Whenever you are planning a stay abroad:

• find out ahead of time which travel documents are required to enter your destination country; and
• make sure that these documents are still valid.

If your identity card or passport is about to expire or has expired, apply for a new one as soon as possible. With MyGuichet.lu, you can easily pay for your new identity documents online — up to 6 months before the application.

These online services are available without authentication; in other words, they can be carried out without first logging in, for example with a LuxTrust product.

MyGuichet.lu not only allows you to make your payment online, you can also book an appointment at the Guichet.lu reception desk to apply for and collect your new identity card. This online service is also available without the need for authentication.

You can travel with a valid national identity card or passport:

• within the European Union;
• in a country of the European Economic Area (EEA) (namely Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway);
• Switzerland; and
• the United Kingdom.

For travel outside the EU, a valid passport and where applicable, a visa, will be required.

To avoid any setbacks, find out more and consult the website of the embassy of the country you are about to visit.

Register your stay abroad with the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, Defence, Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade to facilitate access to consular assistance in the event of an emergency, such as an accident or the need for repatriation. This also allows the local authorities to intervene quickly on your behalf.

With the 'Lëtzebuerger am Ausland' procedure on MyGuichet.lu, your stay can be declared in no time. It is available with or without prior authentication.

Remember to always bring your European Health Insurance Card with you in order to be entitled to health care during your stay in one of the countries of the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area (EEA), Switzerland or the United Kingdom. With this card you are entitled to benefit from health care under the same conditions and at the same rate as the people insured in these countries.

You should also consider taking out additional travel insurance to cover emergency medical expenses and repatriation, especially if you are travelling outside the EU.

It can take up to 3 weeks to send the card. In the event of a late application, the card can be replaced by a provisional certificate which:

• is valid for 3 months;
• can be requested online via MyGuichet.lu, with or without authentication.

In addition, if you are staying in a country with which Luxembourg has a bilateral agreement, you must submit a certificate to the social security institution of the place of your stay. This certificate certifies that you are entitled to the necessary benefits in kind during your stay.

The request for a certificate can be made any time online on MyGuichet.lu, with or without authentication.

When you travel, you can be faced with transport problems (such as flight cancellations or train delays). You have traveller rights and depending on the circumstances, you may be entitled to compensation, re-routing or assistance. Ideally, you should find out beforehand what to do and who to contact in the event of a problem.

If you're traveling by plane, the air passenger rights simulator may also be helpful.

Should your rights not be respected, you can lodge a complaint with the European Consumer Centre Luxembourg.

If the incident falls within the competence of the Luxembourg Consumer Protection Directorate, you may, under certain conditions, lodge a complaint online via MyGuichet.lu, with or without prior authentication.

You can also visit official EU websites such as 'Your Europe', where you will find detailed guides on how to assert your rights in various travel situations.

Find out about customs restrictions if you want to bring back souvenirs from your trip. Be particularly careful with food, alcohol and tobacco.

As part of the fight against money laundering and the financing of terrorism, be sure to declare any transport of cash of EUR 10,000 or more to Luxembourg customs.

To protect your home while you are away, the Grand Ducal Police offers a home surveillance service. You must apply in advance to your local police station. You can easily make this request online via the Grand Ducal Police's website.