Work permit in Czech Republic is rubbish! Go for Blue or Employee card.

Those who want to work here often think obtaining a work permit in Czech Republic is the only way to go. In fact, work permit is the least efficient document for a foreigner. Just compare it to other types of permits that the government issues! Applying for a Blue Card or an Employee Card you save yourself a lot of time and effort. This article outlines the main differences between these three types of permits. It also touches on the basic requirements for obtaining a Blue Card or an Employee Card.

Attention: I updated the article to reflect the changes in the Act on the Residence of Foreign Nationals that come in effect on July 31st 2019.

When can I apply for a Blue Card?

First of all, before you applu for a Blue Card, you need to find an employer who’s willing to “sponsor” your Blue Card application. Having a strong CV increases your chances of convincing an employer to embark on this journey. Doing your research on the topic of foreigners’ employment in Czech Republic will also equip you well. So, make sure you have those two covered – our website offers plenty of resources for that. So, let’s look into this…

A Blue Card can be issued if…

The vacancy requires at least 3 years of tertiary education or post-secondary education (e.g. Bc. degree or Associate degree)
The salary is at least 1,5 times higher than the official average before-tax salary defined by the MLSA at the time of application (the average is defined as 31885 CZK/month for May 2019 – April 2020)
The vacancy offers regular 40 hours work week for duration of at least one year of employment
The employer announced the vacancy to their local Labour office using this form
The business agreed that the Labour office has 30 days to find a suitable candidate among EU citizens or their family members
The employer also agreed that after 30 days the Labour office would post this vacancy on the portal for vacancies suitable for a Blue Card (the one you’ll then use to find this job and apply for your Blue Card)

Thirty days later the vacancy is available on the portal for vacancies suitable for a Blue Card. Now you can apply for your Blue Card for that vacancy. By this time, you should have signed a contract with your future employer, i.e. poster of that vacancy. Alternatively, you should have a pre-contract expressing their intent of hiring you in case you obtain your Blue Card. Submit the application at the embassy in your country of residence, although, in some cases you can do it in Czech Republic. The whole process breakdown is available in English on the web pages of the Ministry of the Interior.

The ministry can issue a Blue Card for the duration of your contract, plus 3 months. However, maximum duration cannot exceed 2 years. You can renew it after 2 years, repeatedly.

Terminating or changing employment with a Blue Card in Czech Republic

If you want to terminate or change your employment during the first two years of holding a Blue Card, first you must ask the Department of the Asylum and Migration Policy of MOI to approve it. Fill in this form and deliver it to their local office. They usually approve it within 30 days, if your new job qualifies for the above-mentioned conditions for a Blue Card. After 2 years of holding this card, you have more freedom. You just need to announce such termination or change by delivering this other form. You don’t need to wait for their approval.

When can I apply for an Employee Card?

An Employee Card can be issued if…

The salary is higher than the minimum wage defined by the law (it’s 13350 CZK/month in 2019) regardless of the number of working hours required by the contract
The vacancy offers at least 15 hours work week (ignore this if the foreigner has a full-time job with a valid employee card already and they would take this new job as a side-employment)
The employer announced the vacancy to their local Labour office using this form
The business agreed that the Labour office has 30 days to find a suitable candidate among EU citizens or their family members
The employer also agreed that after 30 days the Labour office would post this vacancy on the portal for vacancies suitable for an Employee Card (the one you’ll then use to find this job and apply for your Employee Card)

Thirty days later the vacancy is available on the portal for job offers suitable for an Employee Card. Now you can apply for your Employee Card for that vacancy. You should already have a signed contract with the poster of that vacancy. Alternatively, at least have a pre-contract where they express their willingness to employ you once you obtain your card. Normally, you’d apply for an Employee Card outside of Czech Republic, at the embassy in your country of residence. In some exceptional cases you can do it in Czech Republic, or in other countries as well. To read more about the application process in English visit the web pages of the Ministry of the Interior.

The ministry can issue an Employee Card for the duration of your contract, for no more than 2 years though. You can repeatedly renew it afterwards, each time for no longer than 2 years.

Changing or quitting your job with an Employee Card in Czech Republic

Your Employee Card is only valid for 60 days after you end the employment for which it’s been issued. Therefore, if you stop working for the company, for which you obtained your Employee Card, you need to find a new job quickly.

Finishing work as per the agreed duration of your employment contract

Your new job must be compliant with all the requirements for Employee Card issuance, because you’ll need to request a new Employee Card for this job.

In that case you have to apply for your new Employee Card at least 30 days before planned start of your new employment. Use the standard application form for “issuing or extending validity of Employee Card” available on this page on MOI website. You can start in your new job as soon as you receive MOI’s approval. You don’t need to wait for a physical copy of your new Employee Card.

Quitting or changing your employer with your Employee Card

In case you decide to terminate or change your job for which you obtained your Employee Card, and you want to do that before your original contract ends, consider the following:

You will need to announce the change to MOI
Keep in mind the 60 days deadline after termination of your original employment, it is applicable here as well
You must announce the change at least 30 days before it actually happens and prove all the formalities
To announce the change, use the application form for change of employer on MOI’s website
Find all formalities in the form itself, make sure you submit everything they require
You can submit everything in-person or via Data mailbox, which I strongly recommend, as it saves you a ton of time and effort of going to MOI every time. MOI’s data mailbox ID is in the form.
You can start in your new employment when MOI confirms to you, or to your new employer, that they had obtained your announcement of change. You don’t need their approval, but the confirmation that they’ve obtained your announcement form. However, they won’t issue it if your announcement form had issues or your submitted documents were incomplete.
Attention! Such change cannot be announced during the first 6 months of your employment in the role for which you obtained your current Employee Card. That, unless it’s one of the exceptional cases when you can change your employer within 6 months and keep your Employee Card.

By now you should be convinced you don’t need a work permit in Czech republic and a Blue or Employee card is way better. Where to learn more about this?

Check out our recent article about how you can find an employer who will gladly “sponsor” your Blue Card or Employee Card application, if you want to know more about most efficient ways of targeting such employers. Otherwise, if you insist on ‘work permit’ scenario, keep reading.

When can I apply for a work permit in Czech Republic?

A work permit can be issued…

for a foreigner who doesn’t qualify as someone who has free access to the Czech job market
for any job that can (but doesn’t have to) be advertised by the employer’s local Labour office
in case the Labour office fails to find a suitable candidate among EU citizens and their family members to fill that vacancy

Apart from those who already reside in this country based on some type of long-term residence permit (e.g. business owners, investors etc.), this scenario is also relevant for…

employees of foreign non-EU companies that send them here temporarily or
people who apply for internships in Czech companies or
those who work here based on some international governmental agreements

Why is aiming for a work permit in Czech Republic a bad idea?

Currently, you can only get a work permit in very specific cases. As a result, this scenario is rarely relevant for someone who has recently decided to migrate here. Besides, the process of obtaining a work permit in Czech Republic is very cumbersome. It’s also very long, because the Labour office doesn’t commit to any deadline. Therefore, for most people it’s not worth the effort. It also doesn’t give you the right to live in the country, i.e. after obtaining a work permit you’d typically need to obtain a residence permit or an Employee Card. Here at PragueReferral.cz we think this option is futile. For that reason, this article doesn’t cover the work permit scenario in detail.

If you are looking for a job in Prague, consider joining our group on Facebook where other professional expats like yourself post jobs regularly and network with each other.

Like this article? Do you want me to continue writing more of this kind of breakdowns? Then consider supporting me by clicking here and ‘buying me a coffee’. 😉 Thank you!