Your Daily BriefToday's most important news in one place

EU Justice Court rules in favour of Luxembourg student denied entry to Belgian university

The European Union's Court of Justice has ruled in favour of a Luxembourg student who filed a complaint against a Belgian university for denying him access to medical studies. The young Luxembourger took the case to court after he was denied entrance on the basis of being a foreign student residing abroad.

The quota system in French-speaking Belgium limits the number of foreign medical students to just 15% every semester, based on their place of residence. When the Luxembourg student applied in 2022, the quota was 30% (it was later halved in 2023). Although he lived in Luxembourg, he had attended school in Arlon, just across the Belgian border, and had achieved his diploma there as well.

Although he passed the entrance exam for the university's medical studies course, the university denied him a place due to his residence in the Grand Duchy. Consequently, the student appealed to the Belgian Council of State to contest his refusal of admission to higher education. The institution ultimately requested an analysis from the European Union's Court of Justice.

The Court ruled that Belgium should have taken into account the student's attachment to Belgium, and the fact he had not only completed his schooling in Belgium, but established strong ties with the country. Based on this, the Court said that the "exclusive" residency requirement of the quota exceeded the initial purpose of the law and constituted indirect discrimination based on nationality.

Now, the Belgian Council of State will have to rule on the case. Its decision will officially determine whether or not the Luxembourg student could be subjected to the limit on the number of foreign students in Belgium, despite having graduated there. The Court's ruling and the Council of State's decision will certainly be landmark decisions for future students affected by this issue.

Also today

• A phishing scam is already targeting users of Wero following the switch from Payconiq in Luxembourg.
• The appeal in the Bommeleeër-Bis affair is set to open on 27 October, involving former senior Gendarmerie officials.
• OECD PISA founder Andreas Schleicher has criticized Luxembourg’s education system, stating it has abundant resources but lacks results
• The family of Renee Good, shot dead by an ICE agent, are suing President Donald Trump's administration alleging wrongful death and civil rights violations.
• US-sanctioned Bolivian Attorney General Roger Mariaca has been arrested on suspicion of money laundering and drug trafficking.
• Switzerland's glaciers have lost nearly 20% of their mass in five years, experts revealed today.

On air

Tom gave us all an update on what is going on in the Duchy this weekend and during October, there was more angst for John with the next instalment of the Sproochentest and another 'Algorhythm' tonight: Earth, Wind and Fire.

Figure of the day

New flat sales are down by more than 10% on the year.

• In the third quarter of this year, prices for existing flats and houses held relatively steady, with a slight upward tilt. New flats, by contrast, have become cheaper, falling by more than 10% over the course of the year.
• The rental market, meanwhile, continues to climb, even if there are fluctuations from one quarter to the next. Rents have risen across every region over the past year. The south saw the steepest increase, at 11.6%, while the centre saw the smallest, at 3.5%.

________________________________________________
Stay connected: Tune in to RTL Today Radio, now on 93.3 FM and DAB+, and be sure to catch our full bulletin on the hour, every hour, and headlines at half past the hour.