Luxembourg's Social Welfare System: Overview

Luxembourg runs an insurance-based system. If you work in Luxembourg, as an employee or self-employed, you are compulsorily affiliated by the Joint Social Security Centre (Centre commun de la sécurité sociale, CCSS). Your employer handles this for you. One affiliation covers health and maternity, pension, accident and long-term care (dependency) insurance, and your health cover extends to dependent family members as co-insured persons. Contributions are shared by you, your employer and, for pensions, the State. Family benefits (CAE), the social inclusion income (FNS) and housing aid (Ministry of Housing) are paid by separate public bodies.

Most rules are national, and the commune (municipality) is your local office for registration, civil status and childcare vouchers. Amounts are adjusted when wages are indexed to the cost of living: the social minimum wage for an unskilled worker aged 18 or over is €2,771.33 a month (since 1 June 2026), and many benefits are set as multiples of it.

First registrations for newcomers:

• Commune: from 1 October 2026, third-country nationals enter with a long-stay visa (visa D), declare their arrival at their commune of residence within 3 days and then apply for the residence permit at the Directorate of Immigration. EU, EEA and Swiss citizens follow a separate registration procedure at the commune.
• Social security: after affiliation, the CCSS sends you a confirmation with your 13-digit national identification number, and you receive a social security card to show to doctors.
• MyGuichet.lu: most applications (family benefits, unemployment, tax) are made online with a LuxTrust product or an electronic ID card.

The areas at a glance

• Health: compulsory insurance through the CNS; adults are usually reimbursed 88% of doctors' fees, children 100%.
• Pension: statutory pension from 65 after at least 10 years of insurance; contributions 8.5% each for employee, employer and State (2026).
• Unemployment: benefit of 80% (85% with children) of previous gross pay, capped, for up to 12 months; REVIS after that.
• Family: family allowance of €315.04 per child per month (June 2026), plus age supplements and free childcare hours.
• Tax: progressive income tax from 0% to 42%, with tax classes 1, 1a and 2 and a 7–9% employment-fund surcharge.
• Housing: rent cap, deposit of at most 2 months' rent, rent subsidy of €10–520 a month.
• Education: school is compulsory from age 4 and now until 18; public schools are free; state aid for higher education.
• Parental: 20 weeks of maternity leave, 10 days of paternity leave, and 4–6 months of paid parental leave per parent.

Things to watch

• Benefits and thresholds change with each wage indexation (the last one took effect on 1 June 2026). Check the current amounts before you apply.
• Some benefits depend on residence status. For example, third-country nationals generally need 5 years of legal residence in the last 20 years, or long-term resident status, to receive REVIS.
• Cross-border workers follow different rules for several benefits. The pages in this section describe residents of Luxembourg.

Official guidance: Guichet.lu, CCSS: social parameters, IGSS: social parameters June 2026 (PDF), Government: new immigration procedure from 1 October 2026

Health Insurance in Luxembourg (assurance maladie-maternité)

Health insurance in Luxembourg is public and compulsory for everyone who works there. When you start a job, your employer affiliates you with the CCSS, and the confirmation names your health fund. For private-sector employees and the self-employed this is the National Health Fund (Caisse nationale de santé, CNS); civil servants belong to separate public-sector funds. All doctors and dentists allowed to practise in Luxembourg are automatically contracted with the health insurance and must apply the official fees.

Contributions

• For health care, the contribution is 5.6% of earnings, plus 0.5% for cash benefits (sick pay), shared equally between employee and employer (2026). Employees pay 3.05%.
• Employees also pay 1.4% for long-term care insurance (assurance dépendance), on earnings minus an allowance of €692.83 a month (June 2026).
• Contributions are calculated on earnings between the minimum (the social minimum wage) and the maximum of five times the social minimum wage (€13,856.63 a month from June 2026).

Family cover and voluntary insurance

• Your spouse or registered partner and your children who have no cover of their own are co-insured (coassurés) free of charge through your affiliation. A child's co-insurance can continue up to age 29 inclusive if the child's own income is low.
• Co-insurance of a baby born in Luxembourg is usually automatic. For a spouse, a partner, an adult child or a child arriving from abroad, you must apply to the CNS.
• If co-insurance is not possible, you can apply to the CCSS for paid voluntary insurance (assurance volontaire).
• After at least 6 months of continuous affiliation, residents who lose their cover keep their right to health care for the rest of the month plus 3 months, if they have no other cover.

