Luxembourg · Work
Luxembourg Salaried worker permit
First stay: 2 yrs
Residence authorisation and permit – salaried worker (visa D then "travailleur salarié")
Checked against official sources on Change log
Key facts
Salaried worker permit is a work route for Luxembourg. Checked 2026-10-12 against the official source.
- Processing
- Up to 120 days
- First stay
- 2 yrs
Time and long term
RenewalRenewable
The first permit is for a maximum of 2 years; you cannot change employer in the first 6 months.
Permanent residenceAfter 5 years of residence
Long-term resident status after 5 years of legal, uninterrupted residence, with stable resources and housing. Half of study time counts; seasonal, posted and transferred worker time does not.
Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, Immigration Directorate, Luxembourg
CitizenshipAfter 5 years of residence
Naturalisation needs 5 years of legal residence, the last year uninterrupted, a Luxembourgish language certificate and the "Vivre ensemble" course.
ProcessingUp to 120 days
The response deadline for the visa-stage application is in principle 4 months at most.
Where to applyFrom abroad
Request a long-stay visa D at the Luxembourg embassy or consulate before entry, then apply for the residence permit after arrival.
Presence rulesAbsence limits
For long-term status, absences must stay under 6 consecutive months and 10 months in total over the 5 years.
Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, Immigration Directorate, Luxembourg
Why this route may not fit
Check this before you apply.
- Applications are made from outside Luxembourg, not after arriving
- Needs a job offer from an employer in Luxembourg
- Not open to EU, EEA or Swiss passports
What you'll need
Who can apply1
- A Luxembourg-established employer signs the employment contract.
What you must show1
- The contract pays at least the monthly social minimum wage.
Steps4
- The employer runs a labour-market test via ADEM before recruiting a third-country national.
- The employer obtains an ADEM certificate, allowed after 3 weeks without a suitable local candidate.
- The worker obtains a residence authorisation and visa D, then the residence permit.
- A decision is made within 4 months.
When you become tax resident
How Luxembourg decides tax residence and treats foreign-source income, from its tax records.
- Foreign-source income
Resident taxpayers in Luxembourg are subject to income tax on their worldwide revenues (domestic and foreign-source) and must report worldwide income, exempt and non-exempt, in their return; non-residents are taxed only on Luxembourg-source income unless they opt for resident treatment.
All tax rules for Luxembourg Tax records checked
Full official text
Two-step procedure: employer obtains an ADEM certificate (allowed after 3 weeks without a suitable local candidate), the worker obtains a residence authorisation and visa D, then the residence permit. The contract must pay at least the monthly social minimum wage. 1
Requirements
- A Luxembourg-established employer signs the employment contract. 1
- The contract pays at least the monthly social minimum wage. 1
- The employer runs a labour-market test via ADEM before recruiting a third-country national. 1
- The employer obtains an ADEM certificate, allowed after 3 weeks without a suitable local candidate. 1
- The worker obtains a residence authorisation and visa D, then the residence permit. 1
- A decision is made within 4 months. 1
Stay
- First salaried-worker permit for a maximum of 2 years; no change of employer during the first 6 months.
- First stay: up to 24 months, decided case by case.
- Renewable, subject to the conditions in force at renewal.
Nationality
Non-EU/EEA/Swiss nationals. Not open to: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Switzerland, Cyprus, Czechia, Germany, Denmark, Estonia, Spain, Finland, France, Greece, Croatia, Hungary, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Latvia, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, Slovenia, Slovakia.
Work
Work for the employer in the permit; employer changes after 6 months.
Official sources
- Salaried worker (third-country national): residence authorisation, visa D · Guichet.lu (Luxembourg State portal) · checked 2026-10-10
- Le statut de resident de longue duree (Articles 80 a 88 of the amended law of 29 August 2008) · Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, Immigration Directorate, Luxembourg · checked 2026-10-11
- Acquerir la nationalite luxembourgeoise par naturalisation · Guichet.lu (Luxembourg government portal) · checked 2026-10-11
Salaried worker permit and its alternatives
| Route | Money needed | Stay | Work |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salaried worker permit | – | 2 yr, renewable | – |
| Blue Card | Needs income of €66k+ a year ≈ $73k | – | – |
| Researcher permit | Needs income of €3,326+ a month ≈ $3,720 | 1 yr, renewable | – |
| Intra-company transfer permit | – | 3 yr, renewable | – |
| Blue Card Portugal | Needs income from €1,726 a month ≈ $1,930 | 2 yr, renewable | Limited |
Questions people ask
How long can I stay on the Salaried worker permit?
First salaried-worker permit for a maximum of 2 years; no change of employer during the first 6 months.
How long does the Salaried worker permit take to process?
The response deadline for the visa-stage application is in principle 4 months at most.
Can I work on the Salaried worker permit?
Work for the employer in the permit; employer changes after 6 months.
Who can apply for the Salaried worker permit?
Non-EU/EEA/Swiss nationals. Not open to: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Switzerland, Cyprus, Czechia, Germany, Denmark, Estonia, Spain, Finland, France, Greece, Croatia, Hungary, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Latvia, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, Slovenia, Slovakia.
Does the Salaried worker permit lead to permanent residence in Luxembourg?
Time on the Salaried worker permit counts toward permanent residence in Luxembourg, which the rules allow after 5 years of residence. Time on the Salaried worker permit counts toward citizenship, which the rules allow after 5 years of residence.
How are Salaried worker permit holders taxed in Luxembourg?
No special regime in our records is tied to the Salaried worker permit. The standard rules apply: Resident taxpayers in Luxembourg are subject to income tax on their worldwide revenues (domestic and foreign-source) and must report worldwide income, exempt and non-exempt, in their return; non-residents are taxed only on Luxembourg-source income unless they opt for resident treatment.
More in Luxembourg
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≈ USD figures are approximate: daily reference rates from ExchangeRate-API, dated 12 Oct 2026, refreshed when the site is updated.
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How this was checked
Checked on 2026-10-12 against 3 official sources. Status: verified against the official sources.
Every figure on this page comes from the official source it links to. The record was researched against these sources, then reviewed separately, with special attention to effective dates and amendments. Where a source does not state something, the page leaves it out.
- Salaried worker (third-country national): residence authorisation, visa D · Guichet.lu (Luxembourg State portal) · checked 2026-10-10
- Le statut de resident de longue duree (Articles 80 a 88 of the amended law of 29 August 2008) · Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, Immigration Directorate, Luxembourg · checked 2026-10-11
- Acquerir la nationalite luxembourgeoise par naturalisation · Guichet.lu (Luxembourg government portal) · checked 2026-10-11
Tracked since 2026-10-10. Rule changes and corrections are listed on the changes page, and the methodology page explains how facts are checked. Found something out of date? Email contact@stayglobe.app with a link to the official source.