Radio and TV licence fee: who has to pay and when can I opt out?

Who has to pay the radio and television licence fee

In the Czech Republic, radio and television fees are compulsory for anyone who owns equipment that allows them to watch Czech Television or Radio, regardless of whether they actually use the equipment to receive Czech Television or Czech Radio broadcasts. This includes virtually everyone, as public service media can also be watched on a computer, tablet or smartphone. This fee applies even if you only watch commercial platforms such as Hulu, Netflix or HBO on TV.

What’s also important to note is that these fees are not per person, by number of devices, or for multiple properties you own. They apply to the household as a whole. That means it doesn’t matter if your household is made up of yourself or 10 people, and it doesn’t matter if you have 20 TVs or none. Similarly, you only pay one charge if you own a house, flat and cottage.

Don’t have a TV, radio, computer, or smartphone you still have to pay for?

If you do not own any device that can enable you to watch Czech TV or radio, you are not obliged to pay the TV and radio fee. However, it is possible that you may still receive a notice from Czech TV or Radio that they have you as an unregistered payer based on data from your electricity provider. In this case, you must send an affidavit to Czech Television and Radio within 30 days stating that you do not own a TV or radio. However, if you own a car and have a car radio in it, then you are subject to the radio charge and must pay it.

Who does not pay the radio and TV licence fee

Some households are exempt from paying the TV and radio charge. Specifically, they fall into three groups:

1. Disabled households: households where all members are totally or almost totally blind or partially or partially deaf do not have to pay the fees. However, if the household includes a person or persons who do not have this disability, then the household is obliged to pay the fees.
2. Socially disadvantaged households: Fees are not payable by households whose total sum of the net income of all members in one calendar quarter does not exceed 2.15 times the minimum subsistence level (for 2025 the minimum subsistence level per individual is set at CZK 4 860 per month). To confirm this, you must provide proof of your income. The fee waiver then lasts for six months and then you must again provide proof of income.
3. Foreigners: Households made up of foreigners who are not permanent or long-term residents do not have to pay.

What the radio and TV licence fee is paid for

The purpose of the licence fee is to finance the public media – specifically Czech Television and Czech Radio. These institutions are defined as public service broadcasters and aim to provide objective, balanced and broad spectrum information, news, educational, cultural and entertainment content to the public. The concession fee therefore serves to enable these institutions to operate independently of political and commercial influences, which is considered a prerequisite for media freedom and pluralism. This, in turn, is one of the foundations of a democratic state.

However, you are not just paying for the television or radio broadcasts themselves. For example, the CT levy also partly finances popular programmes, new films and series or the annual Christmas cartoons. The Czech Radio fee also partially finances increasingly popular podcasts such as Lucie the Excellent or Kriminálka s Mirko Vaňura.

How to sign up for the radio and TV fee

There are three ways to sign up for the TV licence fee :

1. The easiest way is online directly on the Czech Television website. Here you can create an account using your email address. You enter basic information (your name, date of birth and permanent address), choose the frequency of payments and the payment method. You can pay monthly, quarterly, semi-annually or annually. You can pay by card or bank transfer.
2. The second option is to download a form which you fill in and then send to the Czech Television’s email: poplatky@ceskatelevize.cz, to their mailbox: ID y7rjeuf or by post to Czech Television, Television Fees, Kavčí hory, 140 70 Prague 4. You can pay again in four different frequencies, by card or bank transfer.
3. The third option is to sign up for the fee at the Czech Post and pay using SIPO. This allows you to combine all the different payments into one. You can solve e.g. utility, telephone, insurance, TV and radio charges.

You can also sign up for the radio licence fee in three ways:

1. Again, online directly on the Czech Radio website with the same details and the same payment frequency options. Payment is made by bank transfer.
2. You can also sign up by filling in the registration form, which you can then send to the Czech Radio email: poplatek@rozhlas.cz, to the data box ID rnaadje or by post to the address Czech Radio – radio fees, Vinohradská 1409/12, 120 99 PRAHA 2.
3. The third option is again the SIPO service from the Czech Post.

How much does the radio and TV fee cost?

For the whole household, a total of CZK 150 per month is paid for TV andCZK 55 per month for radio. The due date is always the 15th of the month, regardless of whether you pay monthly, quarterly, half-yearly or annually.

Companies and self-employed persons

As of 1 May 2025, the system of radio and television fees for legal entities and self-employed persons has also changed fundamentally. Now companies no longer pay fees according to the number of TV or radio receivers they own, but according to the number of employees. This eliminated the long-criticised model whereby even unused devices could trigger payment obligations. Small businesses and sole traders with no employees are usually completely exempt from the fees. By contrast, larger companies with tens or hundreds of employees pay a higher fee, graduated according to the size of the business. The aim of this change is to spread the costs more fairly between households and businesses and to ensure stable funding for public service media.

What if you don’t pay?

If you don’t sign up for the fees when you should, you will incur a debt and a surcharge on top of that. The surcharge is CZK 10 000 for television and CZK 5 000 for radio. If you are excluded from paying the fees (e.g. due to low income) but have not reported this, then you must pay a surcharge of CZK 1,000 for both radio and TV.

If you do not pay at all, Czech Television and Czech Radio will go to collect this amount. In addition to the total amount, you will also have to pay interest, court costs and possible execution. It is therefore worth not ignoring the fees.

Radio and TV fees – change of payment method

The TV licence fee can be paid in several ways:

• By standing order from the bank.
• By credit card or card-linked methods (e.g. Apple Pay, Google Pay).
• Express bank transfer.
• SIPO.

Changing a SIPO payment to a direct payment can be done online on the Czech Television website or by filling in a special form, which you then need to send by one of the following methods:

• By e-mail to: poplatky@ceskatelevize.cz.
• By mail to ID: y7rjeuf.
• By post to Czech Television, Television Fees, Kavčí hory, 140 70 Prague 4.

Similarly for the radio fee. You can send it to the Czech Radio account, pay online or pay via SIPO. To change SIPO payments to direct payments, you can visit the Czech Radio website or fill in and send in a change request form.

Cancellation of TV and radio fees

You can cancel your TV and radio charges in several cases. In particular, these are situations where:

• The payer has died: If the deceased paid the fees via SIPO, they must be cancelled at the Czech Post Office. To do this, the death certificate and the SIPO connection number must be presented. If the deceased paid directly into the account of Czech Television or Czech Radio, the death certificate must be sent to the email, data box or address of Czech Television or Czech Radio.
• You no longer have a device capable of playing public service media.
• You have joined a new household with someone who already pays the fees: send the variable number of this payer to the Czech Television or Radio and submit the TV or radio fee opt-out form with it.

Summary

The obligation to pay the radio and television licence fee is linked to the ownership of a device capable of receiving public service broadcasting – for example, a television, radio, computer or smartphone. It does not depend on the number of devices or the property, but is always paid for the whole household. The fee is CZK 150 per month for television and CZK 55 for radio.

Households where all members are totally or practically blind or deaf, households with low incomes (up to 2.15 times the minimum subsistence level) and foreigners without permanent or long-term residence are exempt from the fee. Exceptions must be documented.

The fee can be applied for online, by form or via SIPO. Non-payment can lead to fines (up to CZK 10,000) and subsequent enforcement. Opting out is possible if the equipment is lost, the fee payer dies or moves to a household where someone is already paying the fees.