Before you start

A Luxembourg social security number and tax card (fiche de retenue d'impôt)
LuxTrust for MyGuichet and electronic filing
Your commune registration, which determines the tax office handling you

Step-by-step

1
Get your tax card
The fiche de retenue d'impôt tells your employer which class and which deductions to apply. It follows from your registration; check it is correct rather than assuming.
OnlineWho: You
2
Confirm your tax class
Class 1 for single people, 1a for single parents and taxpayers over 65, class 2 for married couples and civil partners. Non-resident married couples are treated differently from resident ones — check which applies before assuming class 2.
OnlineWho: You
3
Check whether the impatriate regime applies to you
You need a fixed annual salary of at least €75,000 and must not have been taxed in Luxembourg, nor lived within 150 km of the border, in the five preceding tax years. Your employer files the list of beneficiaries by 31 January each year.
Via employerWho: You and your employerEmployer list due 31 January
4
Account for the solidarity surcharge
7% of the tax due, rising to 9% above €150,000 in classes 1 and 1a or €300,000 in class 2. It sits on top of the headline rate, so the effective top marginal rate is around 45.8%.
Via employerWho: Your employer
5
File the annual return where required
Many employees on a single income are not obliged to file, but filing is often advantageous — it is how you recover deductions. Returns go to the Administration des contributions directes.
OnlineWho: You

Documents you’ll need

Tax card (fiche de retenue d'impôt)
Social security number
LuxTrust for electronic filing
Employment contract and payslips
Evidence for the impatriate regime, where it applies

Things most newcomers don’t know

The impatriate regime was replaced, not amended, with effect from 2025.

The Law of 20 December 2024 scrapped the old exemption on relocation allowances and cost-of-living premiums and replaced it with a straight 50% exemption of gross annual remuneration, capped at €400,000 — a maximum exemption of €200,000. Anything describing an 'impatriation premium' is describing the superseded rules, and the new version is simpler and generally more generous.

Source: Guichet.lu — tax regime for highly skilled and qualified workers (impatriates)

The 150 km rule is what disqualifies most candidates who assume they qualify.

You must not have lived within 150 kilometres of the Luxembourg border in the five tax years before starting. Luxembourg is tiny: Metz, Trier, Arlon, Saarbrücken and most of the commuter belt are all inside that radius. Hiring the obvious local candidate is precisely what the rule excludes, and recruiters routinely promise the regime to people it cannot cover.

Source: Guichet.lu — impatriate regime conditions

The employer's 31 January filing is a real point of failure.

At the start of each year the employer must send the competent tax office a list of employees benefiting from the regime. If payroll does not file it, the benefit for that year is at risk — and you will not be told. Ask payroll to confirm the filing rather than assuming a large employer has it handled.

Source: Guichet.lu — impatriate regime employer obligations

The solidarity surcharge is why the '42% top rate' understates it.

The surcharge is 7% of the tax due, or 9% above €150,000 in classes 1 and 1a. On the top band that takes the effective marginal rate to roughly 45.8%. Comparisons between a Luxembourg offer and one elsewhere that use the 42% headline are out by several points at the level where the decision usually matters.

Source: PwC — Luxembourg individual taxes on personal income

Common mistakes to avoid

Relying on descriptions of the old impatriation-premium regime, replaced from 2025.
Assuming you qualify for the impatriate regime while living inside the 150 km radius.
Not confirming your employer filed the 31 January beneficiary list.
Comparing offers on the 42% headline rate and ignoring the solidarity surcharge.
Assuming class 2 applies automatically when married — the treatment differs for non-residents.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.

Make it your personal checklist

Globe Quest turns this into a tracked, AI-personalized plan for Luxembourg City — timed to your move date, with reminders so nothing slips. Free to start.