Software developer · Denmark

Work in Denmark
as a software developer.

Two of the three Danish routes turn on the same pay limit, and the difficulty is not the number but what counts toward it: a package that clears it on paper can fall short once the parts that do not count are taken out. The third works from a published list of occupations instead.

Recognition
Not regulated
Work permits sourced
3
Official sources
9
Last checked
2026-08-03
Build my roadmap →Compare the permits

The short answer

Two questions, and they are not the same question.

◎No licence decision

Recognition

Not regulated · no recognition decision required

No authority approves your qualification before you take this job in Denmark. That is a sourced finding, not an absence of research: the links at the bottom of this page are what it rests on.

↗Always required

Work authorisation

Whatever the recognition branch says, you still need the legal right to work in Denmark. We have sourced 3 routes for a qualification obtained outside the EU and EEA.

  • Fast-track Scheme
  • Pay Limit Scheme
  • Positive List for People with a Higher Education

Work authorisation

Every permit we can source,
side by side.

Open the full roadmap →

Fast-track Scheme

The Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI)

Checklist
Salary floor
DKK 552,000 a year (2026 figure)SIRI states the pay limit amount for 2026 as DKK 552,000, regulated every year on 1 January. The supplementary pay limit track carries a lower floor, DKK 446,000 for 2026 on the same annual mechanism, but adds conditions the pay limit track does not: the vacancy must have been posted on Jobnet and the EURES portal for at least two weeks before you apply, the seasonally adjusted gross unemployment rate must not have exceeded 3.75 per cent on average over the three months before you apply, and you must not have received a fine of DKK 3,000 or more in the two years before applying. Only liquid salary — including fixed, guaranteed supplements — labour market pension contributions from both employer and employee, and paid holiday allowance count toward either figure; benefits such as canteen meals, a car, a phone or housing do not. Confirm the figure in force on the date you apply.
Qualification
A job with a SIRI-certified employer that fits one of five tracks: the pay limit track, the supplementary pay limit track, a short-term track of up to 90 days, a track for researchers, or a track for structured advanced training. SIRI's guidance sets no separate education requirement for the pay limit or supplementary pay limit tracks: the salary itself is the qualifying condition.
Provisional work permit, pay limit or supplementary pay limit track, applicant exempt from the visa requirement
The same day your employer submits the application, at the earliest
Decision, applicant who needs a visa to enter Denmark
About 10 days, as a rule
Application fee
DKK 6,810
Everything about Fast-track Scheme →
The procedure, step by step4 steps · 3 possible outcomes
  1. Confirm your prospective employer holds current SIRI certification — the Fast-track Scheme is not open through an uncertified employer — and agree a job offer that fits one of the scheme's five tracks.
  2. For the pay limit or supplementary pay limit track, check the salary offered meets the applicable floor and that your terms of employment are not inferior to the standards within your professional field.For the supplementary pay limit track specifically, your employer also has to show the vacancy was advertised on Jobnet and EURES for at least two weeks before you applied.
  3. Grant your employer power of attorney: SIRI states an application under the Fast-track Scheme must be submitted online by the employer, not by you, and names the AR6 form for this purpose.
  4. Have your biometric features recorded within 14 days of the application being submitted. Once granted, arrange for your salary to be paid into a Danish bank account in your own name within 180 days.

Possible outcomes

  • A residence and work permit under the pay limit track, normally for 4 years where the job lasts that long or longer, or for the length of the job where it is shorter, plus an automatic 6-month job-seeking permit once it ends — during which you may not work.
  • A residence and work permit under the supplementary pay limit track, for up to 5 years depending on how long the job lasts.
  • Refusal, where your employer's certification has lapsed, where the salary floor or the chosen track's other conditions are not met, or where SIRI's other conditions are not satisfied.

Pay Limit Scheme

The Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI)

Checklist
Salary floor
DKK 552,000 a year (2026 figure)SIRI states the minimum amount for 2026 as DKK 552,000, regulated every year on 1 January. Only liquid salary — including fixed, guaranteed supplements — labour market pension contributions from both employer and employee, and paid holiday allowance count toward it; benefits such as canteen meals, a car, a phone, internet or housing do not. Confirm the figure in force on the date you apply.
Qualification
None tied to a particular occupation or education level. SIRI's stated conditions are working hours of at least 30 hours a week, a salary and terms of employment not inferior to the standards within your professional field, and the salary floor below.
Processing
Normally 1 month, up to 3 months if SIRI needs more information
Application fee
DKK 6,810
Everything about Pay Limit Scheme →
The procedure, step by step3 steps · 2 possible outcomes
  1. Secure a job offer of at least 30 hours a week, at a salary and on terms not inferior to the standards within your professional field, that meets the salary floor below.
  2. Apply online through SIRI's application system and pay the processing fee.
  3. Once the permit is granted, arrange for your salary to be paid into a Danish bank account in your own name within 180 days.

Possible outcomes

  • A residence and work permit, normally for 4 years where the job lasts that long or longer, or for the length of the job where it is shorter, plus an automatic 6-month job-seeking permit once it ends — during which you may not work.
  • Refusal, where the salary floor or the scheme's other conditions are not met.