Costs and how you are reimbursed

• You choose your doctor freely and do not need a referral to see a specialist. The CNS advises choosing a GP, and a GP or paediatrician for your child, as first contact.
• Adults are generally reimbursed 88% of doctors' fees; children and young people under 18, 100%.
• With direct immediate payment (paiement immédiat direct, PID), the CNS pays its share straight to the doctor and you pay only your personal share (12% for adults). Not every doctor uses PID yet; ask yours. Otherwise you pay the bill and claim a refund.
• Hospital stays cost €26.79 per day as the patient's share (June 2026).
• For an emergency, go to the emergency department of a hospital on duty or call 112. Out of hours, maisons médicales provide GP care.

Common pitfalls for newcomers

• Fee supplements for "personal convenience" (convenances personnelles) are not reimbursed. The doctor must inform you and get your consent first.
• The CNS only reimburses within limits: for example one consultation per day and at most 12 per half-year with doctors of the same specialty, unless authorised.
• Some treatments need prior approval from the social security medical control service (CMSS). Ask your doctor before treatment starts.
• Keep your address up to date: confirmations of affiliation and of the end of affiliation are sent by post.

Official guidance: CNS: doctors and reimbursement, CNS: affiliation, CNS: direct immediate payment, CCSS: contribution rates

Pensions in Luxembourg (assurance pension)

Luxembourg's pension system has three pillars. The first is the statutory pension insurance, run for private-sector workers and the self-employed by the National Pension Insurance Fund (Caisse nationale d'assurance pension, CNAP). The second pillar is supplementary pension schemes set up by employers, and the third is personal retirement savings. Reforms phased in from 2026 keep the legal pension age at 65.

Statutory pension: contributions and conditions

• Contributions (2026): 25.5% of insured earnings, split equally: 8.5% employee, 8.5% employer, 8.5% State. The total rate was 24% from 1985 until the end of 2025.
• Old-age pension at 65: you need at least 120 months (10 years) of insurance, from compulsory, continued or voluntary insurance or periods bought back.
• Early old-age pension: from 57 with 480 months (40 years) of compulsory insurance, or from 60 with 480 months that may include certain other periods (at least 120 months must be insurance periods). Since 1 July 2026, the 480 months needed at 60 are extended by extra months of contributions, depending on the year you reach 480 months: +1 month (2026), +2 (2027), +4 (2028), +6 (2029) and +8 from 2030; the pension at 57 is not affected.
• Amount: a flat-rate part based on years of insurance (up to 40) plus a part based on the earnings you paid contributions on. The minimum pension is €2,436.04 a month for a 40-year career, and the maximum pension is €11,277.94 a month (new pensions 2026, wage index of June 2026).
• A pension is not paid automatically: you must apply to the CNAP.

Second and third pillars

• Supplementary pension schemes (régimes complémentaires de pension) are set up by companies for their employees under the law of 8 June 1999. They have also been open to the self-employed since 2019. Ask your employer whether it offers one.
• Personal retirement savings (prévoyance-vieillesse): from 2026, contributions to approved contracts are tax-deductible up to €4,500 a year (previously €3,200).

Working abroad: international agreements

• Within the EU, EEA and Switzerland, the EU coordination rules (Regulation (EC) No 883/2004) apply. Insurance periods in other member states are taken into account.
• Luxembourg also has bilateral social security agreements with more than 20 countries, including for example Brazil, Canada, India, Japan, Korea, Turkey and the United States. Except for the agreement with China, they add together insurance periods and allow benefits to be paid abroad.

Common pitfalls for newcomers

• With fewer than 10 years of Luxembourg insurance you have no old-age pension at 65, unless periods from the EU or an agreement country can be added. Check your record early.
• The minimum pension requires at least 20 years of insurance, and it is reduced for each missing year between the 20th and the 40th.
• If you draw an early pension and keep working, income above one third of the social minimum wage (€923.77 a month from June 2026) can reduce the pension, and high earnings can stop it.
• If you also worked abroad, apply at least 6 months early: the CNAP contacts the foreign pension funds, which can take months.

