Visa

Behind the scenes of acquiring long term visa for the Czech Republic (non-EU citizens) – Part I.


If you are from Non EU country and you want to stay in Prague or The Czech Republic longer than 3 months, a long-term visa is in most cases, the first step in the process. In this blog, we’ll tell you how to get the long-term visa officially and legally and also how it works in real life. Let´s start with the official part and get to the real world later.

Official part of the long term visa process in the Czech Republic

Who needs the long term visa?

First of all, let us explain when you need to apply for the long-term visa. If you are an non EU citizen, you always need a visa to legally come to the Czech Republic (see EXCEPTION below). You need to apply for a short-term visa if your stay will not exceed 90 days. You need to apply for a long-term visa if you want to stay longer than 90 days.

EXCEPTION: There are some states whose citizens are allowed to stay in the Czech Republic for 90 days without any visa required. Please find a list of them at this link.

Types of long term visa for the Czech Republic

You need to know what you want to do here or why you want to relocate to Prague or The Czech Republic before applying for the long-term visa. Every visa application has to have a purpose. There are basically five different types of long-term visas for the Czech Republic, or maybe it’s better to say five different purposes for you stay.

The long term STUDY visa

This type of long-term visa is suitable for students (mostly university students) applying for schools (universities) accredited by The Czech Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports (find and search for MOE accredited universities at this link – only in Czech). This type of visa is easiest to get approved if your intention of studying in the Czech Republic is real.

The long term BUSINESS visa

This type of long-term visa is suitable for freelancers or self employed people using a trade license (Zivnostenske opravneni) or business owners using s.r.o. (limited) companies. Mostly English teachers or simply anyone who wants to start working in the Czech Republic immediately uses this type of visa. Let us explain why.

The main reason is that as a non EU citizen you need a special work permit called an Employee Card (see below) if you want to work legally in the Czech Republic. This is very hard to get (better say very very time consuming) and employers usually do not want to go through the visa process for regular employees. If you were applying for a high managerial position or your employer is big international company with their own visa department you might have a chance, but in most cases it is a no go. To have regular employees is also much more expensive for your employer so they prefer to hire you as a contractor instead of employing you. Moreover, you can include 80 different fields of business in your trade license, (read more about trade license for your long term business visa application here) which basically allows you to do everything except being a doctor or rocket engineering.

Employee card (former long term WORK visa)

This type of visa is great when you have it, but to get it can be a real pain in the you know what… You first need to find an employer who wants to hire you. They must advertise the job offer on a special website to prove that no Czech person is interested in that position. Only after this are you allowed to apply for the employee card. It takes up to 60 days to get it approved and during that time you are not officially allowed to work, so your employer basically needs to wait for about 3 months before you can start work, which is mostly unacceptable.

Long term FAMILY REUNIFICATION visa

This type of long-term visa is suitable for people whose family members already live in the Czech Republic with a valid long-term visa or long-term residence card.

Long term OTHER visa

This type of long-term visa can theoretically cover any other purpose of your stay, but in our experience one of the only reasonable purposes you can use for this type of visa is studying in non-accredited university or studying Czech language courses.

Documents required for a long term visa for the Czech Republic

Theoretically, the process is pretty simple and not too many documents are required for the long-term visa, but it can get pretty complicated sometimes. Let starts with the basics first. The Following documents are required for all the types of long term visas for the Czech Republic.

  • Visa application
  • Passport (not older than 10 years, at least 2 blank pages, valid for at least one more year)
  • 2 passport photos
  • Proof of accommodation (see more about this document in this blog)
  • Proof of funds (see more about this document in this blog)
  • Documents on the purpose of your stay (university admission letter, trade license, work contract, etc.)

The immigration authority might additionally ask you for following documents:

  • Police clearance certificate/Background check
  • Medical report

IMPORTANT NOTICE: All the documents submitted for your long term visa application must be originals or notarized copies. All of them must be in Czech or officially translated into Czech. All of them (except your passport) must be younger than 180 days. In addition to that, all documents issued outside of the territory of the Czech Republic must be superlegalised or apostilled first (see wikipedia here)!

