Application for sporting leave

Residents

Last updated more than 5 years ago

Sporting leave is designed to allow citizens to take part in international sports competitions in Luxembourg and abroad. Granted in a limited number of cases, this type of leave is intended for people active in elite sports (high-level sportspeople, managers, judges, referees, etc.) who also have a professional activity. Sporting leave is added to the annual leave as determined by the law or a special agreement.

Who is concerned

Sporting leave is granted to elite sportspeople, management personnel, judges and referees so that they may participate in:

competitions in the official programme of the Summer and Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, and demonstration programmes authorised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC);
international competitions, including qualification and final phases;
training camps defined by the Luxembourg Olympic and Sporting Committee (Comité olympique et sportif luxembourgeois - COSL) or by their federation.

For technical and administrative managers, sporting leave is granted only in cases involving world- or European-level events.

official meetings of international sporting federations, the Olympic movement, intergovernmental sporting bodies and sporting non-governmental organisations (NGOs);
organisation of official international sporting events in Luxembourg;
international advanced training courses.

Beneficiaries of sporting leave may work either in the public or private sector, or be self-employed.

Judges and referees may also apply for sporting leave to participate in international training for higher-level degree programmes.

Prerequisites

In order to be granted sporting leave, elite sportspeople, judges or referees must:

be affiliated, as non-professionals, with an approved national federation;
be qualified to represent Luxembourg in the aforementioned international competitions;
have their application approved by the COSL.

Managers must be volunteers in the COSL or an approved federation.

How to proceed

Procedures for obtaining sporting leave

Applications for sporting leave must be made in writing to the Ministry of Sport (Ministère des Sports) by the COSL or by the competent national federation. The request for leave must be made at least 1 month prior to the date of the event to which it pertains.

A copy of the application must be sent to the concerned party's employer within the same timeframe, to allow them to make their remarks to the Ministry of Sport.

The request must state the applicant's marital- and professional status, as well as the purpose for which the leave is requested.

In addition, for management personnel, this application must specify the technical or administrative functions and outline the need for their services in the interest of one or more elite sportspeople.

In their request, managers must specify their administrative or technical roles within the requesting organisation.

Once the application has been made, the Ministry of Sport will approve or deny the sporting leave, based on the decision of the special commission of the High Council for Sports (Conseil supérieur des sports), and, if applicable, will set its duration.

The concerned party's employer may object to the sporting leave granted for participation in a training camp if the absence of the interested party could be harmful to the running of the company. There must be justifiable reasons for this objection, which must be sent in writing in triplicate: to the interested party, to the requesting organisation, and to the Ministry of Sport. The Ministry will quickly make a ruling.

The granting of the sporting leave is final if the employer's reasoned objection has not been filed within 8 days of the notice of the request for leave.

The number of periods of sporting leave granted is limited:

for sportspeople: to the maximum number of commitments (including substitutes) to which the COSL or the concerned national federation is entitled. This limit is set by the regulations of the International Olympic Committee or by the competent international federation;
for managerial staff:
- to 4 persons for a group of 10 or fewer sportspeople;
- to 5 people for a group of 11 or more sportspeople.

There may be exceptions to these limits when sportspeople from several different disciplines take part in the Olympic Games or the Paralympic games.

In principle, sporting leave is limited to 12 work days per year per beneficiary. It may, however, be extended on a case-by-case basis at the suggestion of the Ministry, in the following cases:

for members of a special coaching team for national elite sportspeople authorised by the State and the COSL;
for members of national elite sports teams and the elite sportspeople in question preparing for the Olympic or Paralympic Games;
for technical directors and sportspeople's support personnel;
for referees requested by international sporting federations to referee in official international competitions or to participate in advanced training programmes.

On the other hand, such leave for managers is limited to 50 work days per year and per organisation.

Impact of sporting leave on working relationships

Sporting leave is treated as a period of actual work. Moreover, during the period of sporting leave, legal provisions regarding protection against dismissal and social security still apply.

Sporting leave is added to the number of days of annual leave. It may not be subtracted from annual leave. In principle and unless with the employer’s approval, sporting leave cannot be added onto annual leave when this would result in a continuous absence exceeding the total number of days of paid annual leave due.

Sporting leave is not required to be taken all at once. It may be split up.

During the sporting leave, the beneficiary will be paid:

if the leave is granted, private-sector employees are entitled, for each day of leave, to compensatory benefit equal to the average daily salary, paid by the employer. This benefit must not exceed 4 times the social minimum wage for unskilled workers;
self-employed or freelance professionals also have the right to financial compensation paid directly by the State;
sportspeople employed in the public sector will continue to receive their pay and thus are not affected by the compensatory benefit in the case of loss of salary. Persons paid by the State are considered public-sector employees.