Coming to work in Luxembourg from outside the EU: D visa and residence permit
Skimming?
We've prepared the shortcut for you.
This is for you if
- You are Indian, Brazilian, Moroccan, American, British arriving after 2020, or from any other non-EU country.
- You have a job offer, university admission, or a researcher position in Luxembourg.
- Your company wants to transfer you to its Luxembourg subsidiary.
- You want to join your spouse or parent who is already living in Luxembourg with a residence permit.
This is not for you if you are a citizen of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, or Liechtenstein: you simply make a declaration at the municipality. The same applies if you are the spouse of an EU citizen (for example, a Brazilian woman married to a Portuguese citizen): you follow the simpler rules for family members of an EU citizen (ouvre dans un nouvel onglet).
Key figures to remember
| Item | Value | Year or date |
|---|---|---|
| EU Blue Card threshold | €65,652 gross per year, or €5,471 per month over 12 months | Since 3 March 2026 |
| Minimum contract for the Blue Card | 6 months | Since 1 July 2024 |
| Minimum salary for a standard employment contract | Minimum social wage (SSM): €2,771.33 gross per month (unskilled) | Since 1 June 2026 |
| Type D visa validity | 6 months | Since 1 October 2026 |
| Declaration of arrival at the municipality | Within 3 days of your arrival | In force as of 9 October 2026 |
| Residence permit application | At the latest 3 months before your type D visa expires | Since 1 October 2026 |
| Residence permit fee | €80 | In force as of 9 October 2026 |
| Validity of the first permit | Employee: maximum 1 year; Blue Card: 4 years, or duration of the contract plus 3 months | In force as of 9 October 2026 |
| Card collection | 1 week after photo and fingerprint collection | In force as of 9 October 2026 |
| ADEM certificate for your employer | 5 working days for a profession in high shortage, several weeks otherwise; valid for 3 months | Guichet.lu, April 2024 |
| Free choice of employment with the Blue Card | After 12 months | Since 1 July 2024 |
Sources: Guichet.lu, first residence permit (ouvre dans un nouvel onglet), Ministry of Foreign Affairs Blue Card checklist (ouvre dans un nouvel onglet) and IGSS, social parameters as of 1 June 2026 (ouvre dans un nouvel onglet).
What changed on 1 October 2026
Previously, you first applied for a temporary authorisation to stay (AST) with the Directorate General of Immigration (DGIM) in Luxembourg by post. Only after that did you apply for a visa. Luxembourg was the last EU country to operate this way.
Since 1 October 2026, there is only one application: the type D visa, submitted in person at the Luxembourg embassy in your country. If Luxembourg does not have an embassy in your country, the Belgian embassy receives your application. The DGIM still makes the decision, but your application goes through the embassy.
Good news: the type D visa is valid for 6 months and allows you to travel throughout the Schengen area as soon as you arrive, without waiting for your permit.
Had you already submitted your application? Applications sent up to 30 September 2026 follow the old procedure. If it is accepted, you will receive a letter. You present it at the embassy to get your visa, without having to resubmit your application.
Which path for you?
You must specify the residence permit category as soon as you apply for your visa. The six most common paths:
| Path | Who it's for | Key condition | Role of the ADEM |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salaried worker (ouvre dans un nouvel onglet) | Any job offer | Contract paying at least the SSM | Mandatory certificate: the employer proves they found no one locally |
| EU Blue Card (ouvre dans un nouvel onglet) | Highly qualified employment | €65,652 gross per year, contract of at least 6 months, qualifications or experience | No certificate required in the list of documents |
| Intra-corporate transfer (ICT) (ouvre dans un nouvel onglet) | Expert, manager or trainee sent by their group | 3 months within the group before the transfer, salary at least at the SSM | No |
| Researcher (ouvre dans un nouvel onglet) | Graduate eligible for PhD studies | Hosting agreement with an accredited research organisation, resources at least at the qualified SSM | No |
| Student (ouvre dans un nouvel onglet) | Admitted to higher education in Luxembourg | Resources of at least 80% of the REVIS (social inclusion income) | No; 15 hours per week student job permitted |
| Family member (ouvre dans un nouvel onglet) | Spouse, partner, children under 18 | Stable income and adequate housing of the person already in Luxembourg | No |
The ADEM test is what slows down the 'salaried worker' path. Your employer declares the position to the Employment Development Agency (ADEM). ADEM checks whether a suitable registered jobseeker is available. If so, your employer must examine their application first. For a profession on the 'severe shortage' list, the certificate is issued within 5 business days.