When you have all the documents ready, you can apply for the long-term visa for the Czech Republic. In general, you can only apply in the country of your origin or in the country of your permanent residence. Of course, there are again some exceptions (see below) 🙂

EXCEPTION: Citizens of countries listed in this list are allowed to apply in any Czech Embassy in the world outside of the territory of the Czech Republic. The list is basically the same as the list of countries whose nationals are allowed to stay in the Czech Republic for 90 days without any visa requirements (see above).

IMPORTANT NOTE: You cannot just go to the embassy; you need to arrange an appointment in advance first. Be advised that it takes sometimes even several weeks to get an appointment in the most popular embassies such as the ones in Berlin, Vienna, or Bratislava.

Read the real world part of the visa process in Behind the scenes of acquiring the long term visa for the Czech Republic (outside EU citizens) Part II.

Thank you very much for reading this blog. Do you have any questions about the long-term visa for the Czech Republic? Do you want us to help you with applying for the long-term visa? Contact us anytime (really, we work 24/7), go to our visa assistance service page, our Trade license assistance page or read more about some specific part of the visa process in some of our other blog posts.

119 Comments

      • Hi Shanky,

        thank you for your comment.

        Chance for approval of all visa types depend on one fact – how real you are about your plan.

        If you are seriously interested in studying in Prague, if you have carefully chosen the school, if you are really interested in the course, than your chances are high.

        If you are not really sure why you wanna study in Prague, you are not really enthusiastic about it and/or you just apply for the visa to get out of your country and get a residence permit in Europe, your chance are not high.

        The whole point of the visa process is to see that your intentions are real and not fake. So if you are real and your story makes sense, you´ll be fine. If you are not real, do not even try.

        I am sorry if it sounds too sincere but this is just how it is. We have seen thousands of applications and applicants so we can say.

        Hope this helps and wish you a wonderful day!

        Jan on behalf of the whole team

  • Hi i would like to ask..Im from Philippines and i applied EmployeeCard last Sept 19,2016..Until now ..its more than 4months no decision yet..Doest it means..it is Rejected?why it took so long?

    • Hi Kristine, thank you very much for your comment 🙂 Well, the Ministry of the Interior has up to 90 days to make the decision. Besides that, noone really knows when the 90 days start counting because you apply at the Embassy which falls under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and not under the MOI. So the MFA must send the documents to MOI and it can also cause delays. Anyway, if the approval time exceeds 90 days, you can always send an official letter asking the MOI why it has been taking so long. Waiting that long does not mean it´s been rejected, no worries 🙂 It just means the MOI is not really efficient 🙂

      • If you have an Employee Card, are you allowed to travel for vacation in EU countries/schengen countries? Or do i still need to apply for a schengen visa?

        • Hi John,

          Thank you gor your comment.

          Yes, if you have the Employee Card, you can spend up to 90 days (in the last 180) in other Schengen countries.

          Hope this helps and wish you a great day! 🙂

          Jan on behalf of the whole team 🙂

    • Thank you so much for the info..really it is a big help..your team is always helpful and have reliable source ..thanks again

  • Hello there, thank you for the sharing this blog.
    I have a question regarding Other type Visa,I am planning to learn the Czech language and for this I need Other type Visa, so how much possibiliy to get this Visa?

    • Hi Ceenu, thank you very much for your comment. Well, the “other” type of visa is pretty common so your chances are pretty good in general. The real success depends on two things though:

      1. Your nationality.
      2. Your performance during the immigration interview.

      Please feel free to get in touch with us in case you need more information.

  • Hello,
    I am form Nepal.i have applied for study visa so what’s the possibilities of getting the visa.i even had my interview on 22nd of march and according to my acceptence and accomodation letter it is said that my classes shall begin from 30th of april.so i would very much like to know the approximate days for decision

  • Hello,

    My name is Alvaro, I’m from Brazil and I have a girlfriend in Plzen, not Prague. I’m also working as a contractor for an English company (I’m a software engineer with years of experience).

