Welding is one of Europe’s steadier skilled trades, with vacancies across manufacturing, metal fabrication, construction, shipbuilding, energy and industrial maintenance. Demand is real but uneven, varying by country, region, welding process and industry, so a welder who can prove the right process and certificate scope is usually in a strong position. This overview covers where the jobs are, realistic salaries, and what employers require. Rules and pay are national, so always check the specific destination country.

Define your welding process.

A vacancy labelled only “welder” is too broad. Define your process: 111 (MMA), 131 (MIG, aluminium and non-ferrous), 135 and 136 (MAG solid and flux-cored wire for carbon and structural steel), or 141 (TIG, for stainless, thin sections and pipe roots). MIG and MAG are not the same, and a TIG stainless pipe welder is not automatically a MAG structural welder. Employers also care about material, product and welding position.

Salaries vary widely

Pay varies by role, country, certification, and shift, with coded pipe and specialist welders earning more than general production welders. As a guide, Germany is around EUR 20 to 24 gross per hour, a nd the Netherlands around EUR 18 to 22. The Nordic countries are among the best-paid under collective agreements; Southern Europe is lower, and Central and Eastern Europe is lower in nominal terms and quoted in local currency. Always check gross versus net.

Job requirements

Employers hire on proven competence: a welder qualification, often to EN ISO 9606 with a defined scope of process, material, thickness, position and diameter, and a job-specific practical weld test. A certificate is not a universal licence, so match your scope to the job, keep it current, and be ready to weld. Expect safety induction, PPE and, for site work, a hot-work permit, and enough language to read a WPS and drawings.

EU and non-EU welders

EU and EEA citizens can work across the EU and EEA without a work permit. Non-EU welders generally need a job offer, a national work and residence permit and usually a visa, arranged with an employer. There is no single European welder visa, and immigration is separate from proving you can weld.

How to find work

Use official channels: the EU EURES portal, national employment services, welding training centres, established fabrication and manufacturing companies, and reputable welding recruitment agencies. Verify any employer or agency, and avoid upfront fees or guaranteed-job or guaranteed-visa claims.

In practice

Welding offers durable work across Europe for welders who can prove the right process and certificate scope. Define your process, know your certificate range, prepare for a weld test, benchmark pay by specialism, and plan the immigration route early for non-EU work, checking the rules for the specific destination country.