Exercising the right to petition the Chamber of Deputies
Last update
A petition is a request filed by an individual with the Chamber of Deputies for the purpose of obtaining a decision in favour of a collective interest they are defending.
The right to petition is one of the fundamental rights of all citizens. It is stated in the Luxembourg Constitution.
There are 2 types of petitions:
- ordinary petitions: their aim is to submit a request to the Chamber of Deputies or to draw its attention to an issue in order to encourage it to take action;
- public petitions: their purpose is to organise a public debate on a specific issue before the Chamber of Deputies. They are:
- displayed publicly on the petitions website;
- intended to collect signatures in support of the demand made.
The Chamber of Deputies will not accept petitions that concern individual interests.
Who is concerned
A petition can be submitted and/or signed by anyone who:
- is a resident or not;
- is at least 15 years old;
- is listed in the National Registry of Natural Persons (RNPP): i.e. has a 13-digit national identification number (matricule).
The Chamber of Deputies is authorised to verify the identity of the signatories and the age requirement in the RNPP.
Prerequisites
Language in which a petition must be written
Petitions must be written in at least one of Luxembourg's official languages, namely Luxembourgish, German or French.
For public petitions, an English translation is allowed.
Eligibility criteria for petitions
Petitions must meet the following eligibility criteria:
- not relate to individual interests;
- respect ethical principles; contain no false information or content of a violent, insulting, racist, homophobic, etc. nature;
- not concern an issue for which a petition has already been filed within the last 12 months.
Public petitions must be of general interest: i.e. have a purpose that serves all citizens.
How to proceed
Submitting a petition
You can submit your (ordinary or public) petition:
- online on the petitions website (see under 'Online services and forms') with a recognised electronic authentication method (LuxTrust product, eID card, eIDAS or GouvID); or
- via a paper form:
- to be submitted in person by prior appointment at the Chamber of Deputies and on presentation of your identity document; or
- to be sent by post to:
Président de la Chambre des Députés
23, rue du Marché-aux-Herbes
L-1728 Luxembourg
In this case, your signature must be legalised.
You must:
- sign the petition (except in the case of online submission); and
- clearly state your surname, first name, postal address and national identification number.
Processing an ordinary petition
The ordinary petition is examined by the Committee on Petitions, which can:
- request a position statement from the government;
- forward the petition to another committee;
- request the opinion of another committee;
- hear the petitioner at one of their meetings, with or without the presence of an expert;
- conduct field visits.
You will be informed by post:
- of the procedures of the Committee on Petitions;
- of the response to your request;
- of the government's position. You may respond to the above within 60 days. Past this deadline, the petition is closed.
The government is under no obligation to respond.
Please note: ordinary petitions are not aimed at collecting signatures or provoking a public debate.
Public petitions
Admissibility of the request
The Committee on Petitions will examine the request. If it meets all requirements, the Committee on Petitions issues a positive opinion.
You will be informed of the decision of the Committee on Petitions:
- either by post in the event of a favourable or unfavourable decision;
- or by email if there is a request to reformulate or put on hold (if additional information is needed) your petition.
If the petition does not meet the eligibility criteria, the request is rejected.
If a request for reformulation is made, you must submit a reformulated version within 30 days. Failing this, your request will be closed.
Appeals
In the event of an unfavourable decision, you can contest this decision by means of a non-contentious appeal to be sent to:
- the president of the Chamber of Deputies;
- by post;
- within 30 days of the unfavourable decision.
Publication of public petitions
Admissible public petitions are published together with your full name on the petitions website.
You can request that the public petition be anonymised one year after its publication. Your request can be sent:
- by post to the president of the Chamber of Deputies; or
- by email to the Committee on Petitions.
Withdrawal of a public petition
You can request the withdrawal of your public petition:
- before its publication;
- after its publication by means of a reasoned request to be sent by post to the president of the Chamber of Deputies.
The Committee on Petitions may, in exceptional circumstances, withdraw a petition in the public interest. In this case, you can lodge a non-contentious appeal (see above under 'Appeals' for the procedure to follow).
Signing a public petition
Petitions can be signed for 42 days after publication:
- online on the petitions website by signing with a recognised electronic authentication method (LuxTrust product, eID card, eIDAS or GouvID);
- on a paper form provided by the Chamber of Deputies.
Each signature includes the surname and first name of the signatory, their postal address and their national identification number.
Full names are not published, unless otherwise specified by the signatory.
Signatures in paper format are not published.
Any one person may only sign a petition once. All double signatures are removed.
Public debate
As soon as the public petition has gathered 5,500 signatures, a public debate is held in the presence of:
- the petitioner and a maximum of 5 accompanying persons;
- the presidents of the Chamber of Deputies and the Committee on Petitions or their replacements;
- members of the Committee on Petitions and the parliamentary committees concerned;
- the competent minister.
You can waive the right to a public debate.
The debate is broadcast live on Chamber TV and on the website of the Chamber of Deputies. The debate is open to the public.
If the threshold of 5,500 signatures is not reached, you can submit a request for reclassification as an ordinary petition within 30 days.
Public access to pending petitions
Both ordinary and public petitions can be consulted on the petitions website.
A list of past and current petitions can be found there.
Online services and forms
Who to contact
-
Chamber of Deputies of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg
- Address:
- 19, rue du Marché-aux-Herbes L-1728 Luxembourg Luxembourg
- Phone:
- (+352) 466 966 1
- Fax:
- (+352) 220 230
- Email address:
- petition@chd.lu
- Website:
- http://www.chd.lu/wps/portal/public
Related procedures and links
Procedures
Links
Further information
-
Submitting a petition
on the petition website of the Chamber of Deputies
-
Petitions
on the petition website of the Chamber of Deputies
-
Eng Petitioun erareechen
um Petitiounssite vun der Chamber
-
D’Petitiounen
um Petitiounssite vun der Chamber
Legal references
- Constitution luxembourgeoise
- Règlement de la Chambre des Députés
-
Modification du 4 mars 2025 du Règlement de la Chambre des Députés
relative au Titre V, Chapitre 11 "Des pétitions"
