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German, Belgian, or French cross-border workers may be entitled to family benefits in both their country of residence and their country of employment, subject to certain conditions. Only so-called “exportable” family benefits can be paid to cross-border workers by their country of employment. Family allowances are one such example.
Which benefits are available to cross-border workers?
In Luxembourg, the main exportable benefits are family allowances, parental leave, the back-to-school allowance, the prenatal allowance and the birth allowance.
The prenatal and birth allowances are reserved for mothers and cannot be claimed based on a spouse’s employment in Luxembourg. They also cannot be combined with benefits from another country, meaning that no differential payment will be made.
The postnatal allowance is the only birth-related allowance a father working in Luxembourg can claim. Like the other two birth allowances, it is also subject to anti-overlapping rules.
How do you know which country pays the allowance?
If the cross-border worker is raising their children alone, or if their spouse works in Luxembourg or is not professionally active, Luxembourg has priority.
If the cross-border worker’s spouse (or member of the household) works in the country of residence or receives unemployment benefits there, the country responsible for paying the family allowances will, first and foremost, be the country of residence.
If the benefits provided by the country with primary responsibility are lower than those provided by the second country, the latter will pay the worker a differential payment. In Luxembourg, this payment is made twice a year.
How does the differential payment work?
Let’s take an example where country A offers €160 and country B offers €200.
Country A is primarily responsible and therefore pays the worker €160. Country B will then pay a differential payment of €200 − €160 = €40.
In the opposite situation, where country B is primarily responsible, it will pay €200 and country A will not pay anything.
Documents required to receive Luxembourgish family allowances
To receive family allowances from Luxembourg as a non-resident, several documents and pieces of information must be provided:
- The family allowance application form from the Caisse pour l’avenir des enfants (CAE);
- A certificate confirming payment or non-payment from the competent authority in the country of residence (E411 form);
- A certificate of residence or household composition (E401 form);
- An extract from the child’s birth certificate;
- Bank account details (RIB).
You must first apply for benefits in your country of residence to obtain a certificate confirming payment or non-payment and to determine which country is responsible for making the payment.
Who receives the allowance?
The family allowance is paid to one person in the household, designated by the parents. At the parents’ request, it can also be paid into the minor child's account.
In the event of separation, the allowance is paid to the parent with whom the child has their legal residence. If parental authority is shared and the child alternates between the parents’ homes, the parents may decide who receives the allowance.
If the parents cannot agree, the CAE determines the beneficiary based on the information available to it and in the child's best interests.
You can find all the information about family allowances for cross-border workers on the CAE website: https://cae.public.lu/en/allocations/frontalier/prestations.html
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