Geographic mobility support for unemployed and redeployed workers

Residents

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Last updated more than 5 years ago

If job seekers live too far away from their future workplace, they can apply for geographic mobility support. This allowance covers travel expenses and may be granted under certain conditions to unemployed job seekers accepting a job which is more than 15 km away from their usual place of residence.

This geographic mobility support takes the form of a flat-rate monthly allowance for travel expenses.

Who is concerned

Geographic mobility support can be claimed by resident employees who have been redeployed to a job in Luxembourg which is more than 15 km from their place of residence.

Prerequisites

The travel expenses allowance may be granted provided that the recipient:

is a Luxembourg resident;
is an unemployed job seeker registered with the National Employment Agency (Agence pour le développement de l'emploi - ADEM) for at least 3 months (whether or not the job seeker receives unemployment benefit does not affect entitlement to geographic mobility support. Job seekers only have to be registered with the ADEM to be eligible to receive it);
is an employee who has been redeployed to a permanent job in Luxembourg listed with the ADEM—ADEM must be informed of the vacant position, and only the new job must be in Luxembourg. The place of work prior to unemployment does not affect entitlement to geographic mobility support);
provided that the new job is more than 15 km away from the employee's place of residence;
provided that the hourly wage is less than three times the hourly social minimum wage for an unskilled worker aged 18 or under with no dependants.

How to proceed

Applying for geographic mobility support

Job seekers wishing to apply for geographic mobility support must fill in the relevant form on the ADEM website.

An employment contract should be attached to the completed form, which should be returned to the ADEM.

The application must be submitted, on pain of ineligibility, within 4 months of the job offer being taken up.

Amount of geographic mobility support

The geographic mobility support amount increases in proportion to the distance between the employee's home and place of work.

Monthly allowance for geographic mobility support
Kilometres travelled	Monthly allowance
between 16 and 20 km	EUR 61.97
between 21 and 30 km	EUR 74.37
between 31 and 40 km	EUR 99.16
between 41 and 50 km	EUR 123.95
over 50 km	EUR 136.34

If the employee moves home during the period when they are in receipt of the allowance, and if they move closer than 16 km from their place of work, they lose their entitlement to geographic mobility support. If, on the other hand, their new address is so far away from their workplace that it falls within a higher compensation bracket, they will then be entitled to the corresponding increased allowance.

Means of payment

Entitlement to payment:

of the first tranche of the allowance is acquired after the employee has been in the job for 4 months;
of the second tranche of the allowance is acquired after the employee has been in the job for 8 months;
of the third tranche of the allowance is acquired after the employee has been in the job for 12 months;
of the fourth tranche of the allowance is acquired after the employee has been in the job for 15 months;
of the fifth tranche of the allowance is acquired after the employee has been in the job for 18 months;

And so, for example, if the allowance is granted for a period of 18 months, the employee will be entitled to 18 times the monthly flat-rate allowance, payable in 5 instalments.

After being in the job for 4 months, an employee living 16 km away from their workplace will receive 4 X EUR 61.97, i.e. EUR 247.88. They will then receive this same amount 4 months later, 8 months later and 12 months later. Finally, the last payment will be for the last two of the 18 months.

Period of benefit entitlement

The travel expenses allowance is granted for a maximum of 18 months.

An employee who resigns without extraordinary, valid and compelling reasons within 12 months of being hired, must repay the allowance to the Employment fund (Fonds pour l'emploi).

Characteristics of new employment contracts giving rise to eligibility for geographic mobility support

The new employment contract must be one of the following:

a full-time permanent employment contract;
a part-time permanent employment contract for at least 16 hours of work per week for the same employer;
a fixed-term employment contract for at least 18 months and for at least 16 hours of work per week for the same employer;
replacement for parental leave.