The Blue Card is the fastest path for a qualified profile. In 2024, it was the path chosen by 223 Indians out of 824 Blue Cards issued (ministry's 2024 activity report (ouvre dans un nouvel onglet)). To find out if your diploma will be recognised, read our guide on getting your diploma recognised.
The steps in order
Practical guide · trigger.lu
Coming to work in Luxembourg from outside the EU: D visa and residence permit
- Who
- your future employer
- Timeframe
- 5 business days for a high-shortage profession, several weeks otherwise
Details
Only for the 'salaried worker' path. The ADEM certificate is valid for 3 months: your visa application must be submitted before it expires.
- You will need
- Visa D application form
- compliant photo less than 3 months old
- passport less than 10 years old, valid for 6 months after your stay
- signed employment contract
- criminal record check less than 3 months old
- CV and diplomas
- travel insurance valid in the Schengen area
Details
Each category has its own checklist. Simple copies are sufficient for a work application. Any document that is not in French, German, or English must be translated by a sworn translator.
- Where
- Luxembourg embassy, Belgian embassy, or its authorized service provider
- Cost
- visa fees set by the embassy, plus service fees if you go through an external provider
- Timeframe
- in principle 4 months at most (90 days for the Blue Card), expect several weeks
Details
You must apply in person. An application submitted from within Luxembourg is automatically rejected. If approved, the embassy affixes the visa in your passport.
- Timeframe
- 3 days after your arrival
- Bring
- passport with the Visa D
- lease agreement or other proof of accommodation
Details
Your residence permit will generally start on the date of this declaration. Without a legal address, there is no permit: find your accommodation early.
- When
- as soon as possible
- Cost
- at your expense
- Where
- a general practitioner, internist, or paediatrician in Luxembourg, then a laboratory or the Ligue Médico-Sociale (mandatory under 2 years of age)
Details
Medical examination by the doctor, followed by tuberculosis screening. The Health Directorate sends the certificate to the DGIM. Without it, your permit application remains on hold.
- Timeframe
- at the latest 3 months before your Visa D expires
- You will need
- full copy of your passport
- copy of the arrival declaration
- proof of accommodation if not provided for the visa
Details
Online via MyGuichet.lu, with or without a LuxTrust connection, or by post to the DGIM. Choose the same category as your visa.
- Cost
- €80
- Where
- Directorate General of Immigration, 26, route d'Arlon, by appointment
- Timeframe
- card ready 1 week later
Details
The DGIM writes to you once your application is accepted. Bring proof of payment on the day of the appointment, otherwise it will be cancelled. Your card also serves as a work permit.
Real timelines and costs
No overall official timeline is published for the new procedure. The law does, however, set the minister maximum decision periods: 4 months for an employee, 90 days for the Blue Card (law of 29 August 2008, articles 42 and 50bis); the official pages do not say how they apply to the D visa. Only certain steps have specified timeframes: the ADEM certificate (5 business days to a few weeks), the student visa (60 days in principle), the residence card (1 week after fingerprinting). The doctor has up to 1 month to send their certificate to the Health Directorate.
In practice, plan for at least 2 to 3 months between signing the contract and your first day of work. This is a trigger estimation, not a statutory deadline. Under the old procedure, candidates waited much longer. Do not resign in your home country before obtaining your visa.
What you pay for yourself:
- Visa D fees and, if applicable, the service fees of the external provider: amounts displayed by the embassy in your country;
- sworn translations, if your documents are not in French, German, or English;
- the medical check and screening;
- the €80 fee for the card, and €80 for each renewal.
Documents: apostille and translations
For a work application, the ministry accepts simple copies. No apostille is needed for your contract, CV, or diplomas.
It is different for civil status documents. To bring your spouse, the checklist requires a legalised copy of the marriage certificate. For a signatory country to the Hague Convention, such as India, this legalisation takes the form of an apostille, issued by an authority in your country. Get it done before leaving: it is nearly impossible from Luxembourg.
A document in Hindi, Portuguese, or Arabic must be translated by a sworn translator. A document in English does not require translation.
Example: Priya, developer, from Bangalore to Luxembourg
Priya, 29, Indian, is a developer in Bangalore. A bank in Luxembourg City offers her a permanent contract (CDI) at €75,000 gross per year. Her husband, Arjun, is accompanying her.
1. Which path? €75,000 exceeds the €65,652 threshold by €9,348. The contract lasts more than 6 months, and she holds an engineering degree. She therefore applies for an EU Blue Card Visa D. Her employer still declares the position to ADEM, but no certificate is required in her file.
