Over 200,000 Romanians left the country in 2016, said a report published by the Romania business insider. According to the source, companies have been forced to raise salaries in recent years to preserve some of their employees, due to a growing staff shortage.

The report quoted local magazine Ziarul Financiar as saying that some EUR 1.7-2 billion would have entered the local consumption if all the 200,000 Romanians stayed in the country and earned the gross average wage in the economy, namely EUR 730 per month. The increase in wages did not succeed in slowing down external migration.

Romania’s National Bank (BNR) Governor Mugur Isarescu said in April that the situation in the labor market inevitably leads to wage growth. Given the migration of the labor force and the labor shortage in many sectors, salary increases are inevitable, he explained.

According to sources, the average salary in Romania is that it kept growing – slowly but steadily – over the past few years. Compared to 2013, for example, the average wage increased by about 100 Euros. This is a 25% increase and things could keep going up in the near future as well. In January 2015, the minimum salary in Romania was 1,250 RON (which is around 275 Euros or $290). However, the newly elected government promised to raise the minimum salary to 1,450 RON starting February 1st, 2017. So this would mean that the minimum would be in 2017 at around 320 Euros or $335.

Romania has one of the lowest costs of living in Europe, making it an amazing choice for people who wish to retire here, as well as digital nomads or people who get their income from outside the country.