Special Needs Teachers: Jobs in Demand in Europe (2025)
Special Needs Teachers is an official occupation group (ISCO-08 code 2352) used by the International Labour Organization and Eurostat.
- Learning disabilities special education teacher
- Learning support teacher
- Remedial teacher
- Teacher of gifted children
- Teacher of the hearing impaired
- Teacher of the sight impaired
Pay in the UK for this job
UK occupation used: Special needs education teaching professionals (SOC 2020 code 2316). Placeivo matched this to ISCO-08 2352 by job title and duties; the UK and international occupation lists do not line up exactly. National figure for the whole United Kingdom, in pounds sterling (GBP), before income tax and National Insurance.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) 2025 provisional, Table 14 (occupation by 4-digit SOC 2020): tables 14.7a (annual pay, gross) and 14.1a (weekly pay, gross), full-time employee jobs, United Kingdom. Weekly pay is for April 2025; annual pay is for the tax year ending 5 April 2025, employees in the same job for at least a year. Retrieved 2026-10-13.
UK Skilled Worker visa for this job
This occupation (UK code 2316, Special and additional needs education teaching professionals) is on the UK list of jobs eligible for the Skilled Worker visa. There is no figure in the general going-rate table: GOV.UK has separate salary rules for healthcare and education jobs, based on national pay scales (for example NHS pay bands), so the general minimum of £41,700 may not apply. Check the GOV.UK page for healthcare and education jobs. Placeivo matched this UK code to ISCO-08 2352 by job title; the lists do not line up exactly.
This is a summary of official rules, not legal advice. Rules change and some people (for example those already on a Skilled Worker visa) have different rules. Always check GOV.UK before you apply.
Source: UK Visas and Immigration, GOV.UK tables "Skilled Worker visa: eligible occupations and codes" and "Skilled Worker visa: going rates for eligible occupation codes", updated 2025-07-22, retrieved 2026-10-15. General minimum salary from GOV.UK "Skilled Worker visa: Your job", checked 2026-10-15.
Compare UK visa going rates by job · Eligible occupations (GOV.UK) · Going rates (GOV.UK) · Healthcare and education rules (GOV.UK) · Salary rules (GOV.UK)
Latest special needs teachers job ads
Real vacancies from the official public employment services, updated daily. Job titles are translated into English automatically; the full ad opens on the official site in German or Swedish (your browser's translate button turns it into English).
Germany
343 open ads- Special Needs Teacher*Special Needs Teacher
German title: Sonderpädagogin*Sonderpädagoge
AWO Bezirksverband Baden e.V. · Weil am Rhein · Posted 2026-10-12 - Special needs teacher
German title: Sonderpädagoge
biac Personalservice GmbH NL Medizin/ Soziales · Berlin · Posted 2026-10-07 - Special needs teacher
German title: Sonderpädagoge
Bergische Diakonie Aprath · Wülfrath · Posted 2026-07-21 - Special needs teacher
German title: Sonderpädagoge
Sabir Nil-Tuncali Heilpädagogische Praxis Rhein-Neckar · Mannheim · Posted 2026-02-22 - Special needs teacher
German title: Sonderpädagoge
Evangelische Stiftung Michaelshof · Rostock · Posted 2025-12-01 - Special needs teacher
German title: Sonderpädagoge
Diakonie Stetten e.V. · Kernen im Remstal · Posted 2026-04-23
Source: Bundesagentur für Arbeit (German Federal Employment Agency). Ads are written by employers; Placeivo does not check them. See all ads in Germany
Sweden
160 open ads- Special educator Värsås school
Swedish title: Specialpedagog Värsås skola
Skövde kommun · Skövde · Posted 2026-10-19 - Vällingbyskolan is looking for qualified teachers for adapted primary school years 1-3
Swedish title: Vällingbyskolan söker behörig lärare till anpassad grundskola åk 1-3
Stockholms kommun · Stockholm · Posted 2026-10-16 - Special educator to the Rönnowska school
Swedish title: Specialpedagog till Rönnowska skolan
Helsingborgs kommun · Helsingborg · Posted 2026-10-16 - Special educator, Råsunda Centralskola, City of Solna
Swedish title: Specialpedagog, Råsunda Centralskola, Solna stad
Solna kommun · Solna · Posted 2026-10-16 - Special Education Teacher/Special Education Teacher
Swedish title: Speciallärare/ specialpedagog
AcadeMedia Support AB · Ystad · Posted 2026-10-16 - Special teacher for Slottsjordsskolan adapted primary school
Swedish title: Speciallärare till Slottsjordsskolan anpassad grundskola
Halmstads kommun · Halmstad · Posted 2026-10-16
