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In 2021, the average annual full-time adjusted salary for employees in the EU was €33 500. Eurostat is publishing this indicator for the first time.

The Blue Card Directive prescribes the use of this indicator for determining the average gross annual salary for each EU Member State and granting working permits to high-skilled workers. The Directive aims to attract highly skilled workers to the EU under more flexible admission conditions, with enhanced rights and the possibility to move more easily to another EU Member State for EU Blue Card holders.  

The indicator is based on a combination of national accounts and Labour Force Survey (LFS) data. It is adjusted by expressing part-time salaries as full time equivalents.

 

Bar graph: Average annual full-time adjusted salary per employee in 2021, in €, in the EU Member States

Source dataset: nama_10_fte

 

Among the EU Member States, the highest average annual adjusted full-time salary in 2021 was recorded in Luxembourg (€72 200), followed by Denmark (€63 300) and Ireland (€50 300). Meanwhile, the lowest values of the indicator were recorded in Bulgaria (€10 300), Hungary (€12 600) and Romania (€13 000). 

For more information

Methodological notes: 

  • Netherlands: data are available via a link in the metadata file (different methodology).
  • The average annual salaries are transmitted by the countries under the European System of Accounts 2010 Transmission Programme (ESA 2010 TP). 
  • The ratio of full-time equivalent is extracted from the EU-Labour Force Survey, conducted by the National Statistical Institutes in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2019/1700. 
  • Comparability and availability aspects have been taken into account to set up this indicator. More detailed information on the applied method are provided in the metadata to ensure transparency for users.  
     

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