Can I keep money or an object I find in the street?
No — in Luxembourg, "finders keepers" is not the rule. A banknote, a wallet or a phone picked up in the street is not yours: you must hand it in at a police station, which gives you a receipt. The item is kept 8 days at the local station, then, if the owner cannot be found, transferred to the National Lost Property Service (SNOT) for 3 years when it is worth more than 200 euros. After that period without a claim, it goes to the finder who did not give it up — otherwise it is sold for the benefit of the State. There is no legal reward. Keeping someone else's property for yourself is misappropriation of found property, an offence under the Criminal Code. The myth: "I found it, so it's mine" — false; at best it is yours only after three years and a proper deposit.
📋 The rules
- Hand it to the police: any found item must be handed in at a station, which issues a receipt; knowingly keeping it is an offence, not a right.
- 8 days then SNOT: the item is kept 8 days at the local station, then transferred to the National Lost Property Service if the owner is not found.
- Kept for 3 years: at SNOT, an item worth more than 200 euros is kept 3 years; below that, the storage periods are shorter.
- The finder after 3 years: if no one claims the item and the finder did not give it up, they may become owner at the end of the 3 years; otherwise it is sold for the State.
- No legal reward: Luxembourg law provides no reward for the finder; any thank-you gift is purely the owner's goodwill.
🔓 Exceptions
- Low-value items: for items worth less than 200 euros the storage periods are reduced, but the duty to hand them in still stands.
- Found on private premises: an item found in a shop, a train or private premises is first handed to the operator of the place (the operator's lost-property desk).
- Treasure and special goods: finding treasure, a weapon or a suspicious item follows special rules and must be reported without appropriating them.
⚠️ Penalties & fines
Pocketing what you find is no small thing: it is misappropriation of found property, an offence against property under the Criminal Code, punishable by imprisonment and a fine. In practice, keeping a wallet with its cards also risks prosecution for how it is used: withdrawing cash or paying with the found card is fraud or theft, far more serious. Returning it does not erase everything, but it extinguishes the risk. Conversely, the right reflex — handing the item in — opens, after three years without a claim, a genuine right of ownership. On the civil side, the wronged owner can claim the value of the goods and the damage suffered. Finally, keeping an item containing personal data (a phone, papers) exposes you to further blame if you access it without any right.
📎 Official sources
- Grand-Ducal Police · lost property and National Service (SNOT) →
- Grand-Ducal Police · public notices, lost property →
- Legilux · Criminal Code (crimes and offences against property) →
❓ Frequently asked
Can I keep a banknote I find on the ground?
No, cash is a found item like any other and must be handed in to the police. Keeping it amounts to misappropriation of found property, an offence; you may only become its owner after three years without a claim.
Where must I hand in a found object in Luxembourg?
You must hand it in at a police station, which gives you a receipt confirming your deposit. The item is kept there for eight days, then transferred to the National Lost Property Service if the owner is not identified.
Will I get the item back if no one claims it?
Yes, if you do not give up the item and the owner does not come forward, you may become its owner after three years. Once that period passes with no interested finder, the item is instead sold for the benefit of the State Treasury.
Am I entitled to a reward for handing in an object?
No, Luxembourg law provides no legal reward or finder's fee for the honest person who hands an item in. The owner may choose to thank or reward you of their own free will, but it is never an obligation that you could ever demand of them.
What happens if I use the found bank card?
That is far more serious than merely keeping the wallet: paying or withdrawing cash with a found card is fraud or theft. You then face heavy criminal prosecution, on top of having to repay the sums used.
🔎 Common searches
What people search to land here:
- “found object luxembourg what to do”
- “keep found money luxembourg”
- “lost property service luxembourg”
- “found wallet luxembourg police”
- “found item owner deadline luxembourg”
- “reward found object luxembourg”