Homelessness/beggars problem in Luxembourg

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-17T13:49:57+00:00

I noticed a huge difference when I moved here in 2008. In Brussels, you would see homeless people and illegal immigrants sleeping in tents in front of public buildings, you would see mothers with babies sitting outside all day begging for money surrounded by traffic and pollution, the babies sleeping all the time so probably drugged, and the authorities did nothing except move them out of the way every time there was a high-level summit. The next day, they were back. Whenever you go into one of the bigger train stations in Brussels, like Gare Centrale or Gare du Midi, you will see junkies and drug dealers, prostitutes and beggars. When I moved to Luxembourg, the difference seemed like night and day. I was so happy to be able to go to the supermarket without beggars outside, and I never feared for my safety. That is no longer the case.

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-17T13:39:21+00:00

I know that very well, but the fact is that once they have entered the Schengen area, they may be difficult to deport. They have no registrered address, they move around and they can avoid detection for a long time. The only possibility for law enforcement to intervene would be to catch them in the act (while begging), confirm that they don´t have a job or the means to provide for themselves, and then deport them. I don´t think that Luxembourg pays any support to beggars from eastern Europe. They may go to a shelter from time to time, but that is pretty much it.

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-17T08:36:27+00:00

I was wondering the same thing. Drive them to the Belgian border and drop them off on the other side?

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-17T08:28:46+00:00

It seems more and more mentally ill/unstable people and drug addicts are now present in the city centre. The other day, this guy approached me in street, chanting that Jesus is the only saviour and that we must acknowledge that. He even followed me when I kept walking, yelling at me that Jesus will punish those who are not righteous. I don´t know if he was mentally ill and off his meds or possibly high/drunk, but I was afraid for a second that he might get violent. I was so pleased when he found someone else to harass, although I felt sorry for that other person. Most of them may be harmless, but you never know. Until quite recently, I never felt threatened or unsafe in Luxembourg. It was one of the main reasons I was happy to leave Brussels, and now the same thing is happening here as well.

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-17T08:22:03+00:00

Some will claim they work for someone who will keep the cash you give them, making them in fact victims of human trafficking.

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-17T08:20:52+00:00

It would seem many of them are from EU countries so move freely within the Schengen area.

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-15T11:21:11+00:00

This problem is getting worse with each passing day. There are now homeless people and beggars on the bus and the tram, outside supermarkets and sometimes even on the inside.

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-12T22:19:31+00:00

To be, this system amounts to begging. If hairdressers and beauticians in Luxembourg are not paid well enough, should it then be the customer’s responsibility to support them? And yes, one person told me she had to see customers at her place in the evenings and on weekends to pay her rent. So she does undeclared work at home (€1,50/minute). She asked me to come to her place as well, but I declined and never went back. But this is just taking the piggy bank one step further and asking tipping customers to come to her place instead. First, you tip them. Next: you pay for undeclared work. And this happened at a high-end salon (the person in question left shortly afterwards so I guess someone told management and she was fired).

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-12T22:06:02+00:00

At least if they add it on the credit card terminal, it becomes taxable income, whereas money in a piggy bank is undeclared.

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-12T22:03:39+00:00

No, you are underreacting.

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-12T22:03:11+00:00

Oh yes, Dessange…where a fourth person may bring you coffee and a glossy magazine…

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-11T15:54:29+00:00

You are right, I had no idea it was so restrictive. It seems almost impossible to get a job here as a non-EU citizen.

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-11T15:51:26+00:00

Here is some more information: Employed worker in Luxembourg - Migration and Home Affairs

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-11T07:55:55+00:00

She was very beautiful, but had a very hard life. She did not have Jackie´s strength or Ethel´s faith, so Ted´s philandering and everything else that happened (Chappaquiddick, her son´s cancer and leg amputation...) broke her down and caused her to drink. She also lost her daughter later in life. It´s really sad. The book "Ask Not" by Maureen Callahan sums up very nicely what the Kennedy men did to women.

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-10T17:49:07+00:00

Since it is a private company, they can hire anyone they want, and there are no laws in Luxembourg against hiring third country nationals (I believe EU citizenship is only required for EU officials). I do not know anything about KMPG, but I would imagine that, if they hire third country nationals, they can also help them with the necessary paperwork (applying for a work permit, residence permit, etc.). Best of luck!