Official guidance: CNAP: early old-age pension, Guichet.lu: old-age pension at 65, CNAP: international agreements, List of bilateral agreements, IGSS: supplementary pensions

Unemployment Benefits in Luxembourg (indemnité de chômage complet)

If you lose your job involuntarily, the National Employment Agency (Agence pour le développement de l'emploi, ADEM) pays the full unemployment benefit (indemnité de chômage complet). It is financed by the Employment Fund (Fonds pour l'emploi). There is no separate unemployment contribution on your payslip: income tax carries a 7–9% surcharge that feeds this fund. Social security contributions and tax are deducted from the benefit. When you have no right to the benefit, or it has run out, the social inclusion income (REVIS) is the last safety net.

Who qualifies

• You are aged 16 to 64, live in Luxembourg, are involuntarily unemployed, and are fit for work, available and willing to accept a suitable job.
• In the 12 months before you register you worked under one or more employment contracts for at least 182 days, for at least 16 hours a week with the same employer.
• Leaving by mutual agreement, an unjustified resignation or dismissal for serious misconduct normally excludes you.
• First register as a jobseeker with ADEM, then apply on MyGuichet.lu within 4 weeks of losing your job.

Amount and duration

• 80% of your previous gross pay, based on the 3 months before unemployment (without a 13th month), or 85% if you have children for whom you receive the tax reduction for children.
• Cap: 2.5 times the social minimum wage; after 182 days of unemployment within a year, 2 times. The social minimum wage is €2,771.33 a month (June 2026), and benefits follow cost-of-living indexation.
• Duration: as many months as you worked in the reference period (for example, 8 months of work gives 8 months of benefit), up to 12 months. Extensions of 6 to 12 months are possible for some people, for example those aged 55 or over, or aged 50 or over with at least 20 years of affiliation to social security.

After the benefit: REVIS

The social inclusion income (revenu d'inclusion sociale, REVIS) is paid by the National Solidarity Fund (Fonds national de solidarité, FNS) to households whose income is below the legal thresholds. As a rule you must be at least 25, live legally in Luxembourg, be registered with ADEM and look for work. Third-country nationals need 5 years of legal residence in the last 20 years or long-term resident status, except family members of Luxembourg, EU, EEA or Swiss nationals and beneficiaries of international protection. The inclusion allowance is built from flat amounts: €972.20 per adult plus €972.20 for shared household costs, with supplements for children (monthly, June 2026).

Common pitfalls for newcomers

• Do not miss the 4-week deadline, and register with ADEM before you apply.
• Resigning or agreeing to end your contract usually means no benefit.
• You must report all earned income to ADEM. Under some conditions, extra income is compatible with the benefit.
• EU, EEA and Swiss citizens and their family members cannot receive REVIS during their first 3 months of residence, or while they are looking for work if they came for that reason. This does not apply to workers and their families.

Official guidance: Guichet.lu: unemployment benefit for employees, ADEM: applying for unemployment benefit, Guichet.lu: REVIS, ACD: employment-fund surcharge

Family Benefits in Luxembourg (prestations familiales)

Family benefits are paid by the Children's Future Fund (Caisse pour l'avenir des enfants, CAE). The main one, the family allowance, is a right of each child who lives in Luxembourg. Children of cross-border workers can also qualify. Amounts are adjusted to the cost of living and were last raised on 1 June 2026. Childcare is supported separately through the childcare voucher (chèque-service accueil, CSA), which includes free hours.

Family allowance and other CAE benefits

• Family allowance (allocation familiale): €315.04 per child per month (June 2026), from the month of birth until age 18. It continues up to age 25 for pupils in secondary education or for some apprentices, but not for students in higher education.
• Age supplements: +€23.81 a month for children aged 6–11 and +€59.44 for children aged 12 and over.
• School-start allowance (allocation de rentrée scolaire): paid every August from age 6: €115 for ages 6–11 and €235 from age 12.
• Birth allowance (allocation de naissance): paid in 3 instalments of €580.03 each (June 2026), under conditions.
• Apply to the CAE online through MyGuichet.lu or by post, with the child's birth certificate and your bank details. Newcomers add documents such as residence permits (third-country nationals) or proof that benefits in their previous EU country have stopped.

