Individual Training Leave in Luxembourg

1. Eligibility conditions

Who is entitled?

Three cumulative conditions must be met (Art. L.234-59):

• be normally employed at a workplace located on Luxembourg territory;
• be bound by an employment contract with a company or association legally established and active in the Grand Duchy;
• have at least 6 months' seniority with the employer at the time of the application.

Application procedure

The application is submitted to the Minister responsible for Vocational Training. The employer must be formally notified of the application.

If the employer gives a negative opinion, the leave may be deferred — not permanently refused — if the absence risks having a major detrimental impact on the operation of the business or on staff annual leave. The employer therefore does not have an absolute veto: they can delay the start of the leave but cannot prevent it permanently.

2. Eligible training

Eligible providers

Eligible training includes courses provided in Luxembourg or abroad by (Art. L.234-60):

• recognised public or private schools awarding recognised certificates;
• professional chambers, municipalities, ministries, public administrations or public establishments;
• foundations, natural persons or private associations individually approved by the Minister.

Excluded training

3. Duration and day calculation

Caps

Two caps apply simultaneously:

• 80 days over the entire career (Art. L.234-61);
• maximum 20 days per 2-year period, the period starting from the date of the first leave taken.

The leave may be split, with a minimum of one day at a time. For part-time employees, days are calculated proportionally to their working time.

Calculation formula

The number of training leave days generated by a training course is calculated in two steps:

1. Number of training hours ÷ 8 = equivalent working days
2. Result ÷ 3 = training leave days (rounded down to the nearest whole number)

4. Remuneration and funding

Treated as effective working time

Training leave is treated as a period of effective work. All social security and employment protection provisions remain applicable during this period (Art. L.234-62).

Compensatory allowance

The employee is entitled to a compensatory allowance equal to:

• the average daily wage, calculated according to Article L.233-14 of the Labour Code;
• capped at four times the social minimum wage for non-qualified employees.

Payment chain: employer then State

The allowance is paid by the employer to the employee, then the State reimburses the employer for:

• the allowance itself;
• the employer's share of the corresponding social security contributions.

5. Deferral by the employer

The employer cannot permanently refuse individual training leave, but may defer it if two conditions are met (Art. L.234-59):

• the absence risks having a major detrimental impact on the operation of the business;
• or the absence risks significantly disrupting staff annual leave.

This is a right to temporarily defer, not an absolute veto. The employer must justify the deferral decision. In the absence of a legitimate reason, the leave cannot be postponed.

6. Special cases

Progressive illness

Persons who need to undergo specific training to maintain their job or employability due to a progressive illness may benefit from additional days, regardless of the number of training hours involved. This derogatory regime is subject to:

• a favourable opinion from the competent advisory committee;
• a favourable opinion from the Medical Commission (Art. L.234-61).

Staff representatives

Staff representatives (délégués du personnel) benefit from a distinct training leave regime specifically for improving knowledge related to their mandate (Art. L.415-9). Durations vary by company size:

This leave is granted without loss of remuneration and follows its own rules distinct from standard individual training leave.