Czech Republic Visa Information

Learn4good provides general information on study, travel, work visa and business visa requirements and the addresses of embassies worldwide. You should contact your local embassy or consulate for the most up-to-date information or visa forms.

Who requires a visa?
Nationals of the following Countries do not require a visa for tourism and short business trips to the Czech Republic:

Citizens ofEU, EEA, Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein, Switzerland do not require a visa.

All countries and territories that are members of the Schengen acquis, of the EU or of EFTA. Positive visa list of countries (also known as White Schengen List) from whose citizens no visa is required to enter the territory of the EU member states for a period of maximum 90 days.

Albania*****, Andorra***, Antigua and Barbuda , Argentina, Austria*, Australia (including the Cocos Islands, Norfolk Island, Christmas Island)**, Bahamas, Barbados, Belgium*, Bermuda, Bosnia and Herzegovina*****, Brazil***, Brunei, Bulgaria*, Canada**, Chile, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus*, Czech Republic*, Denmark*, El Salvador, Estonia*, Finland*, France*(including French Guyane, French Polynesia, Guadeloupe, Martinique, New Caledonia, Réunion, St Pierre and Miquelon), Germany, Greece*, Guatemala, Honduras***, Hungary*, Iceland**, Ireland*, Israel**, Italy*, Japan**, Korea (South)**, Latvia*, Liechtenstein**, Lithuania*, Luxembourg*, Macao, Macedonia*****, Malaysia, Malta*, Mauritius, Mexico, Monaco***, Montenegro*****, Netherlands*, New Zealand (including the Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelau)**, Nicaragua, Norway*, Panama, Paraguay, Poland*, Portugal*, Romania*, Saint Christopher and Nevis, San Marino***, Serbia******, Seychelles, Singapore, Slovak Republic*, Slovenia*, Spain* (including Spanish territories in North Africa with Ceuta and Melilla), Sweden*, Switzerland**, Taiwan, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (including the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man and Bermuda)*****, United States of America (including Virgin Islands of the United States, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico)**, Uruguay, Vatican City, Venezuela. Without a visa, however, citizens of the above countries may not stay longer than three months every half-year or take up gainful employment requiring a work permit. Excepted are the following.

• * Citizens of European Union member states.
• ** If required, citizens of member states of the European Economic Area and some other countries may obtain a residence and/or work permit after entry.
• *** Provided that they do not intend to enter into employment, citizens of Honduras, Monaco, San Marino may obtain any residence permit required after entry.
• ***** British Nationals (Overseas) with corresponding BN(O) passports are also exempt from the visa requirement.
• ***** The visa waiver applies only to holders of biometric passports.
• ****** The visa waiver applies only to holders of biometric passports (excluding holders of Serbian passports issued by the Serbian Coordination Directorate (in Serbian: Koordinaciona uprava).

Nationals of countries not appearing on the list above require a visa.
The passport must be valid for a period of at least 90 days beyond the expected length of stay in the Czech Republic, counted from the date of entering the Czech Republic.

Schengen – Short Term Visa:
Schengen (short-term) visas, i.e. airport transit visas and visas for stay up to 90 days are issued by diplomatic missions. Schengen (short-term) visa issued by a diplomatic mission of the Czech Republic or of another Schengen state entitles its holder to stay in the territory of the Czech Republic/Schengen area for the period indicated in the visa. Holder of a Schengen (Short-term) visa can stay on the territory of the Czech Republic, unless the Czech Republic has been excluded from the territorial validity of the visa.

Schengen area is formed by the following states:
Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Iceland, Italy, Lithuania, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, Germany, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Austria, Greece, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

“90/180 rule” – According to a “90/180 rule,” a foreigner can stay in the Czech Republic/Schengen area for a maximum of 90 days within any 180 days. After a 90 days long stay, it is necessary to travel out of the Czech Republic/Schengen area. This rule does not pertain to aliens who: (1) are citizens of those countries with which the Czech Republic has concluded a bilateral visa free agreement before its entry into the EU (i.e. Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Croatia, Honduras, Israel, Malaysia, Panama, Republic of Korea, Singapore, Uruguay) – these aliens however need to travel out of the Schengen area after a 90 days long stay at least for one day; (2) stayed in the Czech Republic/Schengen area based on a Schengen visa and their subsequent stay will be based on a Czech national visa (these visas are issued only in exceptional cases); (3) will stay in the Czech Republic based on a long-term visa or long-term residency permit.

The validity period of a Schengen (short-term) visa is determined in accordance with the length of travel, for a maximum of 5 years. According to expected number of stays, Schengen (short-term) visa may be issued as follows:

• single entry – entitles to a single uninterrupted stay during the period stipulated in the visa, which may not exceed 90 days;
• double entry visa – entitles to two stays during the period stipulated in the visa, while the sum of the lengths of stay may not exceed 90 days within 180 days;
• multiple entry visa – entitles to multiple stays during the period stipulated in the visa, while the sum of the lengths of stay may not exceed 90 days within a 180 days.
• Schengen visa with validity longer than 180 days are issued for a period of stay of 90 days.

