VISA
EU nationals
Nationals of EU/EEA countries and Switzerland have the same legal status in the Czech Republic as Czech nationals. There is no need to get any residence permit or work permit. From the practical point of view, it is good to distinguish between short-term stays, where contracts for short-term work (DPP or DPČ) are concluded, and long-term stays, where regular long-term employment contracts are concluded.
If you come from an EU/EEA country or Switzerland, you are obliged to comply with the “Reporting duty” if you intend to stay in the Czech Republic for over 30 days. For more details, see Section “After arrival”.
Nationals of EU/EEA countries and Switzerland can temporarily stay in the Czech Republic without any special permit, solely on the basis of a travel document or an identity card. If they intend to stay in the Czech Republic for longer than 3 months, they can apply for a certificate of temporary residence or a permanent residence permit.
Certificate of temporary residence
Issued at request of an EU national who intends to stay in the Czech Republic for more than 3 months. The certificate is not required, it is up to you whether or not you apply for it.
Permanent residency permit
EU nationals can apply for permanent residence permits after 5 years of continuous residence in the Czech Republic.
Nationals of non-EU countries
Short-term stay – Schengen visa (not longer than 90 days)
A short-term stay is a stay not exceeding 90 days within any of 180 consecutive days (note: the length of stay is calculated according to the entry and exit stamps into the relevant travel document made at the border-crossing point). For the purposes of such short-term stays, European legislation divides third countries into those whose citizens must hold a visa, and those whose citizens are exempt from such conditions for entry and short-term stay in the members states where the common visa policy applies.
The visa application must be submitted personally at a Czech embassy and all documents must be completed in Czech or officially translated into Czech. For more details, see Section “Before arrival”.
Long-term stay (more than 90 days)
The visa application needs to be submitted at a Czech embassy in the country of origin of the relevant person or in the country where he/she resides, and the deadline for evaluation of the application is 60 days from the date of submission.
All documents submitted must be originals or official copies and must be in the Czech language or officially translated into Czech. Moreover, an apostille or legalisation must be attached to any documents issued by foreign public authorities. Official translations can usually be obtained at the embassy.
Useful links and guides
Ministry of the Interior
http://www.mvcr.cz/mvcren/article/immigration.aspx
Czech embassies