    Can I apply for the freelance/contractor visa working for a company outside Czech Republic?

    Thank you very much.

    • Hi Alvaro,

      thank you for your comment.

      This is kind of a complicated questions though. You have two options now:

      1. Business visa – it is a pretty common type of visa for Brazilians but you should ideally find some connection to the Czech Republic (Czech cliets etc.). Read more about it here: https://movetoprague.com/behind-scenes-of-acquiring-the-long-term-visa-for-the-czech-republic-part-ii/

      2. Temporary Residence as a family member of an EU citizen – if you are in a really serious relationship with your gf, you can apply for a special type of visa/residence permit based on your relationship.

      Please get in touch with us if you need more detailed information 🙂

      Have a great day!

      Your first friend in Prague!

  • First of all, thank you for the blog!
    I’m Brazilian and I’m applying for a study visa, and my interview at the Consulate is scheduled for June 28. According to my acceptance letter, I have to be in the Czech Republic by September 10. It’s said the processing, in this case, may take up to 2 months, but I’ve read so many bad testimonials about delays (3, even 4 months)… is that usual? :(( I don’t want to miss this opportunity.

    • Hi Henrique,

      thank you very much for your comment.

      Well, the Ministry does not really respect any timelines they officialy should. So no problem for the visa to take 3-4 months to get approved. One of the things is, though, that any official timelines start counting when the Ministry of the Interior receives the documents. The Embassy (belonging to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs) only collects documents but does not make the decision. They must physicaly send the documents to Prague and only once the documents are delivered, the official timelines start And noone knows if the Embassy send the th, it can be actually July documents once a day or once a week or once in two weeks, etc. Noone either knows how long it takes to get the documents to Prague. That means that if you submit your documents on June 28th it can be easily July 14th before someone even starts looking at your documents.

      Good luck anyway!

      Jan & Daria

  • Thank you for such a detailed and helpful post! I’m from Singapore and will be leaving for Prague around end August. I’m in the midst of applying for my visa but I’m afraid I may not get it in time – is it possible for the embassy to mail my LT visa over to Prague directly instead? Since my Singaporean passport allows me a grace period of 90 days?

    • Hi Charmaine,

      thank you for your comment 🙂

      It is a long distance to move 🙂

      As for your question, you need to double check with the Embassy where you applied for the visa. It usually works this way in Europe though 🙂

      Good luck and stop by in our office for a coffee once you land in Prague 🙂

      Your first friend in Prague!

    • Hi Charmaine,

      I’m also from Singapore and in the midst of applying for my LT visa to Prague too.

      The Czech consulate in Singapore did mentioned it is possible, while other sites has encouraged collection from the same embassy applied.

      Love to hear if you have any update on this, and glad to meet a fellow Singaporean heading to Prague too:)

  • What if you’re employed by a US company? What kind of a VISA do you need and how hard is it to get that VISA?

    Also, what if you’re self-employed and have your own Internet business. What kind of VISA would you need and again, how difficult is it to obtain?

    • Hi Greg,

      thanks for the comment.

      It is hard to advice like this if we basically do not know anything about your situation. So at least in general:

      If you work for an American company and they want to send you over to Prague, it can be done through an Employee Card. It would be a bit complicated process though.

      If you are self-employed running your own online business, you can try business visa (long-term visa with the purpose of business). You will need to make up a good story though. You are applying for the Czech Republic visa so having a job which you can do anywhere in the world is not really a strong reason to get your business visa approved. The Ministry of the Interior of the Czech Republic loves Americans though so if you come up with a nice story, everything is doable 🙂

      Please let us know if you wanna discuss further 🙂

      Have a great day!

