Czechia
Living, work, immigration, education & business — official links and practical guides
Key Facts
Basics
Economy
Source: World Bank Open Data (CC BY 4.0) · 2024 · Last checked: 2026-07-06
Tax snapshot
- Gains on shares held for more than three years are exempt (the CZK 40m cap was abolished from 2026); shorter holdings are taxed as income at 15% or 23%.
Source: National tax authority · Cross-check: OECD · PwC · KPMG · Last checked: 2026-07-16
Headline statutory rates. The income-tax figure includes national surtaxes; any regional or municipal layer is shown beside it. Social contributions and reliefs are excluded. Verify the current rate with the authority before relying on it.
At a glance
An EU state whose administration runs on registers: a company exists from its entry in the commercial register, a job has to sit in the Labour Office's vacancy database before a non-EU worker can apply for it, and foreign nationals report their address to the Foreign Police within days of arriving. The authorities write to companies through a data box, an official electronic mailbox. Costs are moderate for the EU, and there is a national minimum wage — CZK 22,400 a month in 2026.
Best for
Founders who want a limited company with almost no capital requirement, employers recruiting non-EU staff through a defined vacancy-database route, and EU citizens looking for moderate costs in Central Europe.
Who this may not suit
Anyone who expects to form a company entirely online without a notary, or non-EU applicants hoping to arrive first and find a job afterwards.
Main routes in
Key trade-offs
- Most work routes for non-EU nationals start from a specific vacancy, so the job offer comes before the permit, not after.
- Supporting documents for residence applications must be in Czech or officially translated, which adds time and cost.
- Non-EU residents outside the public health system must buy comprehensive commercial health insurance for their whole stay.
First steps
- 1 Report your place of stay to the Foreign Police within three working days of arriving (EU citizens: within 30 days, if staying over 30 days).
- 2 Sort out health insurance: an employer enrols you in the public system, otherwise you need commercial cover.
- 3 If you are starting a company, book the notary and decide on a registered office first; the data box is set up once the company is registered.
What changes often
- · The minimum wage, set by government regulation for each calendar year
- · The income threshold for the 23% tax rate, which follows the average wage
- · Rules and processing practice for Employee Cards and other residence permits
Residence rules, document lists and processing practice change — confirm them with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the Ministry of the Interior before applying. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic — Entry & Residence ↗