Technical article

No Retirement Visa? What the Official Pages List Instead

What I found were lists of other reasons a foreigner may be allowed to stay.

By Neil Solomon · 5 min read

Picture a couple named Frank and Marianne. Both are 64. They have a pension and savings, and they like the idea of Ljubljana, Bratislava, Belgrade or Pristina. They go looking for the retirement visa. They cannot find one.

I looked too. I read the government pages for each country. None of the four lists a retirement permit. What I found were lists of other reasons a foreigner may be allowed to stay. Here they are.

What each government page lists

Kosovo

The Ministry of Internal Affairs lists temporary and permanent residence permits. The temporary permit page names four purposes. Fees are in euros: EUR 50 for employment, EUR 30 for family reunification and EUR 10 for study. Applicants must show "sufficient means of subsistence." The Law on Foreigners (04/L-219) says the amount is set by a decision of the interior minister, in line with the duration and purpose of the stay. The same law says a temporary residence permit is issued for one year unless the law says otherwise (read 11 October 2026). A renewal is filed within 30 days before expiry.

Serbia

The Ministry of Interior says temporary residency may be granted to a foreigner who intends to stay longer than 90 days in any 180. It "may be granted for a period of up to three years" and can be extended. The first page I read listed only work reasons. A second government page, the Welcome to Serbia portal, lists more grounds for temporary residence: employment, education, investor, Serbian origin, start-up, talent, property owner, family reunification, independent stay, religious service and medical treatment. It says a permit can be issued for up to three years, depending on the reason. It names no retirement ground. Two of the grounds were worth a second look. Property ownership may be granted to a foreigner who meets the general criteria and shows ownership of a dwelling in Serbia where he lives. Independent (autonomous) stay is for a close family member of a Serbian citizen, or of a foreigner with a permit, who has stayed four consecutive years on the grounds of family reunification, so it is not a door for a new retiree (Law on Foreigners, welcometoserbia.gov.rs and mup.gov.rs, read 11 October 2026). Every temporary residence application asks for evidence of means for subsistence during the stay, and the pages give no amount. Since 1 February 2024, applications are filed only electronically, through the Foreign Nationals' Portal.

Slovakia

The English text of the residence act, hosted by the Ministry of Interior, lists the reasons for temporary residence. Maximum lengths differ: business 3 years, employment 5, study 6, special activity 2, research 2 and family reunification 5. The act asks for proof of funds equal to the "subsistence minimum" for each month of stay. For stays over one year, that is twelve times the monthly minimum. The text I read dates from 2011, and the euro amount of the subsistence minimum is reset each year, so check the current figure.

Slovenia

The government's entry and residence page says foreigners who want to stay for tourism, business, a personal visit, employment, study or family reunification need a visa or permit. The permit is obtained before arrival at a Slovenian embassy or consulate. After arrival, the holder registers locally within eight days. A long-stay visa runs from 90 days up to one year. A government news item on the amendment to the Foreigners Act says that, for a long-stay visa, sufficient means are a monthly amount at least equal to the basic minimum income in Slovenia, and the amount is published in the Official Gazette (gov.si, read 11 October 2026).

What is left open

• Kosovo, Slovakia and Slovenia: the euro amount of the money test. The rule is stated (Kosovo: set by decision of the interior minister; Slovakia: the subsistence minimum for each month of stay; Slovenia: at least the basic minimum income), and the euro figure is reset by government decision, so ask the embassy for the figure in force.
• For all four: what retirees actually do in practice. The pages list reasons. They do not say which one a retiree might use, or whether the offices would accept it.