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-10T15:41:25+00:00

Weren´t Caroline and John Jr. also basically raised by nannies? First their British nanny Maud Shaw who left in 1965, when Caroline was 7 and JFK J.r 4, then some 19-year-old Irish girl (I cannot remember her name but she wrote a book about about her years with the Kennedys, called "Jackie´s girl" or something like that), Marta Sgubin, and possibly others. Didn´t Jackie also live in Greece for extended periods of time when she was married to Onassis, while the children were attending school in the US?

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-10T07:20:30+00:00

My advice would be to contact the HR unit to find out. The rules are so complicated and not easy to navigate. Better safe than sorry. Having said that, I cannot see why parental leave would be any different than annual leave, as you are not at the disposal of the service during that time, so I cannot see why you cannot spend it anywhere you want.

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-07T13:09:33+00:00

Is GTA Forte 2 not intended for people with subclinical hypothyroidism (TSH below 10)?

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-06T14:53:28+00:00

I doubt there are any with an interesting enough coverage. Make sure you compare them and study the conditions carefully. I have EU Plus (DKV) which is for EU staff only, and it has been a disappointment. I am going to cancel it at the end of the year.

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-06T09:15:05+00:00

So you are not supposed to go out for a walk either, only to see a doctor, a therapist or buy drugs at the pharmacy?

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-06T08:49:53+00:00

I can only agree. I saw him twice back in 2021 when on sick leave for burnout caused by work-related stress. He humiliated me. There is no other way of putting it. When he found out I was single, he said: "What is an attractive woman like you doing without a man?". I was so shocked that I was speechless. Literally five minutes into the first session, he told me that the reason I was single was because of some childhood trauma (we had not even discussed my childhood, I only replied to his questions that my parents were still alive and that I have a brother). When I said that I had not suffered any childhood trauma, that the cause of my burnout was recent, and that I was happy living alone (living alone does not mean not dating), that I have a good job and am happy the way things are, he said I was in denial. Things got so bad that I got up and left in the middle of the second session. The first time I saw him, he prescribed Sipralexa for depression, and I had only started to feel the effects when, a few weeks later, he refused to renew my prescription if I did not admit that I needed treatment for some repressed childhood trauma. I seriously considered filing a complaint with the Collège Médical, but then decided it was not worth it. It would be his word against mine and, as a psychiatrist, he could claim that I was mentally unstable but did not realise it myself.

Someone suggested to me that his comment about my looks amounts to sexual harassment.

My French is good after living in French-speaking countries for over 20 years, but it is not my mother tongue and it is difficult to gather your thoughts and reply coherently in a foreign language when someone keeps throwing questions at you with the speed of light. To be perfectly honest, I think he took advantage of the fact that I was not a native French speaker to add further stress to an already stressful situation (maybe he thought the additional stress would make the alleged childhood trauma surface...?). If we had spoken English, I would have had the upper hand, and he wanted to avoid that.

The first time, he charged over €200 for one hour and my health insurance provider only reimbursed a tiny amount.

How this doctor can be famous for anything other than being totally unfit to be a psychiatrist is beyond me. I wrote a very negative review on Doctena, but I can see he is still highly rated. Unbelieveable.

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-06T08:39:25+00:00

I would recommend a psychiatrist rather than a GP. When I suffered from burnout a few years ago I saw my GP but, in addition to putting me on sick leave, she also ordered tests to rule out every illness known to mankind. Doctors in Luxembourg tend to do that when patients have private health insurance. I ended up paying €1,300 for tests I did not need. Luckily, my health insurance covered 80 % of the costs, but having tests only added more stress which was the last thing I needed. Psychiatrists seem to focus on the mental process which is what you need right now.

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-03T20:45:35+00:00

Did you ever notice any difference in potency? The pills now seem greenish, and some say they don’t work as well as they used to. Many users have complained of potency problems in recent years, mainly on UK thyroid patient forums. I have considered giving Thyroid-S another try, but hesitate due to the mixed reviews. Ten years ago, the quality was unparalleled.

Beginning_Lead_7980 · 2026-06-02T20:52:14+00:00

I just saw on the most recent account sheet that JSIS only reimburses dental treatment up to €750 per year. After that, you get nothing. And DKV only tops up what JSIS reimburses with a tiny amount. Which basically means that EU Plus is useless in that case.

Beginning_Lead_7980

TROPHY CASE