Work Permits and Visas in Luxembourg: Hiring Steps

Introduction

Work Permits and Visas in Luxembourg require third-country nationals to follow a defined immigration sequence through the General Department of Immigration of the Ministry of Home Affairs. This includes temporary authorization to stay, the relevant visa, arrival declaration, medical check, and residence permit steps.

Employers also need to account for National Employment Agency (Agence pour le développement de l'emploi, ADEM) vacancy declaration rules before hiring many non-European Union (EU), non-European Economic Area (EEA), or non-Swiss workers.

A signed employment contract does not, by itself, allow a foreign employee to start work, and errors in the ADEM certificate, visa type, or residence permit timing can delay onboarding or expose the company to unauthorized work issues. Luxembourg also treats short-term work, salaried employment, and European Union Blue Card cases differently, so the right route depends on assignment length, nationality, role, and salary conditions.

In this guide, we explain Luxembourg work visa types, eligibility rules, employer obligations, application steps, processing considerations, and compliance risks for international hires.

What are the types of work permits and visas in Luxembourg?

Luxembourg uses work authorization, visa, and residence-permit routes based on the foreign national’s purpose of stay. For employer-led hiring, the main routes usually involve third-country nationals, meaning people who are not European Union (EU) citizens and are not nationals of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, or Switzerland.

Luxembourg work authorization and residence routes:

Luxembourg visa and long-term residence routes relevant to work:

Luxembourg work authorization depends on the worker’s nationality, role, salary level, assignment length, and visa status; choosing the wrong route can delay onboarding or create work authorization issues. Employers should confirm the correct path before starting sponsorship, relocation, or permit documentation.

Skuad’s Visa and Immigration support helps companies coordinate global mobility requirements for international hires, including:

• Supporting work permit applications for foreign employees joining your team
• Helping coordinate visa documentation with relevant local immigration authorities
• Assisting with residence or work permit conversions as required by local immigration law
• Helping track documentation requirements and deadlines across the full permit lifecycle
• Helping keep teams aligned with permit renewal requirements

What are the requirements for work permits and visas in Luxembourg?

Luxembourg work permit and visa requirements depend on the worker’s nationality, length of stay, and permit route. For employer-led hiring, the most common requirements apply to third-country nationals who need authorization to stay and a visa, if required, before entering Luxembourg.

Requirements for salaried workers staying more than three months

For a third-country national hired as a salaried worker for more than three months, the worker must apply for temporary authorization to remain in Luxembourg before entering the country. The application must include:

• A full copy of the valid passport
• An extract from the criminal records or a sworn declaration from the country of residence
• A curriculum vitae
• Copies of diplomas or professional qualifications
• A Luxembourg-law compliant employment contract, dated and signed by the worker and the future employer
• The original National Employment Agency (Agence pour le développement de l’emploi, ADEM) certificate authorizing the employer to hire a third-country national
• A power of attorney, where necessary

Requirements for highly qualified workers and the EU Blue Card

For the highly qualified worker route, which leads to the EU Blue Card, the applicant must have an employment contract for at least six months, meet the higher professional qualification conditions, and be offered an annual salary of at least EUR 65,652.

Highly qualified workers are not subject to the labor market test, but the employer must still declare the vacant position to ADEM before recruitment.

Visa and residence requirements after authorization

Visa-required third-country nationals also need a Type D visa after authorization to stay is granted. The residence-permit application for a salaried worker includes a valid passport copy, temporary authorization to stay, declaration of arrival, proof of suitable housing, and proof of payment of the EUR 80 residence-permit fee.

How do you apply for Luxembourg work permits and visas?

The application process depends on the worker’s nationality, role, and whether the stay is shorter or longer than 90 days. For employer-led hiring, the typical sequence is as follows.

Step 1: Declare the job vacancy with ADEM

Before recruiting a third-country salaried worker, the employer must declare the vacant position to the National Employment Agency (Agence pour le développement de l’emploi, ADEM). If ADEM does not present a suitable candidate from the local or European Union (EU) job market within three weeks, the employer may request an ADEM certificate allowing it to hire a third-country national.

Step 2: Apply for temporary authorization to stay

A third-country salaried worker who will work in Luxembourg for more than three months must apply for temporary authorization to stay before entering Luxembourg, except in specific cases.

The application can be submitted to the General Department of Immigration of the Ministry of Home Affairs, to a Luxembourg diplomatic or consular representation, or to a diplomatic or consular mission representing Luxembourg. The worker may also mandate a third party, such as the employer, to handle the procedure.

