.europa.eu ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-12
  2. EF EPI ef.com · checked 2026-08-03
  3. Eurostat ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-20
  4. Eurostat ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-03
  5. Eurostat ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-07
  6. Eurostat ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-03
  7. Eurostat ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-05
  8. Eurostat ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-05
  9. Eurostat — Comparative price levels and HICP (prc_ppp_ind, prc_hicp_midx) Eurostat · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-06-12
  10. Eurostat — Distribution of income by household composition (ilc_di04) Eurostat · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-26
Show 43 more sources
  1. Eurostat — Household energy prices (nrg_pc_204 electricity, nrg_pc_202 gas) Eurostat · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-06-12
  2. Eurostat — National accounts aggregates (nama_10_a10) and employment (nama_10_a10_e) Eurostat · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-26
  3. Eurostat — Unemployment by sex and age — annual data (une_rt_a) Eurostat · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-26
  4. Eurostat (Structure of Earnings Survey, earn_ses_monthly) ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-03
  5. Eurostat crim_off_cat (ICCS0101, NR) ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-05
  6. Eurostat demo_pjan ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-05
  7. Eurostat earn_mw_cur ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-06
  8. Eurostat hbs_exp_t121 ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-06
  9. Eurostat ilc_di03 ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-06
  10. GDP per capita (current US$), World Development Indicators api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-07-14
  11. Globalization and World Cities (GaWC), Loughborough University gawc.lboro.ac.uk · checked 2026-08-03
  12. Hospital beds (per 1,000 people) data.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-13
  13. ILOSTAT — Average monthly earnings of employees by sex, occupation and currency (annual) ILOSTAT · rplumber.ilo.org · checked 2026-07-30
  14. MIPEX mirovni-institut.si · checked 2026-08-03
  15. OECD sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
  16. OECD — Taxing Wages (DF_TAXINGWAGES) tax wedge and net income OECD · oecd.org · checked 2026-06-12
  17. OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
  18. OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
  19. OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
  20. OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
  21. OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-05
  22. Physicians (per 1,000 people) data.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-13
  23. Population on 1 January by age and sex (DEMO_PJAN) ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-29
  24. SK official material for corporate_tax_rate_percent podpora.financnasprava.sk · checked 2026-07-18
  25. SK official material for doctors_per_1000 ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-18
  26. SK official material for electricity_household_eur_per_kwh ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-18
  27. SK official material for income_tax_top_rate_percent podpora.financnasprava.sk · checked 2026-07-18
  28. SK official material for life_expectancy_years api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-07-18
  29. SK official material for minimum_wage_hourly_gross_eur employment.gov.sk · checked 2026-07-18
  30. SK official material for official_language vlada.gov.sk · checked 2026-07-18
  31. SK official material for vat_standard_percent financnasprava.sk · checked 2026-07-18
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  33. Taxing Wages 2026 — labour taxation decomposition Taxing Wages 2026 · sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-07-29
  34. UNdata Table 28 — Population by religion, sex and urban/rural residence UNdata Table 28 · data.un.org · checked 2026-07-30
  35. VšZP — Všeobecná zdravotná poisťovňa (General Health Insurance Company, Slovakia) VšZP · vszp.sk · checked 2026-08-03
  36. WHO GHO RS_196/RS_198 ghoapi.azureedge.net · checked 2026-09-05
  37. WHO GHO RS_196/RS_198 ghoapi.azureedge.net · checked 2026-09-05
  38. World Bank api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-02
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  41. World Bank Open Data api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-07
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  43. World Bank SP.POP.TOTL api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-09-05