You can employ foreigners in the Czech Republic, but the rules vary depending on their residency status. EU nationals can work without a permit, while workers from third countries usually need an employment or blue card. The employer must also fulfil the notification obligation to the Labour Office and comply with the rules of the Employment Act. Let’s look at these rules in more detail.
EU nationals can work in the Czech Republic without a work permit.
Their employer must notify the Labour Office of their arrival.
Non-EU nationals usually need an employment or blue card.
You must first report the vacancy to the Labour Office.
Illegal employment can lead to fines of up to millions of crowns.
If you want to employ a foreigner and have everything in accordance with the law, we can prepare employment contracts and the necessary documents.
At the outset, it is important to understand that there is no such thing as a foreigner. Depending on where the worker comes from and also on the basis of which permit he or she is staying in the country, the law distinguishes under which conditions the person can work in the country.
Read what rights national minorities have in the Czech Republic.
In this case, the situation is the simplest. EU citizens and their family members (i.e. also family members of Czech citizens) have essentially the same status as Czech citizens. They do not need a work permit and have free access to the labour market.
If you want to employ this category of persons, you will have to comply with the information obligation as an employer. The employer has an information obligation towards the Labour Office.
The employer must notify the relevant employment office of the employment of an EU citizen or his/her family member within 10 calendar days of the start of employment. The same deadline applies for notifying the end of employment.
In practice, we often see that employers forget to notify the employment office in time. Even this administrative error can lead to a fine during an inspection by the Labour Inspectorate.
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For foreigners with permanent residence in the Czech Republic, the situation is also quite simple. According to the Employment Act, these foreigners also do not need a work permit and the employer only has to comply with the information obligation at the beginning and end of employment, as in the case of employees who are EU citizens or their family members.
The most common problem usually arises with third-country workers when the employer incorrectly assesses the type of work permit required.
For most employment of third-country nationals today, the so-called employment card, which combines both residence and work permits, is used. In some cases, a blue card for highly skilled workers can also be used.
In our practice, we have dealt, for example, with the case of a small construction company that employed several third-country workers through a well-known intermediary. The employer believed that the workers had all the necessary permits because they provided him with copies of their residence documents.
However, an inspection by the labour inspectorate revealed that although the workers had residence permits, they were not authorised to work in a specific job position for this employer. The company thus faced suspicion of facilitating illegal work and was threatened with a fine of hundreds of thousands of crowns.
Tip: Read our article on what you need to do as an employer for your employees working at night.
As an employer, you must also remember that you can only employ a foreigner from a third country without permanent residence in a vacancy that has already been registered with the Labour Office for a certain period of time. This is how the Czech labour market is protected.
In principle,the Employment Act stipulates that a foreigner can only be hired for a vacant position that the employer has reported to the Labour Office and that has not been filled within 30 days of its notification.
In the report to the Labour Office, the basic characteristics of the vacancy, in particular the type of work and the place of work, the qualifications and requirements for the job, information on the salary, etc.
However, the Labour Office will not register the vacancy if you have recently committed an offence, for example, if you have been fined for allowing illegal work in the last 4 months or if you have been fined more than CZK 50,000 in the last 3 months for a breach of labour law by the Labour Inspectorate.
Contact us. We will help you to take care of all matters concerning the employment of foreigners. We will draw up your employment contract and help you set up all employment documents in accordance with the law.
We have already said that foreigners with permanent residence permits and EU citizens and their family members do not need a work permit.
Other exceptions include foreigners who have been granted asylum, and under certain conditions (if they will only work a few days a year), artists, scientists and researchers, athletes, or students on accredited study programmes.
Before a foreigner starts working for you, check carefully their work permit (or documents to prove they do not need a permit) and make sure they have a valid work contract or agreement with you. There are a number of work permits, such as an employee card (entitling you to stay and work) or a blue card (for particularly skilled workers).
