In order to protect the environment and the population's health, the transfer of sealed radioactive sources between Member States is subject to a declaration prior to their dispatch. If the destination country of the sealed radioactive sources is:

• Luxembourg, the recipient of the shipment must make the declaration to the Radiation Protection Division (Division de la Radioprotection);
  
• another Member State and the shipment originated from Luxembourg, the declaration must be made by the recipient to the competent authorities of their country and returned to the holder in Luxembourg before the transfer of the sealed sources can take place.

Who is concerned

All recipients of sealed sources based in Luxembourg must first inform the Radiation Protection Division of the National Health Directorate of the terms of the transfer.

The transfer declaration of sealed sources and other relevant sources between Member States must be made when the quantities and concentration levels exceed the levels determined for class IV establishments.

Prerequisites

In order to be able to transfer sealed radioactive sources, the holder and the recipient must have an authorisation for the acquisition, possession or use of radioactive sources.

In addition, the carrier must have an authorisation to transport radioactive substances.  

The establishment must ensure, before a transfer takes place, that the recipient has the required authorisation issued by the competent authority of the destination country with respect to the import and possession of each high activity sealed source in question.

Deadlines

The recipient of the sources must send the declaration to the Radiation Protection Division (Division de la Radioprotection) before the transfer.

How to proceed

Submission of the declaration

The Luxembourg recipient of sealed sources must send a transfer declaration of sealed sources to the Radiation Protection Division:

• by post; or
• by email to secretariat.radioprotection@ms.etat.lu.

They must complete the sections concerning them (1 to 5) and indicate information on the transfer(s), such as:

• the likely transfer date if the declaration concerns a single transfer;
• the destination (located in Luxembourg);
• the holder of the sources in the country of dispatch (the holder can be different from the owner of the source);
• the description of the source and the purpose of the transfer;
• the licence or authorisation allowing the recipient to receive the sealed source.

Confirmation and use

The Radiation Protection Division affixes a stamp on the declaration to confirm that they have been notified, and returns the declaration to the recipient establishment.

The recipient then has to forward the form to the holder of the sealed sources in the country of dispatch before the latter can proceed with the transfer.

Validity period

The transfer declaration may cover a single or multiple transfers if:

• the sealed sources of the different transfers have the same physical and chemical characteristics;
• the sealed sources of the different transfers do not exceed the activity levels indicated in the declaration;
• the planned transfers take place between the same holder and the same recipient, and the same competent authorities intervene.

In the case of a one-time transfer, the declaration will only be valid once. However, in the case of multiple transfers, the transfer declaration shall be valid for a maximum period of 3 years from the date on which the competent authority affixed its stamp.

Additional obligations

Establishments must keep a record of the radiation sources transferred under their responsibility. This registry must at least document: the radionuclides concerned, their activity at the time of manufacture, the type of source and the location of the sources.

Establishments transferring high activity sealed sources will be required to maintain tracking sheets that provide detailed precise information in accordance with the legislation.

In addition to the declaration of sealed sources, holders of sealed sources and other radioactive substances must provide the competent authorities of the recipient Member State with a complete list of all transfers made during a given calendar quarter within 21 days of the end of each quarter.

The list must contain:

• the names and addresses of the recipients;
• the total activity per radionuclide delivered to each recipient and the number of deliveries;
• the largest quantity of each radionuclide delivered at one time to each recipient, and;
• the type of substance.

The establishment must comply with the rules on the identification and labelling of sealed sources.

In particular, the recipient must comply with national requirements relating to the safe storage, use and disposal of radioactive sources.

Sanctions

Any person transferring sealed radioactive sources without prior authorisation may be subject to criminal prosecution.

Forms / Online services

Who to contact