Positive List for People with a Higher Education

The Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI)

Checklist
Qualification
A job offer for a role that is on the current Positive List, with documentation of your education relevant to that job. Each list entry sets its own required level — SIRI states some entries require at least three years' education at bachelor level, others a Professional Bachelor's or Master's degree, and some require Danish authorisation on top where the role itself is separately regulated.
Processing
Normally 1 month, up to 3 months if SIRI needs more information
Application fee
DKK 6,810
Everything about Positive List for People with a Higher Education →
The procedure, step by step4 steps · 2 possible outcomes
  1. Check whether the job you have been offered appears on the current Positive List for People with a Higher Education, and confirm your education meets the level that specific entry requires.The list changes twice a year, on 1 January and 1 July. Confirm your job title is on the version in force on the date you apply.
  2. Gather documentation of your education relevant to the job offered, arranging translation where SIRI requires it.
  3. Confirm the salary offered is not lower than normal within the field, and apply online, paying the processing fee.SIRI applies the same qualifying salary components as the Pay Limit Scheme — liquid salary, labour market pension contributions, and paid holiday allowance — but does not publish a fixed floor in DKK for this route.
  4. Work full-time, normally 37 hours a week, and arrange for your salary to be paid into a Danish bank account in your own name.

Possible outcomes

  • A residence and work permit, normally for 4 years where the job lasts that long or longer, or for the length of the job where it is shorter, plus an automatic 6-month job-seeking permit once it ends — during which you may not work.
  • Refusal, where your job title is not on the list in force, where your education does not meet that entry's required level, or where the scheme's other conditions are not met.

Document preparation

What you still have to prepare.

Ordered the way the procedure runs, from an origin outside the EU and EEA. Pick your own country of qualification below and the planner reorders it for you.

1

Prepare your documents

  1. Request certified copies of your degree and full academic transcripts from the Indian university or board that issued them.
  2. The Apostille Convention has been in force for India since 14 July 2005, so an apostille replaces consular legalisation. An Indian educational document cannot go straight to the apostille, though: it is authenticated first by the Regional Authentication Centre of the State or Union Territory whose authority signed it, and the Ministry of External Affairs apostilles it afterwards on the strength of that signature.Which office acts as the RAC, what it charges and how long it takes are set by each State or Union Territory, not by the MEA.
  3. Since July 2012 the MEA has not accepted documents directly from applicants. They go through one of the four authorised outsourced agencies — BLS International Services, Superb Enterprises, IVS Global Services or Alhind Tours & Travels — and since 1 January 2019 the service also runs from Branch Secretariats and Regional Passport Offices in 16 cities.The MEA advises applicants not to rely on unauthorised persons or touts. Nobody outside those channels can lodge an apostille for you.
  4. If your certificate already sits in an Indian digital depository — CBSE documents from 2014 onwards, or anything issued through the National Academic Depository — e-Sanad handles the apostille online and the physical route does not apply. CBSE physical copies from 2014 onwards are no longer accepted over the counter.
  5. An apostille certifies the signature and seal of the Indian authority that signed your document. It says nothing about what the document contains: the MEA states explicitly that it does not take responsibility for the contents.It is a check on the paperwork, never a statement about the level or the content of your qualification.

What it costs

MEA apostille
Rs 50 per apostille sticker
Authorised agency service charge
Rs 84 per document, plus Rs 3 per page for scanning
State authentication before the apostille
Set by the State or Union Territory that authenticates the document — confirm the current fee with the relevant RAC

Where you qualified

The answer changes
with your country.

Everything we cover →

Qualified outside the EU and EEA — permit required

Colombia → DenmarkOpen this roadmapArgentina → DenmarkOpen this roadmapIndia → DenmarkOpen this roadmapPhilippines → DenmarkOpen this roadmapNigeria → DenmarkOpen this roadmapBrazil → DenmarkOpen this roadmap

People reach this page looking for

  • Denmark Pay Limit Scheme amount
  • Fast-track scheme Denmark IT
  • Positive List for people with a higher education
  • Denmark work permit for developers
  • Danish work visa salary requirement

Questions

Answered from the same sources.

Is software developer a regulated profession in Denmark?

No. We verified that software developer is not a regulated profession in Denmark, which means no authority has to approve your qualification before you may hold the job. You still need a legal right to work there.

Which work permits can a software developer apply for in Denmark?

We have sourced 3: Fast-track Scheme, Pay Limit Scheme, Positive List for People with a Higher Education. Each one has its own conditions, and this page compares them side by side rather than recommending one.

What salary do you need to work in Denmark as a software developer?

Fast-track Scheme: DKK 552,000 a year (2026 figure, SIRI states the pay limit amount for 2026 as DKK 552,000, regulated every year on 1 January. The supplementary pay limit track carries a lower floor, DKK 446,000 for 2026 on the same annual mechanism, but adds conditions the pay limit track does not: the vacancy must have been posted on Jobnet and the EURES portal for at least two weeks before you apply, the seasonally adjusted gross unemployment rate must not have exceeded 3.75 per cent on average over the three months before you apply, and you must not have received a fine of DKK 3,000 or more in the two years before applying. Only liquid salary — including fixed, guaranteed supplements — labour market pension contributions from both employer and employee, and paid holiday allowance count toward either figure; benefits such as canteen meals, a car, a phone or housing do not. Confirm the figure in force on the date you apply.). Pay Limit Scheme: DKK 552,000 a year (2026 figure, SIRI states the minimum amount for 2026 as DKK 552,000, regulated every year on 1 January. Only liquid salary — including fixed, guaranteed supplements — labour market pension contributions from both employer and employee, and paid holiday allowance count toward it; benefits such as canteen meals, a car, a phone, internet or housing do not. Confirm the figure in force on the date you apply.).

Is this page up to date?

The oldest source behind it was checked on 2026-08-03. Every claim links to the official page it came from, with its own check date, so you can verify any of it yourself in one click.

Evidence

Every claim on this page, and where it came from.

9 official pages, each with the jurisdiction it speaks for and the date a human last opened it. The oldest of them is 2026-08-03, and that is the date this page is only as fresh as.

Two minutes, no account

Your qualification, your country, your roadmap.

This page answers the pairing in general. The planner answers it for the country you actually qualified in, and prints the result with its sources attached.

Build my roadmap →How we verify this