Where do you start if you want to make Luxembourg your new home? Much depends on where you come from. Here is a guide to what you need to do.
A residence permit in Luxembourg is a necessity for those planning to stay in the country for a long time or move here forever. A residence permit is the first step to becoming a citizen of the country.
The document itself looks like a chip card with information about its owner: their identification and biometric data, as well as their photo.
The residence permit in Luxembourg not only grants an opportunity to move to the country but also provides several rights and resources you can use throughout the EU. They include:
To qualify for a residence permit in Luxembourg, you must meet special criteria, like:
Citizens of the EU and Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland can move to Luxembourg and live here without a residence permit for the first three months of stay.
To live in the country for more than three months — you need legal grounds, such as study in Luxembourg, employment, business or kinship with a Luxembourg citizen.
The documents to be provided depend on the status of an EU citizen.
You can find out more about the needed papers with official resources:
Citizens of non-EU countries who would like to stay in the country for up to three months must obtain a visa. Then, you can submit an application to the immigration office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to obtain a residence permit.
There are several ways to legally stay in Luxembourg.
As mentioned before, a lot depends on your legal grounds for a long-time stay in Luxembourg. They can include the following ones.
Foreign nationals who want to move to Luxembourg for employment must first sign a contract of work with a local company if they come from outside the EU, to receive the work visa.
The Luxembourgish employer or company must apply for a work permit on behalf of the prospective employee. But first, the company must make sure it has done whatever it takes to find a citizen of its country or an EU citizen for this position. This is usually done with ADEM.
In addition to the standard work visa, you have the option of moving to Luxembourg with a Blue Card if you have a degree and experience that you can propose to the country's service. It usually offers more favorable terms, so it is worth considering.
Are you a skilled professional with an advanced degree? You can read more about the Blue Card and check if you qualify for it in our Relocation Guide.
To obtain it you will need to fulfill several special conditions, mentioned on the European Commission website. Among others, there are strict employment requirements:
Currently, the professions that are on the shortage list for Luxembourg include mathematicians, statisticians and actuaries, systems analysts, software developers, web and multimedia developers, applications programmers, software and application developers and analysts, database designers and administrators, system administrators, and computer network professionals.
Obtaining a residence permit by marriage enables a foreign spouse to claim citizenship after three years of marriage. But in addition to living together (the country’s authorities make sure that the marriage is not fake), the spouse from another country must pass a test and a language exam.
Even if the couple divorced after three years, the newly obtained status for the immigrant spouse would remain.
A residence permit in Luxembourg must also be issued to students who have come to study in the country. The residence permit is issued for a year based on the university enrollment document. But you need to renew this type of residence permit.
During their studies, students are allowed to work part-time. Read more about student employment in our special guide article.
Obtaining a residence permit in Luxembourg for investment is a reliable way to get settled in the country, though an expensive one. Investments can be direct (investments in the national economy) or can go into the business.
Direct investment involves capital investment in investment funds (at least 3,000,000 euros) or the creation of a deposit in a bank of the country (at least 20,000 euros).
You can obtain a residence permit in Luxembourg by an investment for three years, with an option to extend. After five years, the investor can claim permanent residence.
Purchasing a property is not considered an investment nor gives the right to obtain a residence permit in Luxembourg automatically.
Foreigners with relatives in the Grand Duchy may move to the country. This involves family reunification. In this case, you can get a residence permit in Luxembourg by providing the migration agency with documents confirming the relationship. Your relatives must provide an official invitation and offer accommodation to the migrant.
We recommend you submit notarized copies of all official documents translated into English, French or German.
The main difference between a residence permit and citizenship is the limited validity period. If you plan to stay in Luxembourg for a long time, sooner or later this document will need to be prolonged.
The residence permit is valid from 1 year to several years. It all depends on the type of activity and the type of card issued.
You must apply to renew the residence permit in Luxembourg two months before the expiration of the current certificate.
Applications for renewal must be submitted to the Immigration Office of the Luxembourg Ministry of Foreign Affairs by post in one complete set.
You can also have your residence permit extended in your municipality. They will contact the immigration office themselves. For more information or any help regarding the renewal of the card contact your commune office.
Here you will find all the documents needed for different categories of workers to prolong residence permits in Luxembourg.
To apply for renewal for this type of residence permit, you will need certain documents:
Employees with the EU Blue Card are granted a residence permit for up to 4 years, or, if the contract is for less than 4 years, for the duration of the contract + 3 months.
In case the Blue Card owner can prove the effectiveness of their work and there are no impending circumstances, the residence permit is extended for the same period of time.
The application is accompanied by a list of documents:
The procedure for extending a residence permit for such workers is identical regardless of the country of incorporation of the company. Employees of the company from the EU and third countries go through the same steps.
However, the renewal of this type of residence permit in Luxembourg is possible only if the period of the business trip is extended by mutual agreement between the sending and receiving parties.
You will need the following documents:
The validity of the residence permit for seasonal employees cannot exceed 5 months in one year. The residence permit is renewed for the same period. It will not be possible to get more — this is the specifics of such employment.
The documents required for the residence permit renewal:
A temporary residence permit for self-employed persons in Luxembourg is issued for a period of up to 3 years. You can renew the permit for an equivalent period by submitting the following documents:
Add these documents for your registered companies:
A list of documents and the period of validity of the residence permit may vary according to the category of the document you previously obtained. However, the basic documents are usually the same.
When it comes to the state fee payment, you need to make a bank transfer to the following account with the correct commentary. Then you need to print out the transfer notice and attach it to the documents. The Ministry does not send a separate confirmation of payment.
A state fee payment of 80 euros has to be made to the bank account:
In the commentary include "titre de séjour dans le chef de [Name Surname]" to specify the purpose of the payment.
To qualify for a residence permit in Luxembourg, you must have a stable income, a permanent place of residence, and legal grounds for moving to the country, such as work, studies, or family reunification.
The validity of a residence permit in Luxembourg ranges from 1 year to several years, depending on the type of activity and card issued. The residence permit must be renewed two months before the expiration of the current certificate.
Citizens of the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland can move to Luxembourg and live here without a residence permit for the first three months of their stay. After three months, legal grounds are required, such as study, employment, business, or kinship with a Luxembourg citizen.
If you don't renew your residence permit in Luxembourg before it expires, you will be considered to be in the country illegally. This can result in fines, deportation, and difficulty obtaining future visas or residence permits.