Sometimes it’s not easy to keep track of all the different types of permits. Nevertheless, you should not underestimate the importance of checking your documents, because if you employ a foreigner without the necessary permits, you may be guilty of an offence for which you could face heavy fines running into millions of crowns. In addition, the Ministry of the Interior may ask you to pay the costs of deporting the foreigner.
If you are not sure what type of permit the employee needs, we can check the documents and prepare an employment contract that meets all legal requirements.
Tip: Read our article on how employment through an employment agency works.
On the one hand, the state is cracking down on the work of foreigners without permits, but on the other hand it is trying to make it at least a little easier for employers who want foreign workers.
If you are interested in skilled workers from Ukraine, Mongolia, Serbia, the Philippines, India, Belarus, Moldova, Montenegro, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Georgia or Northern Macedonia, you can apply for the Skilled Worker Program and get employment cards for your workers faster.
Russia’s aggression and war in Ukraine is bringing thousands of Ukrainian refugees to the Czech Republic. The Czech Republic has therefore created a number of programmes to integrate Ukrainian citizens into our society, including employment.
Collectively, these emergency actions were adopted by the lex Ukraine Act. They usually concern not only refugees, but also Ukrainians who were already residing on our territory before the war conflict.
Therefore, if you want to employ a Ukrainian refugee, you will need their residence permit documents to do so. The most common residence permits are temporary protection or long-term tolerance visas.
However, persons granted temporary protection under the lex Ukraine have free access to the Czech labour market and therefore do not need a work permit.
In other respects, you are subject to the same rights and obligations as if you were hiring a Czech employee – the same minimum wage applies to Ukrainian employees, and you must provide them with an occupational health check-up and occupational safety and health training.
Tip: Learn when, how often and who to train on OSH.
Are you still lost in the jungle of legal regulations governing the employment of foreigners? Not sure whether and how to employ a foreigner? We will be happy to advise you, check all the documents and prepare an employment contract so that everything is in order.
The employment of foreigners in the Czech Republic is primarily governed by the Employment Act and the rules vary depending on where the worker comes from and what their residency status is. EU citizens, their family members and foreigners with permanent residence have free access to the Czech labour market and the employer only has to comply with the notification obligation to the Labour Office. On the other hand, foreigners from third countries usually need a work and residence permit, usually in the form of an employment or blue card, and the job must first be registered as vacant with the Labour Office. At the same time, the employer must check the foreigner’s work authorization, conclude a valid employment contract with the foreigner and observe the same employment conditions as for Czech employees. There are exceptions to the work permit, for example for asylum seekers, some students or scientists. Specific rules also apply to Ukrainian refugees with temporary protection, who can work without a work permit but their employment must be reported to the Labour Office.
The most common is the employee card or blue card. The employee card is used for most jobs and serves as both a residence and work permit. The blue card is for highly skilled workers with higher education and higher wages.
The vacancy must first be registered with the Job Centre for at least 30 days. Only then can a foreigner from a third country be hired if the position cannot be filled by a Czech or European worker.
The employer must have a copy of the document authorising the foreigner to stay and work in the Czech Republic. These documents must be kept for the entire period of employment and for three years after the end of employment.
Employers can be fined up to CZK 10 million for allowing illegal work. Penalties can be imposed on both the employer and the worker.
Yes. The employer is obliged to notify the relevant employment office of the commencement and termination of the employment of the foreigner. The notification must be made no later than the day the employee starts work.
No. If they have been granted temporary protection under a law known as lex Ukraine, they have free access to the Czech labour market. However, the employer must notify the Labour Office of their employment.
It’s not easy to hire someone. Employment law can be complex and sometimes a small deviation from it can cause big problems later. We can help you navigate them and set up employment documents in accordance with the law.
Ondřej is the attorney who came up with the idea of providing legal services online. He's been earning his living through legal services for more than 10 years. He especially likes to help clients who may have given up hope in solving their legal issues at work, for example with real estate transfers or copyright licenses.
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