Luxembourg’s Immigration Formalities

The Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg is commonly known for its open and dynamic economy, maintaining stability and resiliency even during uncertain environments or situations. Luxembourg is one of the most attractive countries to foreigners, and relocating for work-related purposes as a non-EU citizen requires consideration of potential challenges you may encounter after arriving in the territory based on your temporary work/residence authorisation.

There are, specifically, two legal requirements that are affected by the influx of expatriates to Luxembourg that can lead to significant delays with the obtention of the final residence card.

Requirement of medical checks

The Luxembourg Immigration Law sets up, in Article 41, the requirement to undergo medical exams for third-country nationals wishing to stay more than three months in Luxembourg.

Children and adults alike must go through these medical examinations for their residence permit applications to be processed and approved. Among the required medical checks are a general medical check-up with a general practitioner and tuberculosis (TB) screening by the Ligue Médico Sociale (LMS).

Tuberculosis tests are, by law, covered by the LMS, which is the responsible medical centre for disease prevention and medical-social actions.

For the past two years, the LMS has been experiencing significant delays with TB screenings. The initial backlog was linked to the COVID-19 pandemic, and once borders fully re-opened, a second backlog took place due to an ever-increasing demand for appointments directly linked to the number of third-country nationals’ arrivals.

The Ministry of Health and the LMS thus amended the process in late 2022 to provide additional flexibility and options to proceed more quickly with this compulsory examination. One of the most notable changes is the now possibility to conduct TB screenings by a general practitioner or in a private laboratory instead of the LMS.

While this has helped reduce the appointment delays with the LMS, it has created other procedural challenges (medical results not sent or lost, etc.) that are currently leading to another backlog of applications. The processing time of the immigration application can consequently run more than the three months established by law, as the approval cannot be issued without receipt of the medical results.

Furthermore, children of third-country nationals must also provide medical results (including the TB screening) to attend school in Luxembourg. Thus, it is important to consider this when planning to relocate to Luxembourg with children of school-attending age, as delays with the medical checks might impact attendance ability.

Suitable accommodation requirement

Proof of suitable accommodation is also required when applying for a Luxembourgish residence permit.

There are several conditions that must be met when looking for accommodations in Luxembourg for the purpose of long-stay: the residence’s dimensions, the possibility of domiciliation and the length of contract are among them. The immigration authorities are aware of the challenges linked to finding a proper place in the country and try to be as flexible as possible when processing the immigration application—but this is not always possible.

It is essential that foreigners planning to relocate to Luxembourg start looking for a suitable place before relocating to ensure they minimize the delays linked to house-hunting.

Need to Know More?

If you are planning to relocate to Luxembourg, Fragomen can support you further by providing additional information and strategies on any of the aforementioned points to help you prepare for your Luxembourg registration process prior to your arrival in the country.

Fragomen has a well-established relationship with the Luxembourg immigration authorities and, based on your needs and urgencies, is able to cooperate with them to ensure a timely and smooth relocation.

Should in-person support be required, our local partners will be happy to accompany you to your appointments or organize them for you while completing your immigration paperwork.

For questions or further information, please contact us at [email protected].

This blog was published on 21 June 2023, and due to the circumstances, there are frequent changes. To keep up to date with all the latest updates on global immigration, please visit our dedicated COVID-19 site, subscribe to our alerts and follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.