Significant changes proposed related to employment of foreigners in the Czech Republic

The change would cancel the need for nationals from Australia, Canada, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, the United Kingdom and the United States to obtain work permits to be able to work in the Czech Republic. This would mean that such nationals would have free access to the Czech labor market and would generally just need to acquire a residence permit to be able to work and live in the Czech Republic. The proposed amendment to Act on Employment is planned to be effective from 1 July 2024.

This will allow Czech employers to employ nationals from the listed countries without the need to advertise the position, which they will fill, as vacant in the Central Registry of Job Vacancies. This will help speed up the employment of the foreigner especially in the case of an individual who would normally have to apply for an employee card as in such case the position needs to be advertised for 30 days before it can be offered to the foreigner (this requirement will be cancelled as of 1 July 2024).

The change would also allow the listed nationals who have a Czech employee card to change their employer without the need to file the announcement of such change in advance and wait for its approval by the Czech immigration authorities. It will only be necessary to report the change to the Czech Ministry of Interior within 3 working days of the change.

The proposed change of the law has been put forward as a way to help fill the long-standing shortage of skilled and highly skilled workers in the Czech labor market. The countries in the list were selected as they have high levels of education and are considered safe by the Czech Ministry of Interior.
According to the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs nationals from the selected countries have also historically not violated the Czech immigration or labor law and also have been able to integrate into Czech society. 

While the proposed change may make it easier for Czech employers to hire the nationals from the selected countries, it is worth mentioning that a permit which would allow an individual to live in the Czech Republic (e.g. non dual employee card, etc.) still needs to be obtained. This proces can take a fair bit of time as it necessary to gather multiple documents for the permit application and wait for the Czech authorities to process the application (this takes usually at least 90 days).

It must also be mentioned that the situation might bring potential inconveniences for the family members of the individuals concerned.
Currently the requirement to obtain a dual employee card or the blue card in order to work and live in the Czech Republic protects also the family members of the employed individual, as it assures them the rights equal to the rights of the Czech citizens in certain areas (e.g. in the social security area). 

The newly implemented legislation will not ensure such protection of the family members of the foreigner employed in the Czech Republic without a work permit. On the other hands, the change of legislation does not prevent the citizens of the countries concerned to apply for the standard immigration documents (i.e. dual employee cards, blue cards, etc.). It only brings certain advantages to those of them who would decide not to go through the standard immigration process in the Czech Republic due to its time demands and/or administrative burden.

If you have any questions regarding the above updates, please do not hesitate to contact our specialists.

Authors:

Bryan McSweeny, Tax Manager
Gabriela Ivanco, Tax manager