"Half the salary to the state and high prices in stores." Why IT specialists have it good and bad in Hungary

"I didn't choose Hungary"

Alexander (name changed), a BSUIR graduate, has been living in Hungary since 2017, but with breaks:

— Now I'm developing my first price comparison application, and before that, I was optimizing mobile communication networks.

I didn't choose Hungary itself as a place to live. The European company where my then-future wife worked closed its office in Minsk. And they offered her to work in the Hungarian office. She agreed, and then I moved to join her.

I won't compare life in Hungary with life in other locations, as tourism and emigration shouldn't be mixed. And Hungary itself five years ago and now are completely different Hungaries. But overall, the feelings are like this.

The weather here is much warmer and sunnier than, for example, in Warsaw. But July and August can be unbearably hot. It's a six-hour drive to the warm sea and Italy.

The immigration office works faster than the Polish one, judging by recent online publications. From submitting documents to receiving the card, it takes four months (personal experience from last year). DNF/PMF – no difference. However, changes are possible now, as the process recently changed. They say it has become more difficult to apply.

On the other hand, there are no simplified taxation regimes for contract work in Hungary. As a result, it is expensive to work here.

Earlier, by the way, everything was different. Five years ago, you could open a KTAT (something like a sole proprietorship) and work for any company as a contractor with decent tax savings. Now you can't. The general rule is – almost half of your salary goes to the state.

Overall, everything is very expensive in Hungary, especially compared to Minsk. VAT here is 27%, which is the highest VAT in the world.

Let's take a top salary by local standards of 2 million forints [5500 euros] as an example. Of that, 40% goes to taxes. 1 million 200 thousand [3300 euros] remains. Of that, 500-600 thousand forints [1400-1600 euros] will go to rent for a family, including utilities. And about one and a half thousand euros are left. And my groceries alone cost 1000 euros a month (this is a basic set for three people, excluding any delicacies).

Utility payments, by the way, are inexpensive compared to other European countries. Perhaps even cheaper than in Belarus, if the house maintains itself. Then you only pay for consumed gas, water, and heat — and the rest is up to you, as you wish and at your discretion.

My utility payments for the year are slightly more than what my friend in Italy pays for a month in winter.

And there's another interesting trick with petrol. After the start of the fuel crisis, it is sold to Hungarians at a trade union price, at 595 forints [1.6 euros]. But for everyone else — at a commercial price, at 2 euros or slightly more expensive.

However, Budapest has excellent public transport organization, and the best transport application I've ever used. A pass for all types of transport (metro, tram, trolleybus, bus) costs 8,000 forints [22 euros]. So I use it to get around the city. And the car is just for going to the store, a tank lasts me a month.

Communication is also very expensive compared to Minsk. 20 GB of mobile internet costs 15 euros, home 200 Mbps — also 15 euros.

An interesting point about the internet, or rather, about censorship. In Hungary, Ukrainian websites were fundamentally blocked. Practically none of those that Google suggests in its news feed. Perhaps the situation will change after the elections.

But there are cool local wineries where you can hang out and meditate on the slopes with grapes.

The country also has wonderful children's playgrounds. There are many of them, and they are diverse. Most are equipped with toilets.

"Budapest is my second love"

Sergei (name changed), a BNTU graduate, has been in Hungary since spring 2022:

— I work in IT, I have my own company in Hungary. I ended up in this country due to circumstances: the company I used to work for offered relocation. I don't plan to return to Belarus anymore.

The biggest plus here is the climate! It's always warm and sunny. As a Belarusian and (formerly) a resident of Minsk, I like the local weather much more.

Budapest is my second love; I literally fell in love with it. In addition, it is quite close to many iconic European places, interesting for travel. They are not far, and it's easy to get to them by car.

Hungarians are essentially indifferent to migrants. They behave calmly, and overall it's very safe here. We plan to stay in Hungary, the children study here, and there are no plans to move.

I started learning Hungarian, I know it at an A2 level, but that's definitely not enough. The language is really difficult, but I have to learn it anyway, because we decided to stay. My daughter already knows Hungarian at a B2 level, she passes school exams well. My son studies at an English-speaking school (finishing this year). His Hungarian is at a B1 level.

My wife works with Hungarians, but mostly communicates in English. She already understands almost everything in Hungarian, but speaking it is still not working out.

"Language is the main problem when obtaining permanent residency and a passport"

Alexander assesses his future in Hungary contradictorily:

— The Hungarian language is very difficult. Probably that's why everything is slow with Hungarians, they process what is said. You can get stuck in a bank office for half a day, even if there's only one person in front of you. Losing something or writing it incorrectly in documents is a common occurrence here.

