France last year announced that it would help frontline workers get fast access to citizenship. Applicants normally must live in France for five years with a stable income, but this has been reduced to two for immigrant frontline workers.

"Health professionals, cleaning ladies, childcare workers, checkout staff: They all proved their commitment to the nation, and it is now the turn of the republic to take a step towards them," the French interior ministry said in a statement.

By 22 December, France granted 74 requests for citizenship under the new rules. Another 693 applicants were in the final stages out of 2,890 submissions.

Unlike France, Luxembourg has no tradition of rewarding contributions to the nation with citizenship. Notable recent cases in France include Lassana Bathily receiving citizenship after helping rescue people in the 2015 hostage crisis at a Kosher supermarket in Paris and Mamoudou Gassama who rescued a child dangling from a Paris balcony in 2018.  

The grand duchy requires citizenship applicants to have lived in the country for five years (with the last 12 months consecutive), passed a Luxembourg language test and attended civics classes.

The petition available for signature online does not specify who should be considered a frontline worker or how the criteria should change. It will be open for signature until 25 February. If it receives more than 4,500 signatures it must be debated in the Chamber of Deputies by members of parliament, government representatives and the petitioners.

The government previously refused calls to pay a one-off bonus to healthcare staff, saying that this would fail to recognise contributions by other essential workers.