Group visits

This page explains the procedure for organising a group visit. Information about individual visits and tourist visits can be found on their respective pages.

Group visits

Group visits are organised by the Visits Service. They are free of charge and take place in all official EU languages. Group visits only take place on workdays between 8:00 and 17:30 during Court terms.

Organised group visits can take place both in-person and online.

In-person visits allow for a more complete experience. However, as part of its environmental policy, and recognising that it is not always possible for those interested in a visit to physically travel to Luxembourg, the Court offers online programmes and digital access to its documentation.

Before requesting a visit to the Court, please carefully read the information concerning the size and composition of the group, registration, programme planning and the visit itself.

Size and composition of group

In order to keep visit requests to a manageable number, and to ensure that visits are available for those with a genuine interest in the Court, some basic conditions are imposed concerning the size and composition of the group.

• Participants must be at least 18 years old.
• In-person visits are organised for groups of 7 to 35 participants.
• Online visits are organised for groups of 7 or more participants.
• Priority is given to groups of legal practitioners or law students.

If your group does not meet these requirements, please contact the Visits service using the contact form.

Registering for your visit

You can use the My Visit application to request and manage your visit. The group leader should make the reservation request through this application five to six months before the planned visit. If you would like an online visit, please put this in the “remarks” section.

Requests to change visits from in-person to online or vice-versa can be made up to two weeks before the date of the visit.

Creating your visit programme

For both in-person and online visits, the group leader can choose the programme components that best match your interests and legal knowledge, and which fit your time constraints. You can choose from

• a hearing in a case before the Court of Justice or the General Court, before the hearing you will receive a briefing about the case (generally on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 8:20 to 11:30) – please note that this component is only available for in-person visits
• a general presentation of the Court of Justice and the General Court (45 minutes)
• a presentation on the work of a lawyer-linguist (45 minutes)
• a presentation of multilingualism (translation and interpretation) at the Court (45 minutes)
• a visit to the library (45 minutes for in-person visits and 10 minutes for online visits)
• a guided tour of the buildings (45 minutes for in-person visits and 10 minutes for online visits)

You can select your programme components in the questionnaire available in the My Visit application. We try to accommodate all choices; however, the limited availability of staff and resources means that we cannot guarantee that all choices will be available for all visitors.

In-person visit experience

Before the visit

At least two weeks before the visit the group leader should send a list of the participants and their dates of birth via the My Visit application. Please do not exceed the stated number of participants without first contacting the Visits Service in writing.

The Visits Service will communicate the proposed programme about two weeks before the visit. The final programme will be sent about one week before the visit. This will happen through the group leader’s personal profile on My Visit.

If the visit includes attending a public hearing, details on this will also be sent to the group leader. For more information on attending a hearing as a visiting group, see our page on public hearings.

Arrival and security checks

On the day of the visit, the group should arrive at the entrance and at the time indicated on the programme. Please be punctual! Keep in mind the heavy traffic in Luxembourg, which often results in traffic jams in the mornings on the motorways and in the capital.

Visitors will have to pass through a metal detector. Hand luggage and other personal items will also be scanned. Please let us know in advance if you will be arriving with luggage so that we can adjust your arrival time accordingly, as security checks may take longer.

Visitors must show an identity card, passport or driving licence.

A guide from the Visits Service will greet the group of visitors at the Court’s entrance.

Please inform the Visits Service in advance if you need any assistance for a participant with disabilities.

During the visit

The guide will accompany and supervise the group throughout its visit. Group leaders are also responsible for supervising visitors and assisting the guide.

All visitors are required to comply with the Court’s security rules and rules of conduct at all times.

Visitors do not have access to the Court’s self-service restaurant or cafeteria. These are reserved for staff only.

After the visit to the Court, the group leader will be asked to complete an assessment form.

Cancellation and other questions

Please note that, in exceptional circumstances, the Court reserves the right to cancel a planned visit.

In case of any difficulty or for any question related to the organisation of your visit, you can use the “organised visits” option on the contact form to get in touch with the Visits Service.

Online visit experience

Before the visit

The Court has a dedicated platform for its online visits. However, under certain conditions, other online platforms can be used.

Participants can log in as individuals. Before the visit, the group leader should specify the number of expected logins. The names or dates of birth of the participants are not necessary for online visits.

The Visits Service will send a login link to the group leader and, if needed, the date and link for a login test.

The group leader will then provide to the other participants all the information received, such as the programme, login link and date of the login test. The group leader is responsible for those logging in and should distribute the login link only to authorised visitors.

The Visits Service will communicate the proposed programme about two weeks before the visit. The final programme will be sent about one week before the visit. This will happen through the group leader’s personal profile on My Visit.

The visit

On the day of the online visit, please be punctual!

All participants login to the platform using the information provided by the group leader.

A guide from the Visits Service will supervise the programme and ensure that it runs smoothly.

After the visit, the group leader will be asked to complete an assessment form.

Cancellation and other questions

Please note that, in exceptional circumstances, the Court reserves the right to cancel a planned online visit.

In case of any difficulty or for any question related to the organisation of your visit, you can use the “organised visits” option on the contact form to get in touch with the Visits Service.

Connecting to My Visit

The My Visit application allows you to request and manage your visit.

To use the application, you must create a personal profile using a valid email address. Through the personal profile, you can

• create your visitor groups for re-use in connection with subsequent visits
• view potential dates for visits before making a request
• choose the programme components for your visit

Once the request has been made, you will be able to log on to your personal profile to

• track the progress of your visit request
• change certain details of your visit before the request is validated by the Visits Service
• consult or print out information concerning your visit
• save the details of your previous visits

If you encounter any problems when using the My Visit application, you can consult the online user handbook by clicking on “?”. Alternatively, use the “organised visits” option on the contact form to get in touch with the Visits Service.

Seminars

The Visits Service also organises seminars, at the request of a group of judges. These last one or two days and can be more closely tailored to the interests of judges.

These seminars aim to contribute to the dissemination and better understanding of EU law, in order to improve its application. The seminars are also intended to facilitate dialogue between national judges and EU judges and to encourage judicial cooperation between different Member States.

The seminars are available as both in-person and online formats.

If you are interested in a specific format, you can use the “organised visits” option on the contact form to get in touch with the seminars team of the Visits Service.