The official response time for the temporary authorization-to-stay application is normally a maximum of four months. If no response is received within that period, the application should be considered denied.

Step 3: Apply for a Type D visa, if required

If the worker is subject to visa requirements, they must apply for a Type D visa after receiving temporary authorization to stay and before traveling to Luxembourg. The worker submits the Type D visa application to the relevant Luxembourg embassy or consulate.

If Luxembourg is not represented in that country, the worker may need to apply through the Belgian embassy or consulate that handles Luxembourg long-stay visas. The Type D visa is valid for a maximum of three months.

Step 4: Complete commune registration and residence-permit steps after arrival

After arriving in Luxembourg, the worker must make a declaration of arrival at the commune of residence within three days. The declaration of arrival and temporary authorization to stay together serve as work authorization until the residence permit is issued.

The worker must then undergo a medical check and apply for a residence permit within three months of entry. Residence-permit applications can be submitted online through MyGuichet.lu or by post. Once approved, the applicant is invited to provide biometric data, and the residence permit is issued as a chip card that contains the work permit.

For short-term work, a third-country national who will work in Luxembourg for less than 90 days must have a work permit before starting work, unless an exemption applies. The applicant must send the work permit application to the General Department of Immigration, and the employer must complete the ADEM vacancy-declaration step before recruitment.

The Luxembourg work authorization process can require an ADEM vacancy declaration, temporary authorization to stay, a Type D visa where applicable, commune registration, medical checks, and residence-permit filing after arrival. For companies that do not already have a Luxembourg entity, these employment steps can add another layer to the hiring timeline.

Skuad’s Employer of Record platform acts as the legal employer across 160+ countries, helping companies hire without setting up a local entity. Skuad supports international hiring through:

• Employment contract generation aligned with local labor laws across supported markets
• Statutory contribution workflows covering applicable social insurance, pension, and severance obligations
• Payroll processing in 70+ currencies with automated tax withholding and year-end reconciliation
• Statutory benefits, paid leave, and parental entitlement administration in line with local requirements
• Termination and offboarding support, including notice and severance calculations as required locally

Hire in Luxembourg with Skuad

Hiring foreign talent in Luxembourg can slow down when work authorization, visa timing, residence-permit steps, and local employment setup all need to move in the right order. For employers without a Luxembourg entity, the process can also add legal-employer, contract, payroll, and statutory contribution requirements before a candidate can start work.

Skuad supports global teams by connecting immigration coordination with EOR hiring infrastructure. Skuad’s Visa and Immigration support helps coordinate work permit, visa, and renewal workflows, while Skuad’s EOR platform helps companies hire employees across 160+ countries without setting up a local entity.

Book a demo to see how Skuad supports work permit, visa, and EOR hiring workflows for Luxembourg.

FAQs

1. What is a work permit in Luxembourg?

A Luxembourg work permit is authorization for eligible foreign nationals to carry out paid work in the country. Most third-country nationals need permission before employment starts, usually through temporary authorization to stay, a Type D visa where required, and a residence permit process.

2. Who needs a work permit to work in Luxembourg?

Most non-EU, non-EEA, and non-Swiss nationals need work authorization before working in Luxembourg. EU, EEA, and Swiss citizens generally have free movement rights, while third-country nationals usually follow procedures involving ADEM, the General Department of Immigration, and residence permit requirements.

3. How do you get a work permit for Luxembourg?

The process usually starts with the employer declaring the vacancy to ADEM before hiring a third-country national. The worker then applies for temporary authorization to stay, obtains a Type D visa if required, declares arrival at the commune, completes medical checks, and applies for residence.

4. How much does a Luxembourg work permit cost?

The official residence permit fee for a third-country salaried worker is generally EUR 80. Total costs may be higher because applicants may also need passport copies, criminal-record documents, translations, legalisation, medical checks, visa-related fees, and supporting documents requested by Luxembourg immigration authorities.

5. How long does it take to get a Luxembourg work permit?

The timeline depends on the route, document quality, nationality, and ADEM vacancy step. For salaried third-country workers, official guidance allows several months for immigration processing, and the worker should not assume they can start before the correct authorization is valid.

6. Can you work in Luxembourg with a short-stay visa?

A short-stay Type C visa does not usually give a third-country national the right to work in Luxembourg. For paid activity under 90 days, the worker generally needs a separate work permit before applying for the visa, unless a specific exemption applies.