Conditions of residence for young au pairs from third countries
Last update
A third-country national who wishes to come to Luxembourg to work as a young au pair for a period of more than 3 months, must follow a procedure in 2 consecutive steps:
- Step 1: before entering the country:
- submit an application for a temporary authorisation to stay to the General Department of immigration of the Ministry of Home Affairs;
- be in possession of a valid passport;
- for persons subject to visa requirements in order to enter Luxembourg: request a type D visa after having obtained the temporary authorisation to stay;
- Step 2: after entering the country:
- make a declaration of arrival in the new commune of residence in Luxembourg;
- undergo a medical check;
- submit an application for a residence permit.
Who is concerned?
Third-country nationals (i.e. nationals from a country which is not an EU Member State or a country treated as such - Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Switzerland) who are between 18 and 30 years old and wish to reside in Luxembourg as a young au pair are subject to these dispositions. These persons must first have a temporary authorisation to stay, then a residence permit.
The application for a temporary authorisation to stay must be submitted by the young au pair. However, they may mandate a third party, such as the future host family, to carry out the necessary procedures.
Non-EU nationals who are family members of an EU citizen (or a national of a country treated as such) living in Luxembourg do not need an authorisation to stay for a young au pair.
Prerequisites
Third-country nationals must meet the following requirements first:
- hold a valid passport;
- check whether or not they have to obtain a visa to enter the Schengen area;
- have the written approval from the minister responsible for youth.
To get this approval, they also have to meet the specific conditions required to be a young au pair, namely:
- be at least 18 and under 30 years old;
- hold a certificate giving them access to higher education in their country of origin, or give proof that they have attended class until the age of 17 at the minimum;
- have basic knowledge of the languages spoken by the host family, as well as English or one of the country's 3 administrative languages (German, French or Luxembourgish);
- provide a medical certificate established less than 3 months prior to their arrival, proving that the young au pair is able to carry out simple routine family tasks, including childcare;
- have signed an au pair hosting agreement with an approved host family;
- not carry out any salaried or freelance work during their time as an au pair.
How to proceed
Step 1: before entering the country
Application for a temporary authorisation to stay
The future young third-country national au pair must submit an application for a temporary authorisation to stay (on plain paper) from the country of origin:
- to the General Department of immigration;
- to a Luxembourg diplomatic or consular representation or to a diplomatic or consular mission representing Luxembourg.
The application must be submitted and approved before coming to Luxembourg, except in certain special cases (i.e. third-country nationals who already hold a residence permit in Luxembourg). Applications submitted from Luxembourg are inadmissible.
The application for a temporary authorisation to stay must contain the applicant's identity details (surname(s), first name(s) and address in the country of residence) and must be accompanied by the following documents and information:
- a copy of their valid passport, in its entirety;
- where applicable, a copy of the residence permit issued in another EU Member State if they already reside in the Schengen area;
- a copy of the criminal record or an affidavit (sworn declaration) established in the country of residence;
- the written approval from the Minister in charge of Youth in accordance with article 3 of the law of 18 February 2013 on hosting au-pairs;
- Where necessary, a power of attorney.
Power of attorney:
third-country nationals may mandate a third party (e.g. the future host family) to submit the application in their place. In this case, the mandate holder, with the exception of attorneys, must provide proof of their mandate in the form of a written power of attorney, duly dated and signed by the principal. The signature must be preceded by the handwritten note 'bon pour procuration' (good for proxy).
The documents enclosed must be originals or certified true copies (except for the passport where a plain copy will suffice). Should the authenticity of a document be in doubt, the minister responsible for immigration can request that the document be authenticated by the appropriate local authority and legalised by a Luxembourg diplomatic or consular representation in the third country national's country of origin (or alternatively notarised with an apostille of the Hague).
If the documents are not drawn up in German, French or English, an official translation by a 'sworn translator' must be attached.
Only complete applications will be processed. Incomplete applications will be returned to the sender.
The Ministry of Home Affairs normally responds within 60 days. If the information or supporting documents provided are incomplete, the minister will inform the applicant on any additional information to be provided and will grant a reasonable period of time in which to submit the information required. The 60-day deadline will then be suspended until the required documents or information are received within the set deadline. Should the additional information or documentation fail to be supplied within the deadline, the application is rejected.
In case of a favourable reply, the third-country national receives a 'temporary authorisation to stay', sent by post. This temporary authorisation to stay is valid for a duration of 90 days. During that time, the third-country national must:
- either apply for an entry visa to the Schengen area, if they are subject to visa requirements;
- or, if they are not subject to visa requirements, enter Luxembourg territory and make a declaration of arrival to the administration of the commune where they reside.
After entering Luxembourg, the third-country national must take steps to obtain a residence permit.
Passport and visa
If they are not subject to visa requirements, the third-country national may enter Luxembourg with the authorisation to stay and a valid passport.
Third-country nationals subject to a visa obligation must submit, before their journey and from their country of origin, a type D visa application and present their temporary authorisation to stay to the Luxembourg diplomatic or consular representation in their country of origin, or, failing that, to the embassy or consulate of the country in the Schengen area which represents Luxembourg for the issuance of long stay visas (only the Belgian embassy or consulate).
The visa, valid for a maximum period of 3 months, is affixed in the passport in the form of a seal.
If the applicant's passport is due to expire in less than 6 months, they are advised to renew it before coming to Luxembourg.
If the third-country national has a valid residence permit for family members of an EU citizen or a valid residence permit issued by another EU Member State, a visa is not required. Third-country nationals are nonetheless required to have a temporary authorisation to stay in Luxembourg.
Step 2: after entering the country
Declaration of arrival
When entering Luxembourg territory, the third-country national must hold valid travel documents (visa and passport, where applicable), as well as the temporary authorisation to stay.
