In order to address labor market shortages, Luxembourg’s ADEM employment agency has updated the list of shortage occupations. For occupations included in this list, employers will be exempt from the labor market test when applying for work authorization. The new list contains 22 occupations compared to 24 in the previous list.
On Monday, 31 March 2025, the ADEM employment agency announced the publication of Luxembourg’s 2025 shortage occupation list. This list has been published in the Official Journal (Journal Officiel du Grand-Duché de Luxembourg) and is also available on the ADEM website.
This list identifies the most in-demand jobs for which very few or no suitable candidates are available through ADEM. Luxembourg is currently experiencing a significant shortage of qualified professionals in 22 specific job sectors (compared to 24 last year), including finance, banking, industrial and engineering, healthcare and social work, legal and compliance, IT, transport, automotive and business and management.
To ensure the shortage occupation list accurately reflects labor market needs, it is essential for employers to declare all vacant positions to ADEM. This list also serves to analyze the qualifications and skills required by employers and helps organize targeted training courses for jobseekers in the identified professions.
Employers can apply for a foreign workforce (main-d’œuvre étrangère) certificate either when declaring a vacant position to ADEM or at any time during the validity period of the job posting. If the declared position corresponds to a profession on the shortage occupation list, ADEM will issue the certificate within five working days following acknowledgment of receipt.
For jobs not on the shortage occupation list, the market test will still apply but with reduced processing times. ADEM will have seven working days to verify whether suitable jobseekers are available for the declared position. If no candidates are found, the certificate will be issued within the next five working days. If ADEM identifies potential candidates, they will have an additional 15 working days to propose them to the employer.
Employers recruiting third-country nationals should review the updated shortage occupation list. If a job is listed, hiring may be facilitated through exemption from the labor market test and potential eligibility for an EU Blue Card.
For a deeper discussion on the above, please reach out to your Vialto Partners point of contact, or alternatively:
Maud Aupetit
Senior Manager
Rebecca Serval
Senior Associate
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