Work Conditions for Foreigners
Work Conditions for Foreigners
How do I know whether I can work in the CR with no need of a special document or whether I need an employee card or a blue card?
If you are an EU citizen or a family member of an EU citizen, then you do not need the employee card. If you are a student, you can also work in the CR without any restrictions (provided that you are studying a full-time programme, which you have not suspended). If you stay in the CR based on a long-term residence permit for the purpose of family reunification with a spouse who has a permanent residence permit, you do not need a work permit either.
If you have graduated after studying in the CR, you do not need a work permit to obtain employment here. However, if the purpose of your stay is employment, you need an employee card, which will serve as a residence permit.
If you want to do a job which requires a higher level of qualification (higher vocational education or university education), you are required to apply for a blue card. In all other cases you must apply for the employee card.
Citizens of the EU/EEA and Switzerland and their family members do not need an employment permit, an Employee Card, a Blue Card, or an Intra-Company Employee Transfer Card to be able to get employed in the Czech Republic.
Family members of citizens of the Czech Republic who are not EU citizens may enter the labour market without an employment permit, an Employee Card, a Blue Card, or an Intra-Company Employee Transfer Card, if that they have obtained a temporary residence permit in form of a residence card for family members of EU citizens issued by the Ministry of the Interior, or if they can prove (by a record in the travel document or an official confirmation) that they have applied for temporary residence permit for family members of EU citizens.
Employee Card
The employee card is basically a dual permit as the card entitles you to legally reside in the CR and at the same time it functions as permission for employment. The card has been issued since spring 2014 by the Ministry of the Interior of the CR, the Department of Asylum and Migration Policy,and it replaces the long-term visa and residence permit for the purpose of employment and the green card.
The employee card is a plastic card with biometric elements, which is issued for a maximum period of 2 years. It depends on the duration of your employment contract. You may apply for an extension of the card 120 days before the expiration of the existing card at the earliest and on the last day of its validity at the latest. If you are planning to come to work in the Czech Republic, you have to apply for the card at the Czech diplomatic mision in your country of origin.
The card is always issued for a particular job position which does not require a high level of qualification (that is qualification corresponding with higher vocational education or university education).
The job position has to be published in the following database of vacancies for foreigners on the web portal of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs in the category “Jobs for Foreigners”, see the Vacancies Search.
Which Office to Contact?
The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs provides information on work in the CR and employment agencies and administers the database of vacancies available for migrants:
Work permits are issued by labor offices. They also offer employment consultation for people who lose their job:
- Labour Office (Czech)
Employee cards are issued by the Ministry of the Interior – Department of Asylum and Migration Policy:
Employee cards are issued by the Ministry of the Interior – Department of Asylum and Migration Policy:
The main task of the labor inspectorate is to monitor compliance with obligations arising from labor regulations, including regulations on occupational health and safety. In legitimate cases, the labor inspectorate authorities may impose fines for administrative transgressions and other administrative wrongdoings.