They must make a declaration of arrival at the administration of the commune where they intend to establish residence, within 3 days of arrival in Luxembourg, presenting:
- a valid travel document (passport and, where applicable, a visa or a residence permit issued by another EU Member State);
- the original copy of the temporary authorisation to stay;
- where applicable, a valid proof of address.
The applicant will receive a copy of their declaration of arrival as a receipt.
The copy of the declaration of arrival together with the temporary authorisation to stay are valid as an authorisation to stay and allow to carry out activities as an au pair until the residence permit is issued.
Medical check-up
Before applying for the residence permit, the young third-country national au pair must undergo a medical check for foreigners as soon as possible which consists in:
- a medical examination by a doctor established in Luxembourg and authorised to work as a general practitioner, a practitioner specialised in internal medicine or pediatrics; and
- a tuberculosis (TB) screening performed at a medical analysis laboratory (with a prescription from the doctor who performed the medical examination) or at the Health and Social Welfare League (Ligue médico-sociale - LMS), for any person aged 2 years and over; and
- a tuberculosis screening using a tuberculin test at the Health and Social Welfare League (Ligue médico-sociale - LMS) for children aged between 2 months and 2 years.
After receiving the results of these examinations, the Health Inspection (Inspection sanitaire) of the Health Directorate (Direction de la Santé) will issue a medical certificate, which will be sent to the General Department of immigration of the Ministry of Home Affairs to allow the residence permit application to be processed.
Residence permit application
Young third-country au pairs must submit an application for a residence permit for third-country nationals to the General Department of immigration of the Ministry of Home Affairs within 3 months of entry into Luxembourg.
Applications for a residence permit can be submitted online using MyGuichet.lu or by post using a special form (see 'Online services and forms').
Submitting the application online
The application for a residence permit is available on MyGuichet.lu. The online procedure can be completed:
- with authentication using:
- a LuxTrust product (e.g. Smartcard, Signing stick or Token); or
- an electronic identity card (eID); or
- without authentication.
- have a private eSpace (Pdf, 3.49 Mb); and
- link their private eSpace with the MyGuichet.lu mobile app.
The application can also be submitted via the MyGuichet.lu mobile app. In order to do so, applicants must:
The supporting documents indicated below must be attached to the online application.
Submitting the application by post
If the application is submitted by post, the application form and the supporting documents indicated hereafter must be sent to the Ministry of Home Affairs.
Supporting documents
The following documents must be attached to the application:
- a copy of their valid passport, in its entirety;
- a copy of the declaration of arrival established by the communal authority;
- proof of payment of a fee of EUR 80 to account IBAN LU46 1111 2582 2814 0000 (BIC: CCPLLULL, beneficiary: Ministry of Home Affairs, General Department of immigration; communication: residence permit for... ).
When the application is approved, the applicant will receive a letter inviting them to make an appointment with the General Department of immigration of the Ministry of Home Affairs in order to have their photograph and fingerprints taken, which will be incorporated into the residence permit. The applicant may also bring a recent photograph compliant with OACI/ICAO standards ('biometric passport standards').
A few days after the biometric data have been collected, the applicant can pick up the residence permit in person at the General Department of immigration, by appointment.
The residence permit takes the form of a chip card containing the biometric data.
The residence permit includes information about its holder (surname, first name, nationality, date and place of birth), as well as specific information about the residence permit (permit category, date of beginning and end of validity of the permit).
Certain residence permit categories include additional information (French, Pdf, 151 Kb) in the 'observation' field.
Third-country nationals may reside in Luxembourg as au pairs for a limited period of maximum one year. The residence permit for a third-country national au pair is not renewable. Moreover, the young au pair cannot change the residence permit category after expiration of the residence permit for au pairs.
Loss, theft or damage to the residence permit
In case of loss, theft or deterioration of the residence permit, a specific procedure needs to be followed.
Online services and forms
Who to contact
General Department of immigration - Department for foreigners
-
Ministry of Home Affairs General Department of immigration - Department for foreigners
- Address:
-
26, route d'Arlon
L-1140
Luxembourg
Luxembourg
B.P. 752 L-2017 Luxembourg
- Phone:
-
(+352) 247-84040
from 9.00 to 12.00 and from 14.00 to 16.00
- Fax:
- (+352) 22 16 08
- Email address:
- immigration.public@mai.etat.lu
enrolment and issuing of biometric residence permits: only by appointment
Related procedures and links
Procedures
Links
Further information
-
Visa and immigration
on the website of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, Defence, Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade
-
List of countries whose citizens require a visa
on the website of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, Defence, Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade
-
Luxembourg diplomatic and consular missions
on the website of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, Defence, Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade
-
Time frame for processing requests and for issuing documents
Pdf • 363 Kb
-
Travel documents for non-EU nationals
on Your Europe
-
Listes des experts, traducteurs et interprètes assermentés
sur le site du ministère de la Justice
Legal references
-
Loi modifiée du 29 août 2008
portant sur la libre circulation des personnes et l'immigration
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Loi modifiée du 18 février 2013
sur l'accueil de jeunes au pair
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Règlement grand-ducal du 19 juin 2013
modifiant 1. le règlement grand-ducal modifié du 5 septembre 2008 portant exécution de certaines dispositions relatives aux formalités administratives prévues par la loi du 29 août 2008 sur la libre circulation des personnes et l'immigration; 2. le règlement grand-ducal modifié du 5 septembre 2008 fixant les conditions et modalités relatives à la délivrance d'une autorisation de séjour en tant que travailleur salarié
-
Règlement grand-ducal modifié du 5 septembre 2008
portant exécution de certaines dispositions relatives aux formalités administratives prévues par la loi du 29 août 2008 sur la libre circulation des personnes et l'immigration
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