What to look out for when employing foreigners

EU citizens, foreigners with permanent residence in the Czech Republic and foreigners from third countries

At the outset, it should be understood 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.

1) EU nationals and their family members

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. You must inform the relevant employment office in writing no later than on the day of the hiring of the foreigner. Similarly, you as an employer must inform the labour office no later than 10 days after termination of employment.

2) Foreigners with permanent residence in the Czech Republic

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.

3) Foreign nationals from third countries without permanent residence

If you want to take on a non-EU citizen and non-permanent resident in your company, you need to obtain both a work permit and a residence permit. Both permits are related. The residence permit is usually issued by the Aliens Police on the basis of a statement by the employer that he or she will employ the foreigner.

You must first report the vacancy to the Job Centre

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 breaching labour law by the Labour Inspectorate.

Exceptions – who doesn’t also need a work permit?

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, artists, scientists and researchers, sportspeople, and students under 26 years of age under certain conditions (if they work only a few days a year).

Beware of heavy fines

Before a foreigner starts working for you, check their work permit (or documents to prove they don’t need one) carefully 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.

Skilled Employee Programme

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.

Employment of Ukrainian refugees

Russia’s aggression and war in Ukraine has brought thousands of Ukrainian refugees with it 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. Ukrainian refugees, on the other hand, do not need a work permit. However, you must report their work contract to the employment office.

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.

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.