Even though we have all studied and worked for many years in our home countries (in my case, I'm a lawyer and came here for an advanced master's in another career, after having studied/worked for 10 years in my home country), the day we finish our master in Belgium, we're forced to leave the country and the only options that we have to stay are: 1) marrying someone Belgian, or 2) getting a work permit, which is literally impossible, because you need to be paid AT LEAST € 45,000 a year (more than €3,500 a month), and of course, no one is gonna hire non-EU's and pay them €4,000 a month, out of nowhere.

In my case, I've applied to more than 150 jobs and no one even called me for an interview, which also happened to all the non-EU people I know: they all applied to hundreds of jobs throughout a year, no one called them, and they had to return to their home countries.

And I obviously don't blame the Belgian job market, because if I was a recruiter, there's no way I would pay €4,000 a month to someone who has never worked in Europe and have 0 experience with European institutions/European regulations, my question is: why is the Belgian law so hard with immigrants (instead of having to get paid at least €45,000 a year to get a job permit, I guess they could lower the bar a bit, let's say, €40,000 or €35,000, because otherwise it'll be impossible for us to get a job here), and most important: why do I always hear that Belgium is too much pro immigration, when it's literally impossible for me, as a "High-Skilled immigrant" to stay here or even get a job? Am I missing something?

It seems that the only feasible way to get a job in Belgium and therefore stay here, is marrying someone Belgian, because when you do so, you no longer have the €45,000 a year requirement and you can work wherever you want. Is that what all the immigrants do? They just get married and all their problems are suddently solved? Because it seems so.

Thanks!