Do I have to pay a TV or radio licence fee in Luxembourg?
No — there is no broadcasting licence fee in Luxembourg. No "TV licence", no radio tax, no annual bill and no duty to declare your television set or radio. It is a quirk of the Grand Duchy: the country funds its public service media — the socio-cultural radio 100.7 and the parliamentary channel Chamber TV — directly from the state budget, not through a levy on households. The big names everyone actually watches and listens to, RTL Télé Lëtzebuerg and RTL Radio, belong to a commercial group living on advertising, not on a fee. The confusion comes from abroad: in Germany the Rundfunkbeitrag costs about 220 euros a year, and France had its fee until 2022. The myth: "like everywhere in Europe, you have to pay a fee for TV" — false in Luxembourg; nobody will ever send you such a bill, and no official letter can demand it.
📋 The rules
- No licence fee: Luxembourg charges no TV or radio fee on households; owning a television, a radio or a computer triggers no tax whatsoever.
- Public media funded by the state: radio 100.7 and the Chamber TV channel are financed from the public budget, not by an individual contribution.
- RTL is commercial: RTL Télé Lëtzebuerg and RTL Radio belong to a private group living on advertising and a public-service concession with the State, with no fee.
- No set to declare: there is no register of televisions, no duty to report buying a device and no officer tasked with inspecting homes.
- A misleading comparison: Germany charges about 220 euros a year (Rundfunkbeitrag) and France abolished its fee in 2022; those rules do not apply in the Grand Duchy.
🔓 Exceptions
- VAT on subscriptions: you pay VAT on a TV, internet or streaming subscription, but that is a consumption tax, not a broadcasting licence fee.
- Residence abroad: if you live in Germany, France or Belgium while working in Luxembourg, it is the rules of your country of residence that apply to any fee.
- Business use: copyright and broadcasting licences (collecting societies and the like) concern shops and broadcasters, and have nothing to do with a household fee.
⚠️ Penalties & fines
The most common "penalty" here is paying what you don't owe. Since no fee exists, no fine can be imposed for not paying it — but poorly informed people, often newcomers or cross-border workers, sometimes settle fake invoices or reply to fraudulent emails imitating an authority. That is the real risk: the scam. If you receive a letter or an e-mail demanding a "Luxembourg TV licence fee", it is an attempted fraud or a mix-up with another country; pay nothing and report it. Conversely, if you reside in Germany, not paying the Rundfunkbeitrag does expose you to German reminders and enforcement, regardless of your job in Luxembourg. Finally, not paying your commercial subscription (RTL, cable, streaming) brings the usual contractual consequences: the service is cut off and the arrears are pursued.
📎 Official sources
- Media and connectivity service · television and public media →
- Radio 100.7 · public socio-cultural radio broadcaster →
- Chamber TV · channel of the Chamber of Deputies →
❓ Frequently asked
Is there really no TV licence fee in Luxembourg?
No, the Grand Duchy levies no broadcasting fee on households, unlike most of its neighbours. You will receive neither an annual bill nor a request to declare your television or radio, because this funding simply does not exist.
How are radio 100.7 and Chamber TV funded?
These public-service media are paid for directly by the Luxembourg state budget, in the form of grants, and not by an individual contribution from viewers. It is this choice of public funding that explains the complete absence of a fee for residents.
I have just moved in: do I have to declare my television?
No, there is no register of television sets and no duty to report buying a device in Luxembourg. No body will ever come to inspect your home or ask what you own, because there is simply no licence fee to collect from residents here.
I received a "TV licence" invoice: what should I do?
Be wary, because no Luxembourg authority demands a broadcasting fee: such an invoice is almost certainly a scam or a mix-up with another country. Pay nothing, share no bank details and report the message to the police.
I am a cross-border worker: must I pay a fee somewhere?
It is the rules of your country of residence that decide: a cross-border worker living in Germany pays the Rundfunkbeitrag, about 220 euros a year, even if they work in Luxembourg. Crossing the border for work creates no Luxembourg fee.
🔎 Common searches
What people search to land here:
- “tv licence fee luxembourg”
- “television tax luxembourg”
- “broadcasting fee luxembourg”
- “declare television luxembourg”
- “rundfunkbeitrag cross border luxembourg”
- “rtl 100.7 funding luxembourg”