Childcare: chèque-service accueil

• The CSA lowers the price of approved crèches, mini-crèches, maisons relais and childminders (assistants parentaux) for children under 12 who have not yet left basic education. Residents sign up at their commune.
• What you pay depends on household income, the number of children, the type of childcare and the hours used. The State pays up to €7 an hour in a childcare facility and €5.40 an hour with a childminder, for up to 60 hours a week.
• Free hours: children aged 1 to 4 who do not yet go to school get 20 free hours a week (46 weeks a year) in an approved crèche or mini-crèche, under the multilingual education programme (Luxembourgish and French).
• School-age children (from 4) get free care and free lunches in maisons relais and other approved facilities during school periods, Monday to Friday from 7:00 to 19:00.
• A reform presented in January 2026 plans to lower parents' costs further. Check whether it is in force before you budget.

Common pitfalls for newcomers

• The family allowance is not paid automatically when you arrive. Apply to the CAE as soon as your child is registered at your commune.
• The 20 free hours apply only in approved crèches and mini-crèches, whatever your income. A child in full-time early education (éducation précoce) gets no free hours under the programme.
• If you do not give your income when you sign up for the CSA, the highest rate applies. Renew the CSA contract before it expires, or you pay the full price.
• Students in higher education are not covered by the family allowance; they can apply for state student aid (AideFi) instead.

Official guidance: Guichet.lu: family allowance, CAE, Guichet.lu: chèque-service accueil, Ministry of Education: free childcare measures, IGSS: social parameters June 2026 (PDF)

Income Tax in Luxembourg (impôt sur le revenu)

Income tax is collected nationally by the Direct Tax Administration (Administration des contributions directes, ACD). You are a resident taxpayer if your tax domicile or habitual residence is in Luxembourg; residents are taxed on their worldwide income. Non-residents are taxed only on Luxembourg-source income and can, under conditions, choose to be treated like residents. Nationality plays no role. For employees, tax is withheld from salary by the employer according to the tax class shown on the tax withholding card (fiche de retenue d'impôt) issued by the ACD.

Rates and tax classes

The progressive scale applied from tax year 2025 is still in force in 2026 (tax class 1):

• 0% up to €13,230 of taxable income;
• then rising in small steps from 8% to 38% between €13,230 and €54,090;
• 39% from €54,090, 40% from €117,450, 41% from €176,160 and 42% above €234,870.

Your tax class changes how the scale is applied:

• Class 1: single people not in class 1a or 2.
• Class 1a: widowed people, people who receive the tax reduction for a child, and people aged 64 or over at the start of the year.
• Class 2: married couples and registered partners taxed jointly, and, for three years, recently widowed, divorced or separated people.

On top of the tax, a surcharge for the Employment Fund (Fonds pour l'emploi) applies: 7% of the tax, or 9% above an adjusted taxable income of €150,000 (classes 1 and 1a) or €300,000 (class 2).

Tax credits

• Employee tax credit (crédit d'impôt salarié, CIS), from 2026: €600 a year for gross pay between €11,266 and €40,000. It is lower below and above that range and stops at €80,000.
• CO2 tax credit for employees: €216 a year up to €40,000 of gross pay, then reduced. Both credits are paid through your payslip.
• Personal retirement-savings contracts are deductible up to €4,500 a year from 2026.

Filing a return

• Many employees are taxed only through withholding. You must file a return (form 100) in some cases, and you may file one to claim deductions and get back over-withheld tax, either with a full return or with an annual adjustment (form 163 R).
• The deadline is 31 December of the following year: for tax year 2025, returns can be filed from 7 April to 31 December 2026. Use MyGuichet.lu or send the form by post.
• Late filing can lead to a surcharge, late interest or a penalty, and the tax office can estimate your tax.

Common pitfalls for newcomers

• Foreign income that is exempt under a tax treaty still counts when your tax rate is calculated (the "exemption with progression" shown in the guichet.lu examples).
• Check your tax class after marriage, a registered partnership, a birth or a divorce. A wrong class means wrong withholding all year.
• Tax is not refunded automatically: to get back tax withheld in excess for your personal situation, you have to file a return or an annual adjustment.
• Married people and partners taxed jointly file one return covering all their income.

