Who runs local government in Luxembourg?
Luxembourg has a single tier of local government: 100 communes, each with an elected council. The mayor (bourgmestre) and aldermen are chosen by the council majority but formally appointed by the Grand Duke or the Minister for Home Affairs. There is no regional tier.
Grand Duchy of Luxembourg · Unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy · Western Europe
The levels of government below the nation
| Level | How it is chosen | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Communes (100) | Communal council elected for six years (last June 2023); bourgmestre and aldermen (échevins) appointed by the Grand Duke (for towns) or the minister (others) from the councillors | Primary schools, local planning, water, waste, social welfare offices, civil status, local roads. |
Three questions about local power in Luxembourg
Are local leaders elected?
Councils are elected (proportional lists in bigger communes, majority vote in smaller ones). Mayors and aldermen are formally appointed but come from the council majority.
Which laws set up local government?
The Constitution (revised in 2023) and the 1988 Communal Law set out the communes. Advisory committees on integration are statutory; associations are informal.
Who are local leaders accountable to?
Voters; the Minister for Home Affairs supervises legality and must approve some decisions, such as budgets; administrative courts.
Traditional and customary authority
No customary authority. The Catholic Church's former parish-council role was ended by 2016 laws that separated church and state finances, and church buildings were transferred to a church fund or communes.
Community and neighbourhood power
Communes must have advisory committees (for example on integration of foreign residents, since nearly half the population is non-Luxembourgish). Local residents' and village associations are informal. Communes cooperate through intercommunal syndicates (syndicats intercommunaux) for water, waste and hospitals.
Points to know
- Since 2023, foreign residents can vote in communal elections without a minimum period of residence.
- The three old districts, with appointed commissioners, were abolished in 2015.
- Mergers, usually approved by local referendum, have cut communes from 118 in the early 2000s to 100.
Local terms
- Bourgmestre
- Mayor of a commune, chosen by the council majority and formally appointed.
- Échevin
- Alderman, a member of the commune's executive college.
Sources
- Constitution of Luxembourg (1868, rev. 2009 – note: replaced by revised text in force July 2023), Constitute Project, checked 14 October 2026
- Ministère des Affaires intérieures, Government of Luxembourg, checked 14 October 2026
- Luxembourg: country profile (territorial organisation, responsibilities, finance), OECD–UCLG World Observatory on Subnational Government Finance and Investment (SNG-WOFI), checked 14 October 2026
- Luxembourg: monitoring of the European Charter of Local Self-Government (2022 report), Council of Europe Congress of Local and Regional Authorities (CARTA-MONITOR), checked 14 October 2026
See also: Luxembourg's official statistics and leaders · the 10 levels of power.