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97 stories

Finance
Housing finance
How to Get the 3% Super-Reduced VAT for Building or Renovating Your Home in Luxembourg
Luxembourg's "TVA logement" scheme cuts VAT to a super-reduced 3% (instead of the 17% standard rate) on building or renovating a dwelling used as a principal residence. The benefit is capped at €50,000 of VAT per dwelling. Claim it by direct application (the contractor invoices at 3% after AED approval) or by reimbursement of the difference afterwards via the AED. The home must be a main residence for at least two years. Separate from the Bëllegen Akt purchase credit.
By Pierre Hansen1 June 2026
Luxembourg
Driving in the Grand Duchy
Speed Limits and Key Driving Rules in Luxembourg, Explained
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.
By Julia Weber1 June 2026
Luxembourg
Living in Luxembourg
How Recycling and Waste Sorting Work in Luxembourg
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.
By Julia Weber1 June 2026
Luxembourg
Living in Luxembourg
Luxembourg public holidays 2026: the full list and what's open or closed
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.
By Julia Weber1 June 2026
Luxembourg
Moving to Luxembourg
How to Exchange a Foreign Driving Licence in Luxembourg
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.
By Julia Weber1 June 2026
Finance
Personal Finance
How to Open a Bank Account in Luxembourg: A Guide for Newcomers, Residents and Cross-Border Workers
Both residents and non-residents can open a bank account in Luxembourg. The main retail banks are Spuerkeess (BCEE), BGL BNP Paribas, BIL, ING Luxembourg and POST Finance, alongside neobanks like Revolut and N26 for everyday spending. You typically need a valid passport or ID, proof of address, your matricule (national social security number) and often an employment contract. An in-branch identity check is common, but several banks let you start online. Fees vary by bank.
By Luc Bertemes1 June 2026
World
World Diplomacy
As UN Security Council Vote Nears, Luxembourg Faces a Tightening Asia-Pacific Race and a Three-Way European Contest
On 3 June the UN General Assembly elects five non-permanent Security Council members for 2027-2028, and Luxembourg's one vote weighs on two contested races. In the Asia-Pacific group, the US-backed Philippines, which Luxembourg has publicly endorsed, faces a late push from China- and Russia-backed Kyrgyzstan. In Luxembourg's own WEOG bloc, Austria, Germany and Portugal compete for just two seats.
By Mathias Faber1 June 2026
Politics
Health Policy
LSAP bill seeks to enshrine universal health coverage for Luxembourg's uninsured 8%
Opposition LSAP deputies Claire Delcourt and Claude Haagen have tabled a bill in the Chamber of Deputies to give a permanent legal basis to Luxembourg's Universal Health Coverage scheme (CUSS), which lets people excluded from standard insurance be treated at the state's expense. The party says the pilot has reached its administrative limits after five years and that the roughly 2.3 million euros a year it would cost is already in budget projections.
By Sophie Lentz1 June 2026
Europe
EU Labour Law
Brussels Rules Out Delay as EU Pay-Transparency Law Hits Luxembourg This Week
The EU Pay Transparency Directive must be in force across the bloc by 7 June 2026, and on 22 May the European Commission confirmed it will not fold the rules into any simplification omnibus or "stop-the-clock" measure. Luxembourg, which has yet to file a transposition bill, looks set to miss the deadline even as new pay-range, pay-history and gender-gap-reporting duties bear down on employers.
By Marie-Anne Kayser1 June 2026
Finance
Luxembourg taxes
Tax Classes in Luxembourg (1, 1a, 2) Explained: Which One Are You In?
Luxembourg sorts taxpayers into class 1 (single, no children), class 1a (single parents, widowed, people 65+) and class 2 (married couples and PACS partners taxed jointly, usually the most favourable). Your class is on your withholding tax card. Tax runs from 0% to 42% plus a 7-9% surcharge. Married cross-border workers default to class 1 unless they request assimilation. A reform replaces the classes with one from 2028.
By Pierre Hansen1 June 2026
Finance
Corporate Relocation
Atari Relocates Its Legal Home to Luxembourg After Shareholders Back France Exit
Atari, the iconic gaming brand currently headquartered in France, will move its legal domicile to Luxembourg after shareholders approved the re-domiciliation by 95.25% at a general meeting on 27 May 2026. The cross-border conversion of Atari SA into a Luxembourg public limited company is expected to complete by July and runs alongside a reverse stock split and the acquisition of Sweden's Thunderful.
By Pierre Hansen31 May 2026
Greater Region
Cross-border rail
Double-decker trains arrive on the Metz-Luxembourg line as France and the Grand Duchy chase 21,000 peak-hour seats
The Grand Est Region unveiled at Metz station on 4 May 2026 the first of 16 double-decker trains now running on the Metz-Thionville-Luxembourg line. Each five-car Z26500 set seats 554 passengers, up from 313, and has been cleared to cross into Luxembourg since 29 April. The plan lifts peak-hour capacity toward 21,000 seats by 2030, with Luxembourg co-funding a new Metz-area workshop.
