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You are planning to stay and/or work in Luxembourg. Congratulations – Luxembourg is a wonderful country! – but what are the formalities? Do you have to register at the municipality of your new residence and what kind of documents do you have to provide? The answer depends on two factors: your citizenship and the duration of your stay in the country.

If you are an EU citizen or a national of the other Contracting Parties of the European Economic Area Agreement (Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein) and the Swiss confederation, you and your family have the right to work and reside in any EU Member State. The formalities are quite different if you are a third-country national. In addition, the procedures you have to complete are not the same if you want to stay in Luxembourg for less than 90 days or for more than 90 days.

You want to stay less than 90 days

As EU citizens, you and the members of your family do not have to carry out any procedures. You merely have to hold a valid identity card or passport.

As a non-EU citizen, you must provide the following documents when entering the country: a passport which is valid for more than 3 months from the start date of the journey, a visa if required, a proof of comprehensive health insurance valid in Luxembourg and a proof that you have sufficient means to cover expenses for the duration of the stay. And if you want to work, you must also have a work permit. After entering the country, you must either make a declaration of arrival in the municipality of your temporary residence or fill an accommodation form at the establishment where you are staying (hotel, bed & breakfast, etc.)

You want to stay more than 90 days

If you are an EU citizen, you must complete certain formalities. Within 8 days of your arrival in Luxembourg, you must make a declaration of arrival at the office of the municipality where you intend to establish residence and present a valid national identity card or passport, a family record book or a certificate of marriage or partnership and the children’s birth certificate.

Within three months of your arrival in Luxembourg, you must also complete a registration form (only available in French[1]) in the same municipality. The registration form must be accompanied by a copy of the valid national identity card or passport and documents corresponding to the relevant category. If you are a salaried worker, you must provide a copy of your employment contract (permanent, fixed-term or interim) compliant with Luxembourg labour law, dated and signed by both parties, or a commitment to hire, dated and signed by the future employer (a secondary activity with less than 10 hours per week is not sufficient). If you are a self-employer, you must provide, where applicable, a copy of your business permit (or a copy of the letter from the Ministry of Economy certifying that a business permit is not required for the activity carried out), a copy of the licence to practice a self-employed activity (doctor, physiotherapist, etc.) or a service provider contract. If you are a non-working person, you must provide a declaration or proof of sufficient resources and a proof that you and your family are affiliated to a health insurance scheme. If you are a student, you must provide a proof of registration with an approved public or private institution in Luxembourg, a declaration or proof of sufficient resources to avoid dependency on the social welfare system (an oral declaration is also permitted) and a proof of affiliation to a health insurance scheme.

When submitting your registration form, you immediately receive a registration certificate (certificat d’enregistrement) on which your surname(s), first names(s), address, date of registration and registration certificate number are stated. The registration certificate is valid for an unlimited period. It means that if you move at another address in the same municipality or in another municipality in Luxembourg, you just have to make a declaration to the local municipal office by presenting a valid national identity card or passport and your registration certificate within 8 days from the date of occupation of the new residence. Nothing more is required.   

If you are a non-EU citizen, you must hold a temporary authorisation to stay (autorisation de séjour), undergo a medical check-up, make a declaration of arrival to the municipality of residence and complete a procedure corresponding to your category: salaried worker, highly qualified worker (EU Blue Card), researcher, transferred salaried worker, posted salaried worker, self-employed person, athlete or instructor, family member, student, trainee, volunteer worker, pupil, au pair or for personal reasons[2].

Don’t forget that the various documents required must be in German, French or English. If not, documents must be translated by a sworn translator (you can download the list on the website of the Ministry of Justice[3]).

What to do when you leave the country?

If you have made a declaration of arrival at the municipality because you are an EU citizen staying in Luxembourg for more than 90 days or a third-country national, you must make a declaration of departure to the municipality of your residence on the day before your departure at the latest.     

For more information, don’t hesitate to contact our ING expat Service here