Official guidance: ACD: tax scale, ACD: Employment Fund surcharge, ACD: employee tax credit 2026, Guichet.lu: income tax return

Housing in Luxembourg (logement)

Most newcomers rent on the private market. Renting is governed by the amended law of 21 September 2006 on residential leases (bail à usage d'habitation), which was reformed with effect from 1 August 2024. The Ministry of Housing pays individual housing aid through its one-stop shop for housing aid (Guichet unique des aides au logement). Public developers such as the Fonds du Logement and the SNHBM, as well as communes, offer subsidised and affordable homes.

Renting: the main rules

• A residential lease must be in writing. It states, among other things, the rent without charges, the advance payments for charges, any deposit, and that either party can go to the rent commission (commission des loyers) in case of a dispute about the rent.
• Rent cap: the yearly rent may not exceed 5% of the capital invested in the home (land, construction and improvements, revalued). The Ministry of Housing publishes a tool to check the maximum.
• The rent can be adjusted only once every 2 years.
• Deposit (garantie locative): at most 2 months' rent for leases signed from 1 August 2024 (it was 3 months before). The law sets deadlines and penalties for returning it at the end of the lease. A move-in inventory (état des lieux) must be signed at the latest on the day you move in.
• Agency fees for new leases are split 50/50 between landlord and tenant. Any clause to the contrary is void.

Housing aid

• Rent subsidy (subvention de loyer): €10 to €520 a month (2026), depending on household size and income; the maximum was set at €200 for a single person from 1 June 2024. You need a right of residence of more than 3 months, a private-market lease, regular income below the legal limit, and a rent (without charges) above 25% of your net household income. No one in the household may own more than one third of a home in Luxembourg or abroad.
• State rent guarantee: if you cannot pay a deposit, the Ministry of Housing can guarantee it. You then save the full amount in a blocked account within 3 years. The deposit may not exceed 2 months' rent, and the rent may not exceed 50% of your household income.

Social and affordable housing

• Since 1 January 2026, the national register of affordable housing (RENLA) on MyGuichet.lu is the single entry point to apply for affordable housing. You register once.
• The Fonds du Logement rents subsidised homes to people with modest incomes and ranks applications by priority. Applicants may not own another home, in Luxembourg or abroad.

Common pitfalls for newcomers

• Check the rent against the legal cap before signing; disputes about the rent can go to the rent commission.
• Do not pay more than 2 months' rent as a deposit, or more than half of the agency fee.
• Ask for the energy performance class: property advertisements must show it.
• The rent subsidy does not apply to homes rented from public bodies, or from your parents or children, and it stops if you move.

Official guidance: Guichet.lu: residential lease, Guichet.lu: rent subsidy, Logement.lu: rent subsidy amounts, Logement.lu: lease reform 2024, Guichet.lu: state rent guarantee

Education in Luxembourg (enseignement)

Luxembourg's public school system is run by the Ministry of Education, Children and Youth (MENJE) and is multilingual: Luxembourgish, German and French all play a role, and English is taught in secondary school. About 47% of the population did not have Luxembourg nationality on 1 January 2025. Every child of compulsory school age must be enrolled, whatever the parents' status; no child can be refused. The school year runs from 15 September to 15 July.

Compulsory schooling and costs

• Start: school is compulsory for every child who is 4 years old before 1 September. The commune informs parents by 15 April and enrols the child automatically in a school near home. Children aged 3 can attend an optional early-education class (éducation précoce).
• End: compulsory schooling used to end on the 1 September after the 16th birthday. From the 2026/2027 school year it runs until age 18, for young people who were not yet 17 on 1 September 2026.
• Costs: public schools are free, including textbooks and transport. Care and lunches in maisons relais are free for school-age children during school periods.
• Choices: besides the national programme, public schools with a European curriculum offer English, French and German sections without registration fees, and some public secondary schools prepare for the International Baccalaureate. From 2026/2027, parents of pupils in cycle 1.2 can choose German or French as the language in which their child learns to read and write (programme ALPHA – zesumme wuessen), applied from 2027/2028.
• The School Integration and Reception Service (SIA) advises newly arrived families and helps place children.

