News, reporting, and analysis from across the Grand Duchy — Chamber sessions, ministerial briefings, municipal decisions, and the daily life of Luxembourg City and the country's twelve cantons.
Luxembourg’s health ministry urged residents on 18 June to check their measles vaccination before summer travel, citing a resurgence across Europe and the US. Two MMR doses are needed for full protection; coverage gaps left by the pandemic are driving outbreaks.
Luxembourg is the world's only remaining sovereign Grand Duchy and a founding member of the European Union. As of 1 January 2026, its population reached 690,959, with foreign nationals making up 46.6%. The capital, Luxembourg City, had 137,696 residents at the end of 2025. The country spans just 2,586 km2, uses the euro, and ranks among the world's richest by GDP per capita. This explainer gathers the verified key facts and figures.
Luxembourg has four maternity hospitals and lets parents freely choose their gynaecologist and midwife. The state pays a birth allowance of three tranches totalling 1,740.09 euros, each tied to specific medical examinations recorded in the carnet de maternité. Maternity leave runs 20 weeks at full salary, the CNS covers childbirth in hospital, and every birth must be declared at the commune within 10 days.
Unlike countries with calendar-based rules, Luxembourg ties its winter-tyre obligation to actual road conditions. When there is black ice, packed snow, slush or frost, you must drive on tyres marked M+S, M.S., M&S or the 3PMSF alpine snowflake, fitted on all wheels. Non-compliance brings a EUR 74 fine and the risk of having your vehicle immobilised. The rule applies to everyone on Luxembourg roads, whatever their plates.
Luxembourg's public schools teach in three languages: Luxembourgish in preschool, German literacy in primary, growing French in secondary. That mix can be tough for newcomers. Free public international schools offer English, French and German sections leading to the European Baccalaureate, alongside private schools. This guide explains how to enrol via your commune, what schools cost, and how to choose by language and length of stay.
In Luxembourg, dial 112 for fire, ambulance and medical emergencies (run by the CGDIS) and 113 for the police. Both are free and answered 24/7, and 112 works anywhere in the EU. For non-urgent police matters call 244 244 244. Out-of-hours care goes through the médecin de garde (Maison Médicale, 20 333 111) and the pharmacie de garde. For poisoning, call the free 8002-5500. Give the operator your exact location and what happened.
Renting in Luxembourg means competing in one of Europe's most expensive, supply-starved markets. This guide walks you through the main portals (atHome.lu, Immotop.lu, Wortimmo), agencies and expat networks, realistic rents in Luxembourg City versus the rest of the country, the agency fee (now split 50/50), the dossier landlords expect, the lease and the two-month deposit cap, plus the cross-border option.
Luxembourg subsidises childcare for ages 0 to 12 through the chèque-service accueil (CSA). The state pays up to 60 hours a week, capped at 7 euro an hour in a crèche or maison relais and 5.40 euro with a childminder, with the parental share scaling to taxable income. Children aged 1 to 4 get 20 free hours a week of multilingual education, and after-school care plus the noon meal are free in school weeks. Residents apply via their commune; cross-border workers via the CAE.
Almost everyone living or working in Luxembourg has compulsory health insurance through the Caisse nationale de santé (CNS), funded by social contributions. You are usually affiliated automatically via your employer and the CCSS, and get a card with your 13-digit matricule. You freely choose any doctor. Traditionally you pay first and the CNS reimburses most of the cost; a direct-payment reform is changing that. This guide covers affiliation, the card and cover.
Luxembourg's EU Blue Card is the residence and work permit for highly-qualified non-EU nationals. It requires a higher-education qualification or at least five years of relevant experience, a contract of at least six months, and gross annual pay of at least 65,652 euros (the threshold since 3 March 2026). You apply from abroad before arrival via the Immigration Directorate. It lasts up to four years and allows family reunification and intra-EU mobility.
Luxembourg sets default speed limits of 50 km/h in built-up areas, 90 km/h on rural roads and 130 km/h on motorways, dropping to 110 km/h in the rain. The blood-alcohol limit is 0.5 g/L, tightened to 0.2 g/L for novice and professional drivers. Priority goes to the right unless signs say otherwise, seatbelts are compulsory, hands-free phones only, and winter tyres are mandatory in wintry conditions. A 12-point licence system backs it all up.
Luxembourg sorts household waste into several streams: a black bin for residual waste, a blue bin for paper and cardboard, a brown bin for organic and food waste, glass to bottle banks, and the Valorlux blue bag (sac bleu) for plastic, metal and beverage-carton packaging (PMC) collected on a calendar. Hazardous items go to SuperDrecksKëscht, and recycling centres take bulky waste, textiles and electronics. Rules and bin colours vary by commune.
Luxembourg has 11 legal public holidays a year. In 2026 they run from New Year's Day (1 January) to St Stephen's Day (26 December), with movable feasts on Easter Monday (6 April), Ascension Day (14 May) and Whit Monday (25 May). On these days most shops, banks and public offices close, transport runs a reduced Sunday timetable, and bakeries and on-duty pharmacies stay open. When a holiday lands on a weekend, employees get a compensatory day within three months.
What you must do with a foreign driving licence in Luxembourg depends on where it was issued. EU/EEA licences are recognised automatically and can be registered free or exchanged for EUR 30 (earliest 185 days after arrival). Non-EU/EEA licences must be converted within one year of taking up residence, and a test may be required depending on the category and country. The process runs through the SNCA and MyGuichet.lu.
When you move to Luxembourg you must declare your arrival at your commune's population office (bureau de la population). EU citizens have 8 days; third-country nationals have 3 working days. You bring a valid ID or passport, proof of address, and family certificates if relevant. Registration assigns your national identification number (matricule) and opens the door to social security, a tax card, banking and more.
FC Differdange 03 beat FC Victoria Rosport 4-1 in the Coupe de Luxembourg final on Friday before 5,025 fans at the Stade de Luxembourg. Artur Abreu scored twice, with Andreas Buch and a Samir Hadji penalty completing the win. The trophy rescued a season that turned sour six days earlier, when Differdange lost the league title on the final day.
Luxembourg has taken its first visible step toward modernising air-traffic control at Findel. On 22 May 2026, Minister Yuriko Backes and ANA director Andrea Drescher inaugurated a full-scale mock-up of a future "hybrid" control tower, combining a controller's direct view with high-resolution video and detection overlays. It is the first concrete piece of the EUR 1 billion airport masterplan running toward 2032.
Every full-time employee in Luxembourg is entitled to at least 26 working days of paid annual leave a year, on top of 11 legal public holidays. Standard working time is 8 hours a day and 40 hours a week, with hard limits of 10 hours a day and 48 hours a week. Overtime is compensated with 1.5 hours of rest per hour worked, or paid at 140%. Here is how leave is earned, requested and carried over, and what the working-time rules mean in practice.
Luxembourg cyclist Nina Berton finished third at the Festival Elsy Jacobs à Luxembourg, the UCI 1.1 women's one-day race held over 121.6 km in Cessange on Sunday 3 May 2026. The 24-year-old joined an eight-rider breakaway and held on for bronze behind Britain's Erin Boothman and Switzerland's Steffi Häberlin, a day after frustration at the companion race in Garnich.
Salaries and pensions in Luxembourg rise 2.5% from 1 June 2026 as a new index tranche kicks in. The same year brings higher pension contributions (24% to 25.5%), a carbon tax up to €50 a tonne, a permanent Bëllegen Akt home-buyer credit, and the first moves toward a single tax class in 2028. Here is the full picture for your wallet.