Source: Arbetsförmedlingen (Swedish Public Employment Service). Ads are written by employers; Placeivo does not check them. See all ads in Sweden
Where special needs teachers are needed in Europe
| Country | EURES 2025 | Average gross pay, all professionals (2022) | 1-bed rent in the capital |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belgium | Shortage | €5,370 a month * | Brussels: €1,150 |
| Estonia | Shortage | €2,262 a month | Tallinn: €720 |
| Germany | Shortage | €5,270 a month | Berlin: €1,350 |
| Italy | Shortage | €3,172 a month * | Rome: €1,300 |
| Latvia | Shortage | €2,136 a month | Riga: €870 |
| Lithuania | Shortage | €2,352 a month | Vilnius: €830 |
| Netherlands | Shortage | €4,726 a month | Not yet verified |
| Norway | Shortage | €6,022 a month | Oslo: €2,000 |
| Poland | Shortage | €1,706 a month | Warsaw: €840 |
| Romania | Shortage | €1,991 a month * | Not yet verified |
| Slovenia | Shortage | €2,727 a month | Ljubljana: €950 |
| Sweden | Shortage | €4,330 a month * | Stockholm: €2,100 |
| Austria | Surplus | €4,602 a month * | Vienna: €1,250 |
| Greece | Surplus | €1,904 a month * | Athens: €1,150 |
Pay: Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey 2022, mean gross monthly earnings of all professionals in each country, in euros. This is the average for the whole occupation group, not for special needs teachers alone, and before tax. * Firms with 10 or more employees only. Rent: Eurostat, good-quality 1-bedroom flat in the capital, 2025.
What special needs teachers do
Special needs teachers teach physically or mentally handicapped children, young persons, or adults, or those with learning difficulties or other special needs. They promote the social, emotional, intellectual and physical development of their students.
Typical tasks
- Assessing students' abilities and limitations with regard to intellectual, physical, social and emotional impairments, exceptional intellectual gifts, or other specific problems
- Designing or modifying curricula and preparing and delivering programmes, lessons and activities adapted to students’ abilities and needs
- Giving instruction on an individual or group basis using special techniques or aids appropriate to students’ needs
- Employing special educational strategies and techniques during instruction to improve the development of sensory- and perceptual-motor skills, language, cognition, and memory
- Establishing and enforcing rules for behaviour and policies and procedures to maintain order among students
- Teaching academic subjects and practical and self-help skills to students with hearing, sight and other impairments
- Stimulating and developing students’ confidence interests, abilities, manual skills and coordination
- Conferring with other staff members to plan and schedule lessons for special needs students
- Preparing and maintaining student data and other records and submitting reports
- Administering various forms of assessment and evaluating progress of each student
- Conferring with students, parents, head teacher and other relevant professionals involved in the students’ care to develop individual educational plans designed to promote students' development
Finding special needs teachers jobs in Europe
- EURES is the official job portal of the EU public employment services. The search above looks for "Remedial teacher".
- Some jobs are regulated professions: before you can work, your qualification may need to be recognised in the new country.
- If you are not an EU/EEA citizen you will usually need a work permit or a visa such as the EU Blue Card. Check the rules of the country's immigration authority.
Cost of living where the jobs are
Take-home pay needed to rent a good 1-bedroom flat in the capitals of countries reporting a shortage:
About this data
- Shortage and surplus: European Labour Authority, EURES Report on labour shortages and surpluses 2025, annex table 21 (published 2026). Each country's public employment service reports which occupations it finds hard to fill or in oversupply. Countries not listed did not report this occupation as either.
- Definition, tasks and job titles: International Labour Organization, ISCO-08 structure and definitions.
- Pay: Eurostat, Structure of Earnings Survey 2022 (earn_ses22_48), by occupation group. United Kingdom, closest UK occupation: Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14 (median pay of full-time employees).
- Job ads: Bundesagentur für Arbeit (Germany) and Arbetsförmedlingen (Sweden), refreshed about once a day.