By Mathias Faber31 May 2026
Luxembourg
Cost of living
Your money in 2026: the changes hitting Luxembourg pay and prices
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.
By Marie-Anne Kayser31 May 2026
Finance
Labour Market
Luxembourg backs 53 short-time-work requests for June, but the real labour signal comes later
The Comité de conjoncture gave positive opinions on 53 short-time-work applications for June 2026, potentially covering 2,776 full-time-equivalent jobs.
By Tom Reuter30 May 2026
Finance
Explainer
How Luxembourg wage indexation works: the salary index, the 2.5% tranche and your payslip
Luxembourg's indexation system links wages, pensions and social parameters to the cost of living. This explainer shows how the threshold, six-month average and cote d'application work.
By Tom Reuter29 May 2026
Greater Region
Greater Region
A Professor's Bus Trip Just Undid Germany's Luxembourg Border Checks
A German court ruled that a suspicion-free identity check on a Saarland law professor returning from Luxembourg was unlawful, finding Berlin's internal border controls insufficiently justified under Schengen rules. Two days later, Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt lifted fixed checks on the Luxembourg frontier, easing months of delays for 50,000 daily commuters — while denying the verdict drove the decision and vowing to appeal.
By Mathias Faber29 May 2026
Luxembourg
Healthcare
Luxembourg's first Women's Health Week puts prevention and access in focus
The 1-7 June initiative gives women's health a dedicated public platform, from prevention to access and information.
By Anouk Origer29 May 2026
Luxembourg
Weather and health
Luxembourg's May heat alert shows why MeteoLux is changing the way it warns for summer
MeteoLux has active heat vigilance for 29-30 May as Luxembourg records an unusually early run of hot days. The new 2026 warning model focuses on perceived heat, duration and health risk.
By Anouk Origer29 May 2026
Opinion
Transatlantic Relations
At Harvard, Frieden Tells Europe to Stop Leaning on Washington. Luxembourg Has the Most Riding on It.
Speaking at Harvard on 6 February, Luc Frieden told a European audience the continent can no longer take the United States for granted and must own its economy, energy and security. For Luxembourg — Europe's largest fund domicile and one of its most open economies — his call to build a single capital market and cut external dependency is a matter of direct national interest, not grand strategy.
By Marie-Anne Kayser28 May 2026
Greater Region
Greater Region
Luxembourg Faces a 200-Million-Euro Bill for Frontaliers' Jobless Benefits
An EU revision of social-security rules will shift the cost of unemployment benefits for cross-border workers onto Luxembourg, the country where they work. With frontaliers filling about 47% of its salaried jobs, the Grand Duchy faces an estimated 200 million euros in extra annual cost. It secured a five-year phase-in, extendable to seven, but did not support the text.
By Mathias Faber27 May 2026
World
Energy chokepoint
Strikes during Iran talks leave Hormuz risk hanging over energy markets
New U.S. strikes in southern Iran were reported while negotiations continued, keeping attention on the Strait of Hormuz and the global fuel-price exposure that matters to Luxembourg.
By Anouk Origer26 May 2026
World
Defence spending
Luxembourg charts a cautious path to NATO's 5% goal, one tenth of a point at a time
Luxembourg's Defence Minister Yuriko Backes presented a roadmap on 20 May 2026 raising military spending by 0.1 points of GNI annually to 2.3% (EUR 1,665 million) by 2029, an incremental first step toward NATO's 5%-by-2035 pledge. The national finance council puts the cumulative extra cost at EUR 13.4 billion, with annual spending set to nearly quadruple. Backes rejected an "arms race" framing.
By Julia Weber26 May 2026
Culture
Cultural policy
Esch2022 drew half a million visitors. Did it bind a border region together?
Esch2022, the cross-border European Capital of Culture spanning Luxembourg and France, drew 512,000 visitors to 1,351 events on a 54.8 million euro budget. Four years on, the legacy is mixed-to-positive: strong turnout and a concrete Interreg follow-on, but only a minority of Minett residents felt the French-Luxembourg link itself grew stronger.
By Léa Schmit25 May 2026
Tech & Science
Quantum communication
Luxembourg Joins Four-Nation Bid to Build Europe's Quantum-Secure Sky Links
Luxembourg has joined TransEuroOGS, an 18 million euro EU project to build eight interoperable optical ground stations across Germany, Greece, Ireland and Luxembourg for satellite-based, quantum-secure communication. Co-funded by the Connecting Europe Facility and launched in late April 2026, the 3.5-year effort prepares the ground for quantum satellite missions including SES-led EAGLE-1 within the wider EuroQCI initiative.
By Noah Schreiber24 May 2026