Luxembourg

Summary

Luxembourg names its hunting weapons in the act itself. The Hunting Act of 2011 allows hunting only with shotguns and rifles and forbids every other means, traps and birds of prey included. The act does not name the bow, but the government’s commentary on the bill of 2008 does: all other means, such as traps and nets, but also the crossbow and the bow, are not permitted for hunting, the firearm being the least destructive and most selective means. Breaking the rule is a criminal offence.

Since Decision M (2025) 1 of 15 July 2025 the bow is on the Benelux maximum list for Luxembourg too. That list obliges no country to use it, and in Luxembourg the closed list sits in the act, so admitting the bow would take an amendment voted by parliament. The act has not been amended since 2020.

The legal mechanism

• Hunting Act, art. 10: hunting is allowed only by day, from one hour before official sunrise to one hour after official sunset, and only with shotguns and rifles; all other means of hunting, including trapping and birds of prey, are prohibited. Bullets are compulsory for red deer, roe deer, wild boar, mouflon and fallow deer. A grand-ducal regulation sets the weapons, ammunition, dogs and auxiliary means.
• Hunting weapons regulation: art. 2 lists the only weapons that may be used, smooth-bore shotguns from 20 to 12 bore and rifles of at least .22 or 5.58 mm; art. 6 lists the auxiliary means, from dogs and ferrets to hunting knives and boar spears. The bow appears in neither.
• The bill of 2008, commentary on its article 6, which became art. 10 of the act: hunting may be carried out only with firearms, the least destructive and most selective means; all other means, such as traps and nets, but also the crossbow and the bow, are not permitted. It is the only place in the parliamentary file where the bow is mentioned.
• Penalties: breaching art. 10 is punished by eight days to six months in prison and a fine of 251 to 15,000 euros, or one of these (art. 73); the penalties may rise to two years and 30,000 euros where the offence is committed with prohibited devices or means other than those allowed (art. 74, point 3).
• Game enclosures are no way round: art. 7 forbids hunting in them altogether.
• After the Benelux decision: the only change to the hunting weapons regulation since then concerns lead shot. In February 2026 the government’s forest and hunting round table reached an agreement in principle on night hunting, at least for wild boar, and on wider access to hunting, with the act to be amended; the reports of that round table do not mention the bow.
• The crossbow is named with the bow in the commentary of 2008 and is not a bow under Decision M (2025) 1.

Before you go

This page describes the Luxembourg texts as they stood on the date below. The Hunting Act is due to be revised after the round table of 2026; if you hear that the bow has been allowed, ask for the law amending art. 10 of the Hunting Act and its date in the Mémorial. Until then, hunting with a bow in Luxembourg is a criminal offence. The final check is yours.