Temporary stay in Czech Republic without a visa:
Persons belonging to one of the following categories may stay temporarily in the Czech Republic/Schengen area without a visa:

• citizens of the EU, Iceland, Norway, Lichtenstein, and Switzerland 
• citizens/holders of travel documents of a state, with which there exists visa-free regime
• holders of long-term visa "D" issued by any Schengen state - this visa contains a function of a Schengen (short-term) visa;
• holders of a long-term or permanent residence permit in another Schengen state and the stay in the Czech Republic does not exceed 90 days (3 months);
• pupils who is not a citizen of an EU Member State but who resides in another EU Member State and travels on a school trip within the EU as a member of a group of pupils accompanied by a teacher, and is included in the list of pupils issued by the school on a unified form, which includes identity of the pupils, the purpose and length of stay or transit;
• family member of EU Citizen who is not an EU citizen himself/herself and holds a valid „Residence card of a family member of a Union citizen“ issued in accordance with the article 10 of the Directive 2004/38/ES or a valid permanent residence card issued in accordance with the article 20 of the Directive 2004/38/ES in the territory of another EU Member State, and the stay in the territory of the Czech Republic does not exceed 90 days (3 months)
• holders of a permanent residence permit with granted legal status of a European Community resident in the territory of another EU Member State and the stay in the Czech Republic does not exceed 90 days (3 months) 
• family members of EU citizens whose visa for a short-stay up to 90 days or transit visa has expired, provided he/she stays in the Czech Republic with an EU citizen and the period of stay does not exceed 90 days (3 months).

What documents will be required?
– All applications must be made in person. Postal applications will not be accepted.
– Please note that only applications with all of the supporting documents as specified below will be accepted.
– In some cases further documents and guarantees will be required with your application, e.g. return airplane ticket, sponsorship letter, invitation from your business partner in the Czech Republic, etc.
– All original documents have to be presented with a photocopy. You won’t be able to make them once you are inside the premises. Otherwise the originals will not be returned.
– Each applicant needs to present a separate application form and a separate set of documents.
– Applicants can apply up to 3 months before planned travel, but at least 15 days before planned travel.
1 – An original application form completed legibly and signed by the applicant or the legal guardian for children. (Each child endorsed in a passport and also travelling needs to present a separate application form with a photograph and birth certificate.)
2 a) – A passport valid for at least 90 days beyond the validity of the requested visa (with a blank visa page to affix the visa sticker).Passport must be issued within the last 10 years.
2 b) – and also a photocopy of your passport (only the data page with your photograph, signature and passport validity
3 – One recent passport photograph (please attach your photograph with glue, do not staple).
4 – Proof of your current occupation or your student status (either a recent original letter from your employer, solicitor, Company House or Chamber of Commerce or for students a recent original letter from your school, college or university. Please note that pay slips, work contracts and Student ID cards are not accepted).
5 – Proof of sufficient financial funds to cover the cost of your intended stay, e.g. a recent bank statement with your name, amounting to a minimum of GBP 30.00 for each day of your stay, traveller´s cheques, a credit card, etc. Please note that cash is no acceptable proof.
6 – Proof of valid travel insurance (including Terms and Conditions) covering medical expenses, including emergency hospital treatment and repatriation, for the entire duration of your stay in the Schengen area, also mentioning name of the person, period of cover and medical coverage (minimum GBP 20,000). A policy number only is not sufficient.
7 – Alternatively, you can submit a Letter of Invitation certified by the Alien and Border Police in the Czech Republic as proof of financial funds and travel insurance.
8 – Proof of accommodation for your entire stay in the Schengen area.
9 – The applicable visa fee.
10 – If you wish to have the passport returned by mail, pre-paid self-addressed Special Delivery Envelope.

VISAPOINT
VISAPOINT is an online system operated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic allowing foreigners to register for submission of applications for visas for long-term stay over 90 days in the territory of the Czech Republic.

VISAPOINT also serves for registration of applicants for a long-term or permanent residence permit in the territory of the Czech Republic. Registration in such cases is voluntary.
The primary objective of the VISAPOINT system is to ensure equal and equitable access to every applicant, to establish equal conditions for submission of applications for long-term visas for a stay over 90 days at the diplomatic mission, to increase the effectiveness of the visa process and last but not least to ensure comfort for the applicants.

At present, system VISAPOINT is used at the consulates in Russian Federation, Albania, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, China, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Serbia, Thailand, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Moldova, Turkey, Macedonia, Ukraine, Nigeria, Jordan, United Arab Emirates, Philippines, Azerbaijan, Libya, Egypt and Indonesia.

Time required to issue a visa:
Application for a Schengen (short-term) visa can be filed within 3 months of the planned trip. Applications are in most cases reviewed within 7-15 days. In individual cases, the review period can be extended up to 30 days and in exceptional cases up to 60 days. It is recommended not to file a visa application later than 15 days before the trip, as it cannot be otherwise guaranteed it will be reviewed in time. Holders of multiple Schengen (short-term) visa can file a visa application before the current visa has expires, provided it has been valid for at least 6 months. Visa applications of family members of EU citizens will be reviewed in the shortest possible period of time. In case of visa refusal followed by an appeal of the applicant, the processing time of the appeal is 30 days.

Refusal to issue a visa:
The applicant for a Schengen visa can appeal the refusal of a visa within 15 days from receiving the written decision about the visa refusal. The written appeal should be lodged at the Embassy which refused the visa application. The appeal has to state the information about the applicant and specific reasons for lodging the appeal. Information that was not stated in the visa application cannot be a reason for lodging the appeal. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will review the request in 30 days; outcome of the review is sent through a diplomatic mission.

Embassy contact information:
Please contact the nearest Czech Republic embassy for information on what documentation you may require to enter Czech Republic.

Disclaimer: The contents of these pages are provided as an information guide only, in good faith. The use of this website is at the viewer/user's sole risk. While every effort is made in presenting up-to-date and accurate information, no responsibility or liability is accepted by the owners to this website for any errors, omissions, outdated or misleading information on these pages or any site to which these pages connect or are linked.

Source & Copyright: The source of the above visa and immigration information and copyright owner/s is the:
- Ministerstvo zahraničních věcí České republiky - URL: www.mzv.cz

The viewer/user of this web page should use the above information as a guideline only, and should always contact the above sources or the user's own government representatives for the most up-to-date information at that moment in time, before making a final decision to travel to that country or destination.