Working for the Luxembourg government: nationality, the three languages and the 2026 rules

Who can join Luxembourg's public service, the three administrative languages and the new B2/B1/B1 rule from September 2026, the language test, exemptions, and how recruitment works now.

Updated October 3, 2026 · 6 min read

Luxembourg's State, its communes and public bodies are among the country's biggest employers — and since 15 September 2026 the rules for getting in have changed. A recruitment reform adopted by the Chamber of Deputies on 8 July 2026 rebuilt the aptitude exam and set new language levels for the three administrative languages (government press release). This guide explains who can apply, which languages you need and how recruitment now works.

Who can work for the Luxembourg government?

Until 1999 only Luxembourgers could join the public service; in December 2009 the reformed civil-service statute opened it generally to EU citizens (GovJobs). Today a fonctionnaire must be a national of an EU Member State, and Luxembourgish nationality is required only for posts involving public authority (fonction-publique.public.lu) — the judiciary, the police, the army and certain ministry posts, listed in a Grand-Ducal regulation of 12 May 2010.

• EU citizens qualify wherever they live — cross-border workers from France, Belgium and Germany included.
• Non-EU citizens can be hired as State employees only “en cas de nécessité du service”, mainly in economic or consular posts abroad and in education (GovJobs).
• About 9% of public-service staff are not Luxembourg nationals (31 December 2023) — many in language teaching, international schools, IT, medical posts, STATEC and civil aviation.

The language requirement: Luxembourgish, French and German

Every recruit — fonctionnaire, employé or salarié — must know the three administrative languages (fonction-publique.public.lu). The law of 16 July 2026, in force since 15 September 2026, sets the levels on the European CEFR scale (fonction-publique.public.lu):

You decide which language is tested at which level — a francophone can take French at B2 and Luxembourgish and German at B1, for example. The levels apply to the A, B and C career groups; a ministry can still test a higher level when a specific job needs it (Chamber of Deputies).

How the language test works

• For each language: a computer-based speaking test (a short presentation, describing a picture, giving an opinion) and a combined listening and reading test of about 40 minutes (fonction-publique.public.lu).
• It is run by the CGPO, in person in Luxembourg City or remotely (CGPO). You don't register yourself: the recruiting administration does, once your application has been retained — the language check is the last step of recruitment.
• A pass is valid for 2 years; after a fail you wait 6 months.

Who is exempt

You don't need to take the test for a language if (fonction-publique.public.lu):

• your required diploma comes from a French- or German-speaking country and was taught mainly in that language;
• you studied French or German for at least 7 years in Luxembourg public schools (or private schools following the Luxembourg curriculum);
• you had at least 6 years of Luxembourgish in a Luxembourg public primary school;
• you hold a CEFR certificate at the required level.

GovJobs also says perfect trilingualism is “not an absolute criterion” for every job: IT roles (developers, data and business analysts, project managers) often hire without perfect mastery of all three, and international schools may not require perfect German and Luxembourgish from French- or English-speaking teachers. Jobs with direct public contact usually need near-perfect mastery of all three, including written Luxembourgish (GovJobs).

How recruitment works since September 2026

1. Find a post on [GovJobs](https://govjobs.public.lu) and apply through MyGuichet.lu (fonction-publique.public.lu).
2. Take the General Aptitude Test (EAG) — computer-based tests of reasoning, planning and situational judgement. Since the reform you take it after applying for a specific post, on any working day; a pass is valid for 12 months, with two attempts before a one-year wait (GovJobs, reform).
3. A special test set by the recruiting ministry or administration.
4. The language check, if your application is retained.
5. The recruitment decision, which also decides whether you become a fonctionnaire or an employé.

Your career group follows your diploma: A1 a master's, A2 a bachelor's, B1 a secondary-school leaving diploma or technician diploma, C1 five years of secondary school or a DAP (GovJobs). A new fonctionnaire serves a 2-year probation (stage) with training at INAP (fonction-publique.public.lu).

Communes recruit through their own admissibility exam run by the Ministry of Home Affairs: you must be an EU national to sit it, and the three languages are needed only when you are hired. A pass is valid for 5 years (GovJobs).

How to get your languages to B1 and B2

• Pick your strongest language as the B2 one. For most applicants that is French or German; Luxembourgish can then be one of the two B1s.
• Train speaking out loud: the test asks for a short presentation, a picture description and an opinion — the same skills as the Sproochentest, one level up for listening.
• Build vocabulary every day in small doses — at B1 and B2 it is mostly words you can recall without searching.
• Use the free official dictionary [LOD](https://lod.lu) for Luxembourgish spelling and pronunciation.