Luxembourg - Long-term care

This chapter provides information on what you need to know about claiming for long-term care.

If you are affiliated to the Luxembourg health insurance system, you may benefit from nursing care cover, even if you live in another country.

In what situation can I claim?

Long-term care in the home or in an institution is covered by nursing care insurance.

The aim of nursing care insurance cover is to compensate for expenses incurred by care and assistance provided by another person in order to carry out basic day-to-day tasks (personal hygiene, nutrition, mobility, etc.).

A person is deemed to be dependent on nursing care if, following a physical, mental or psychological illness or disability, they have significant and regular needs for assistance from another person in order to carry out basic day-to-day tasks.

The benefits provided for nursing care insurance coverage are not subject to any conditions of resources.

What conditions do I need to meet?

Any person covered by Luxembourg health insurance is also covered by nursing care insurance.

The concept of assistance requirements from another person assumes the following three conditions:

the state of health of the person requiring assistance fully or partially to carry out basic day-to-day tasks in terms of personal hygiene, excretion, nutrition, getting dressed and mobility;
the requirement for assistance continues for a minimum period of six months, or is irreversible;
the weekly assistance requirement represents at least 3.5 hours.

What am I entitled to and how can I claim?

Nursing care insurance covers the assistance and care of the dependent person, living in their own home or in an institution. It covers assistance and care which is not covered by health insurance. In the event of care in the home, the assistance and care may be provided to a dependent person by an assistance and care network body, by a specialist day-care centre or by a friend or relative of the affected person ("carer").

Depending on these needs, the applicant is allocated one of 15 weekly assistance and care need levels. Each level corresponds to a period of time in minutes. The level allocated covers the basic daily tasks, according to the dependent persons situation and their individual needs.

To benefit from dependency coverage, a claim must be made to the National Health Fund (CNS) using a set form. This claim will then be passed on to the Administration for assessing and monitoring nursing care insurance (Administration d’évaluation et de contrôle de l’assurance dépendance, AEC). This claim must be accompanied by a report drawn up by an attending doctor.

Benefits in kind

In the event of support at home, nursing care insurance covers:

basic day-to-day tasks;
help with housework;
support activities;
pension contributions for carers.

Nursing care insurance directly covers costs relating to the assistance and care provided by professionals. Nursing care insurance pays a lump sum for products such as mattress protection, adult nappies, etc. It can also contribute to costs incurred by adapting accommodation or the purchase of devices for increasing the independence of the person requiring care (specialist bed, guide dog, wheelchair).

If the person requiring care lives in sheltered accommodation, the insurance covers:

basic day-to-day tasks;
products necessary for assistance and care;
certain devices (exceptionally).

Cash benefits

Nursing care insurance provides for the conversion of part of the benefits in kind into cash, which will enable the person requiring care to pay the person providing assistance.

Combined benefits

The person requiring care may use assistance both from a relative and a specialist service.

Jargon busters

National Health Fund (Caisse Nationale de Santé - CNS): Health insurance fund which is also the care insurance management agency. Its decisions are based on the opinion of the CEO.
Administration for assessing and monitoring nursing care insurance (Administration d’évaluation et de contrôle de l’assurance dépendance, AEC): Public service which issues an opinion on the state of dependence of an insured and determines the need of help for dependent persons.
Carer: somebody close to the person requiring care and who looks after this latter. This can be a family member, a friend or a neighbour, etc. The person requiring care may also hire somebody specifically to provide assistance. This employed person should be declared to the Centre Commun de la Sécurité Sociale (CCSS) through a simplified procedure. Upon request from the dependent person, the nursing care insurance covers the pension contributions for this carer.
Network of assistance and care: network made up of professionals who provide all the assistance and care to dependent persons that they may require to perform basic day-to-day tasks.
Sheltered accommodation: establishments providing accommodation for persons requiring care: care centres, homes for the elderly, hospitals, centres for disabled people.

Forms you may need to fill in

The nursing care benefits claim form can be downloaded from the website of the Luxembourg State administrative guide.

Know your rights

The link below provides a legal definition of your rights. It is not a European Commission website, nor does it represent the views of the Commission: