Bankruptcies left more than 3,000 people jobless

In 2025, Luxembourg courts declared 1,187 companies bankrupt, 2.4% more than the previous year, according to data from the Ministry of Justice and Statec. Compared to the nearly 30% jump between 2023 and 2024, this indicates a clear slowdown in growth and relative stabilisation of the situation.

At the same time, the number of bankruptcies among companies with at least one employee remained unchanged at 563 cases. Moreover, bankruptcies among large employers with more than ten employees fell by 20%, which partially mitigated the overall impact on the labour market.

The picture across sectors was mixed. In construction, the number of bankruptcies fell significantly — by 32 court decisions, or 16%. At the same time, growth was recorded in trade (+15%), specialised, scientific and technical activities (+12%), and the hotel and restaurant business (horeca) (+8%). These shifts reflect the varying sensitivity of industries to the slowdown in economic activity and rising costs.

In total, bankruptcies potentially led to the loss of 3,109 jobs, which is 3.5% less than in 2024. However, within this overall decline, there were sharp redistributions. Construction remains the industry with the greatest losses, with 973 jobs lost, despite a 22% decline in the indicator. The most alarming trend is observed in administrative and support services: the number of jobs lost here increased by 140% to 547. In horeca, the losses amounted to 501 jobs (-8%), and in trade — 397 (-13%).

The dynamics of court liquidations deserve special mention. After a sharp decline in 2024 (-80%), their number rose again to 149 companies (+45%). Nevertheless, the authorities emphasise that the long-term trend remains downward. This is due to the entry into force of the law of 28 October 2022, which introduced a procedure for administrative dissolution without liquidation for companies without assets or employees. The measure is aimed at simplifying the process of clearing the registers of so-called "empty shells". As before, holding companies and investment funds were most often subject to liquidation, accounting for 38% of cases.

Taken together, the data indicate that the problem of bankruptcies in Luxembourg is becoming less widespread, but is increasingly manifesting itself through isolated and sometimes sharp blows to individual segments of the labour market.