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Country Information Luxembourg

Luxembourg has a population of 666.000 and covers an area of 2,586 sq km. It is a parliamentary democracy headed by a constitutional monarch. The Grand Duke, Head of State, and the government exercise the executive power. The legislative power is attributed to the Chamber of Deputies, a unicameral legislature consisting of 60 members directly elected from 4 constituencies. The role of the judiciary is to monitor the application of standards and penalise non-compliance. There are several judicial divisions in Luxembourg: 2 judicial districts (Luxembourg and Diekirch), 3 justices of the peace (Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg and Diekirch) and other single jurisdictions (e.g. Superior Court of Justice, Constitutional Court, Administrative Courts).

Luxembourg has 3 major administrative divisions such as 4 electoral constituencies, 12 cantons and 102 communes.

Cantons are used as a territorial unit to form the boundaries of electoral constituencies and judicial districts. The communes have a certain amount of autonomy in the management of their affairs, their finances and their interests.

The Service de Métrologie Légale (SML) (Legal Metrology Service) which, since its creation, was linked to the Administration des Contributions, has become part of an administration created in 2008 in the Ministry of Economics, the Institut luxembourgeois de la normalisation, de l'accréditation, de la sécurité et qualité des produits et services (ILNAS). In 2014, Luxembourg founded its own national metrology institute Bureau Luxembourgeois de Métrologie (BLM) to which the SML is attached. Its main missions concern the verification of measuring instruments and the application of the legal units of measurement.

(Art. 9, Law of 4 July 2014 on the reorganisation of ILNAS)

A uniform system of weights and measures was first introduced in Luxembourg in 1816 (Law of 21 August 1816, regulating the uniform system of Weights and Measures).

The SI system of units was introduced via a Grand-Ducal Regulation of 14 October 1981 implementing Directive 80/181/EEC of 20 December 1979 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to units of measurement

More information related to the national metrology institute BLM and the legal metrology service SML can be found under the following address:

https://portail-qualite.public.lu/

  • Simple length measures in trade use 
    • Material measures
    • Dimensional measuring instruments
  • Non-liquid volume measures 
  • Liquid volume measures
  • Liquid volume metering instruments 
    • Petroleum 
    • Ad blue
    • Heating oil 
    • Alcohol liquids
    • Milk
  • Water meters 
  • Non-automatic weighing instruments 
    • Self-indicating 
    • Non self-indicating 
  • Automatic weighing instruments 
    • Discontinuous totalising 
    • Continuous totalising (beltweighers) 
    • Gravimetric filling 
    • Rail weighbridges 
    • Catchweighers 
    • Checkweighers 
    • Weight graders 
    • Weigh/price labeller and weigh labeller
  • Control of pre-packages

Type approval services are not provided.

Engineers and technical officers at the Service de Métrologie Légale (SML) perform the verifications. Fees are fixed by Grand-Ducal Regulation on the pricing of services provided by the Bureau luxembourgeois de métrologie with regard to legal metrology.

The responsibilities and the duties of the Service de la Métrologie Légale (SML) are not subcontracted to private contractors.

In the Grand Duchy, a mandatory reverification system is in place:

  • Weighing instruments in trade use: 3 years
  • Petrol pumps: 3 years
  • Cold water meters (subject to a 10 year replacement cycle): 10 years
  • Weighing instruments used for medical or law enforcement purposes: 3 years

In 2022 the SML inspected 1.331 non-automatic weighing instruments with a 9 % failure rate. 2,3% of the 2.762 petrol pumps inspected in the same period failed.

The Service de Métrologie Légale (SML) employs 4 engineers and 4 technical staff members. The lead of the SML is covered by 2 of the 4 engineers (1 head and 1 deputy head). All engineers have a background in electronics or mechanics. In addition, the head of SML and his deputy manage the quality management system. The SML is also in charge of complaints about instruments and provides legal advice to the economy on request.

The Service de Métrologie Légale (SML) is also involved in the control of volume and mass pre-packages according to:

  • Law of 7 July 2023 on pre-packaging not bearing the "e" symbol and sales in bulk in the legal metrology sector.
  • Grand-ducal regulation of 7 July 2023 on pre-packages not bearing the "e" symbol and sales in bulk in the legal metrology sector.

Since 2006, the Service de métrologie légale (SML) is designated to carry out conformity assessments as a notified body. Body number: 0460.

Also since 2006, the Service de métrologie légale (SML) is accredited according to ISO/CEI 17020:2012 as body A. The scope of the accreditation covers non-automatic weighing instruments and gas stations.

Since December 2022 a system of financial administrative penalties of up to 15.000 euros was introduced in Luxembourg by amending the law of 4 July 2014 on the reorganisation of ILNAS. All engineers received a special training in order to get the status of judicial police officer.

Luxembourg implemented the Directive 2014/31/EU by Grand-Ducal Regulation of 26 January 2016 on non-automatic weighing instruments.

Luxembourg implemented the Directive 2014/32/EU by Grand-Ducal Regulation of 26 January 2016 on measuring instruments.

The following is for information only:

No gravity zones are defined in Luxembourg for purposes of EEC directives on weighing instruments.

The applicable gravity value for Luxembourg is: g = 9,8096 m/s2

LAST UPDATE: AUGUST 2023

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