Amendment to the Act on the Residence of Foreign Nationals in the Czech Republic

On 1 August 2017, Amendment no. 222/2017 Sb. was published in the Collection of Laws, which amends Act no. 326/1999 Sb. on the Residence of Foreign Nationals in the Czech Republic, referred to as the Foreigners Act. The act comes into effect on 15th day after its publication, which means 15 August 2017.

The amendment should make the conditions for the residence of foreign nationals more stringent and restrict in particular economic migration.

The main changes in the amendment relate to limiting the rights of foreigners to family reunification. This involves foreigners who come from a non-EU country and reside in the Czech Republic without a valid visa.

Another important step towards limiting economic migration relates to sanctions for covert agency employment without a permit from the labour office. An employer who employs someone illegally, who is indebted, or who does not pay insurance for its employees will be designated as unreliable and will not be permitted to employ foreigners.

As for proceedings relating to residency, the amendment allows proceedings to be terminated if the applicant does not show up at the interview without good reason or if the applicant lies or submits false documents at the interview. Any conviction of the applicant for an intentional criminal act will now be taken into consideration.

On the other hand, the amendment also introduces some benefits and simplification relating to work and doing business in the Czech Republic by foreigners. Intra-corporate employee transfer cards will be introduced, which means that employees will not need to extend their visas after three months and may reside in the Czech Republic for a period of six months without applying for an extension.

A completely new feature is the investment visa, which the law has thus far not taken into account. Investment visas will be primarily for foreigners who intend to significantly invest in the Czech Republic. The requirements for this visa type are the creation of 20 job positions and an investment of at least CZK 20 million.