Higher education and student aid

• The University of Luxembourg (founded in 2003) teaches in German, English and French. Check the registration fees for your programme on the university's website.
• State financial aid for higher education (AideFi) for 2026/2027 is paid per semester and combines grants and a loan:
  • basic grant: €1,289;
  • mobility grant (studying and renting outside your country of residence): €1,686;
  • grant based on social criteria: up to €2,500, depending on household income;
  • family grant: €307 (summer semester) if siblings also study;
  • student loan: €3,250 (full-time), at no more than 1.8% interest for the student, repaid over 10 years starting 2 years after studies end.
• Tuition fees can be added up to €3,800 a year (half grant, half loan). A €250 success bonus is planned for students who complete a programme with AideFi from 2026/2027.
• Deadlines: 30 November for the winter semester and 31 May for the summer semester.

Common pitfalls for newcomers

• AideFi is not open to every resident. Third-country nationals generally need long-term resident status or international protection, or must be a family member of a Luxembourg national. EU citizens need a right of residence as workers, family members or permanent residents.
• The family allowance stops when a child starts higher education, so apply for AideFi in time.
• If you arrive during the school year, contact your commune or the SIA straight away to enrol your child.

Official guidance: MENJE: schooling of newly arrived pupils, Guichet.lu: enrolment in basic education, Guichet.lu: AideFi, MengStudien: AideFi amounts, MENJE: the education system, an overview 2026 (PDF)

Maternity, Paternity and Parental Leave in Luxembourg

Maternity leave is paid by the health insurance (CNS). Paternity leave is paid by the employer, which is then reimbursed by the State. Parental leave is available to each parent and paid by the Children's Future Fund (CAE) as replacement income. The amounts below follow the social minimum wage (€2,771.33 a month since 1 June 2026).

Maternity leave (congé de maternité)

• 20 weeks in total: 8 weeks before the expected birth and 12 weeks after the actual birth. If the baby comes early, the unused prenatal days are added after the birth, within the 20 weeks.
• You must have been compulsorily insured for health and maternity for at least 6 months in the 12 months before the leave.
• Send the CNS and your employer a medical certificate with the expected date of birth, issued in the last 12 weeks of pregnancy (not earlier).
• Maternity benefit: paid by the CNS, not by the employer. For employees it is based on the highest salary of the last 3 months. It is at least the social minimum wage and at most 5 times the social minimum wage.
• Your employment contract continues during the leave, and you are protected against dismissal during pregnancy once your employer knows about it.

Paternity leave (congé de paternité)

• 10 days for the father or the person recognised as second parent, at the birth of a child or when a child under 16 arrives for adoption.
• Tell your employer in writing at least 2 months before the dates you want. Without notice, the leave is taken in one block straight after the birth.
• Your salary continues; the State reimburses the employer from the 17th hour of leave.

Parental leave (congé parental)

• Each parent has a right to parental leave for each child. One parent takes the first parental leave right after maternity or adoption leave. The second must start before the child's 6th birthday (12th birthday after an adoption).
• Conditions: at least 12 months of continuous affiliation through an employment contract before the leave, a contract of at least 10 hours a week, and still being employed during the leave.
• Options for a 40-hour contract: 4 or 6 months full-time, 8 or 12 months half-time, or split leave (for example 4 periods of one month within 20 months). Half-time and split leave need the employer's agreement.
• Parental leave allowance (2026): replaces your average monthly income of the 12 months before the leave. For full-time leave after a full-time job it is at least €2,771.33 and at most €4,618.88 a month (gross, taxed and subject to contributions).

Common pitfalls for newcomers

• Ask for the first parental leave at least 2 months before maternity leave starts. If it is not taken right after maternity leave, it is lost and the other parent can only take the second leave.
• A parent still in a probation period that ends after maternity leave can take only the second parental leave.
• Parental leave needs 12 months of Luxembourg affiliation, so recent arrivals may not qualify yet.
• Ask for the second parental leave at least 4 months ahead: employers can postpone it in some cases.

Official guidance: Guichet.lu: maternity leave, Guichet.lu: paternity leave, Guichet.lu: parental leave, CNS: maternity and paternity