2. Her documents. Her degree, CV, and contract are in English: no translation required. She requests a criminal record extract, which must be less than 3 months old at the time of submission. Arjun has their marriage certificate apostilled in India.
3. The application. They submit both applications at the same time, in person, to the embassy's service provider in New Delhi. Since Arjun is accompanying Priya, he does not need to provide proof of accommodation in Luxembourg.
4. Arrival. Suppose their Visa D documents are issued on 15 January 2027: they are valid until 15 July 2027. They arrive on 1 February. They declare their arrival at the municipality no later than 4 February.
5. The residence permit. They undergo the medical check during the first week. They submit their applications on MyGuichet.lu before 15 April 2027 (3 months before the visa expires). Cost for both cards: 2 × €80 = €160, plus visa fees and the medical check.
6. Next steps. After 12 months with an EU Blue Card, Priya can freely change highly qualified jobs. Before that, any change requires notification to the DGIM. To estimate her net salary, she can read our guide on the index and your net salary.
British, American, Brazilian: special cases
British nationals. If you were already living in Luxembourg before January 1, 2021, the withdrawal agreement (the Brexit agreement) protects your right of residence: the reform does not apply to you. If you arrive afterwards, you are a third-country national like any other: a type D visa, a residence permit, and the ADEM market test unless you hold a Blue Card. Are you a British national living in France or Belgium as a cross-border worker who arrived after 2020? You need a work authorization before starting.
American, Canadian, and Brazilian nationals. You can enter without a visa for a stay of less than 90 days. But to settle here, you also need a type D visa requested before entering. Arriving as a tourist and applying on site will not work: it is automatically rejected.
Brazilian nationals married to an EU citizen. Your situation falls under family members of an EU citizen (see above), not this pathway.
Watch out for scams
- There is no "job seeker visa" for Luxembourg. The Embassy of Luxembourg in New Delhi explicitly reminds applicants of this.
- There is no lottery or "expedited" visa for a fee.
- A Luxembourg employer will never ask you for money to hire you. An "agency" selling you a guaranteed job or a work visa D is selling you hot air.
- A work permit cannot be obtained in 5 days, no matter what social media videos say.
- Only official visa fees and service fees from the authorized provider are due. The amounts are published on the embassy website.
- If in doubt, write to the embassy before paying or sending your documents. Look for job offers on well-known sites, like ADEM's JobBoard.
Common mistakes
- Resigning before getting your visa: processing times are not guaranteed, and you could end up unemployed on both sides.
- Entering as a tourist to "regularize" your status later: applications made within Luxembourg are inadmissible. You must return home to submit it.
- Missing the 3-day deadline for the arrival declaration: your permit starts from this date, putting you behind on everything else.
- Postponing the medical check-up: the DGIM will not process your application without the certificate. Meanwhile, your type D visa keeps ticking.
- Changing employers without notifying the DGIM: with a Blue Card, you must notify the change and then wait 30 days. Otherwise, it is a breach of your residence conditions.
What might change
As of October 9, 2026, Bill No. 8586 on the "single permit" is under discussion at the Chamber of Deputies. Guichet.lu already announces its effects for the "employed person" track, with no effective date yet: an initial permit valid for up to 2 years (compared to 1 year today), and the right to change employers after 6 months, with prior notification to the DGIM. Until the law is passed, these rules do not apply. Follow dossier 8586 on the Chamber website (ouvre dans un nouvel onglet).
Frequently asked questions
You can come for job interviews, but you cannot settle down or work. Once you find a job, you must return to your home country to apply for a D visa. Luxembourg does not have a job seeker visa.
There is no official overall timeframe. Allow at least 2 to 3 months from the signed contract until your arrival, then a few weeks on site for the medical check and the permit card. The card is ready one week after your fingerprints are taken.
No. Applications submitted up until 30 September 2026 follow the old procedure. If approved, you present the approval letter at the embassy to obtain your D visa.
Yes. Your spouse or registered partner and your children under 18 can apply for a "family member" D visa. If they apply at the same time as you, there is no need for proof of accommodation. As for your parents, they can only join you after 12 months of residence, and under certain conditions.
The card fee is €80 for each issuance and renewal. On top of that, there are visa fees, medical check costs, and potential translation fees.
Yes, if your category allows it: the card serves as a work permit. A student can work an average of 15 hours per week. For your contract, read our guide on labour law in Luxembourg.