Language is the main problem when obtaining permanent residency and a passport. And if a basic level is needed for permanent residency, which can be mastered (the exam looks like a history and culture test that needs to be filled out in Hungarian), then a B1 certificate is required for a passport. Obtaining which requires serious effort.

Learning Hungarian is very difficult. To understand it, you need to be in context, to have constant communication with native speakers. But if you work for yourself or in an international company – such communication is very limited. And without it – even after several years, I understand, but speaking doesn't come easily.

In terms of timing — after five years of living on a residence permit, you can apply for permanent residency, and after another five years — for a passport. However, a passport can also be revoked. I'm familiar with a situation where a person came to change their passport after its expiration, and they were almost deprived of citizenship. Because they couldn't freely understand the clerk at the passport office.

Over the past five years, the situation in Hungary has changed significantly for the worse. Including in matters of legalization. In 2017, I received my first residence permit simply by asking. Yes, few believe this, but that's exactly how it was. I had no grounds other than that my girlfriend came to Hungary and had a residence permit. And I only had an Italian tourist Schengen. I asked for a residence permit — and received it for the duration of my girlfriend's residence permit.

Now everything has become much more complicated. And the story described above has become impossible, because the category "other grounds" for submitting documents was simply abolished.

"A few years ago, international companies began to leave Hungary"

The labor market for non-Hungarians has also significantly shrunk. And this is not related to the recent IT situation. It's just that a few years ago, international companies started leaving Hungary, and it became very difficult to find work without knowing Hungarian. Previously, many companies opened resource hubs in Hungary, bringing in specialists from all over the world. This was profitable. But at some point, it seems, it lost its meaning. This, perhaps, is the point that could be affected by the results of the recent parliamentary elections.

I still don't consider Budapest a final destination. If possible, I would like to return to Minsk. Everywhere you go, there are quirks that you simply don't think about as a tourist and that can unpleasantly surprise you as an immigrant.

And from the point of view of well-being, Hungary is definitely not the country to go to from Belarus. Unless, of course, you are offered some unique conditions.

"Everyone is counting on significant improvements after the elections"

Sergei looks at his future in Hungary more optimistically:

— Everyone, including me, is counting on significant improvements after the elections. They expect a turn towards the EU, unblocking of EU money for Hungary, and an improvement in the business climate. Hungarians are also counting on criminal cases against Orban and his government. Many say that if Magyar cleanses the ranks of "Fidesz", it will prove his lack of connection with "Fidesz". And he will be considered a truly independent player.

So far, what I see points to this. He has begun actions against leaders and media controlled by Orban. This is a good sign. I expect serious economic improvements in Hungary in the coming years.

I would gladly get Hungarian citizenship, but there are still many years left until then.

Alexander missed the elections because he was not in Hungary at the time:

— But I did catch the election campaign. Overall, both the elections and political life itself strongly resemble Belarus.

By the way, many Hungarians know what happened in our country in 2020. And many feared that something similar awaited them. They spoke directly about it. They were afraid that Viktor Orban would imprison Péter Magyar on a trumped-up charge. Many stated that if Orban remained, they would pack their bags and leave the country.

For example, an elderly neighbor who speaks Russian generally supported Orban's policies. However, even he said in a private conversation that he was tired of him. And that Orban's party treated him like an idiot with its propaganda.

A month before the elections, poster campaigning unfolded. Posters of "Fidesz" [the ruling party of Prime Minister Viktor Orban at the time] often mocked portraits of opposition candidates. At the same time, there was a feeling that Volodymyr Zelenskyy's party was running in the elections. Orban used him in every possible negative way. All billboards in the city were plastered with banners depicting Zelenskyy and Ursula [European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen] in an unfavorable light. And along with them, Magyar.

There was a lot of propaganda. I don't really understand Hungarian and don't watch TV, but all the streets were plastered with posters talking about what villains Zelenskyy and Ursula were. And in general, there were many parallels that evoked a very familiar unpleasant feeling. I hope this will pass after the elections.

Overall, the city was calm. Many people gathered for pre-election rallies. I didn't go there myself. I was nearby once, but couldn't park.

Everyone perceived Magyar's victory positively. People are expecting some changes. Because Hungary under Orban is openly degrading. There are no good roads, no education, no medicine. Only public transport is excellent, and that's because it's built with EU money. And since Europe hasn't been giving money lately, everything is falling into disrepair. Even people who come from Germany and Italy ask how we live here with such prices.

Therefore — yes, there are many expectations that with a new party in power, something will start to change. The people around me perceive the change of power very positively and place great hopes on it.

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