      Move To Prague relocation experts

  • Hi,

    So my boyfriend and I are moving to Czech from the US in late August or September because he started a business with a Czech friend and are backed by an investor (all paperwork is official and sound). He has technically already begun work of course and when we move we both will be working right away. Is this legal under the 90 day no visa stay? If not how do we proceed? I want to start the paperwork and visa process now for us both but is there a possibility that I would get an appointment to be at the embassy in Czech before we actually get there in September-October? Would love to email back and forth with more questions! This is an intimidating process

    • Hi Jessie,

      thank you very much for your message.

      We will be happy to answer your questions and help you with everything 🙂

      The question about 90 days is simple to answer – the 90 days visa-free stay is only meant for tourism/travelling, not for any activities where you are making money. So no, you are not allowed to work, nor run any form of business within the 90 days. People do work anyway and it is fine in most of the time but it is officially illegal.

      Regarding starting the process, whatever type of visa you are applying for (one exception only), you are always applying at some Czech Embassy outside of the Czech Republic. You, as Americans, are allowed to apply for the visa in any Czech Embassy in the world. So you can actually apply right away in the US and hope everything will be approved before you land in Prague. You need to get all documents together distantly though.

      As for the other things (employing yourself, etc.), I would recommend you booking a Skype interview with us. The topic is pretty complex and there are several options so it is not even possible to explain everything via e-mails.

      Please let me know your thoughts/questions and have a great day! 🙂

      Jan

  • hello im from Malaysia. i am 39 years old and i want to live my rest life with my husband in czech republic is this possible to get that kind of permission ?? and if can then what was the process??we have some saving for our rest life .can we spend in czech republic our normal.life ??

    • Hi Subsar,

      thank you for your question.

      There is nothing like “retirement visa” in the Czech Republic.

      You can try applying under the “other visa” but in that case, you would have to prove someconnection to the Czech Republic (in simple words why the Ministry should give you the permit if you can retire in any other country in the world).

      Please get in touch with us if you wanna consult in more details.

      Thank you and have a great day!

      Jan 🙂

  • Hello, first of all, thanks for your blog! It is useful and helpful. For me, the case is very complicated. I am from China but now I stay in Germany for studying. Because my supervisor will move to Czech and I will go with him. I already got the the appointment in Czech Embassy Berlin,on 31st, July. My questions are about the support documents. For the proof of funds, I am supported by myself, what kind of document should I provide? and I can not speak German or Czech, Can they speak English in Embassy in Berlin? Or I need go there with German speaker? Thanks in advance!

  • Thank your for your post! I am from Colombia, for the last three years I´ve been living in Brazil and now with my master dissertation accepted, I am searching for a job as simulation engineer in Prague. It is mandatory to have the recognition of professional qualification before applying for the employee card?

    • Hi Ana,

      thank you very much for your comment 🙂

      The first thing you need to have to apply for the Employee Card is an employer. The employee card is always connected to one concrete employer and one concrete position so it can not be applied for with no concrete job offer.

      As for the diploma, you need to submit a proof of your qualification along with all the other documents required for the Emplyoee Card. You for sure will need to get the diploma apostilled (https://www.hcch.net/en/states/authorities/details3/?aid=363) and translated into Czech before using it for the visa process. The recognition can be asked later in the process.

      The Ministry usually does not ask for the recognition in case of the Employee Card, on the other hand they usually do in case of Blue Cards.

      I hope this helps 🙂

      Please feel free to contact us in case further assistance is needed! 🙂

      Have a great day!

      Your first friend in Prague!

      • Thank you so much for the information! Definitely, I will contact you again. Have a nice weekend!

  • Hello!
    My husband got a family reunification visa. Is he allowed to work in ČR with that visa, or should he have to apply for a change of purpose of stay?
    Thank you very much!

    • Hi Milica,

      thank you for the message 🙂

      It would be best if you could send us a copy (scan) of the visa or stop by in our office so we can check the visa in person.

      In general, you are not allowed to work under the VISA. You can apply for a long-term residence permit though (with the purpose of family reunification) and that will allow you to work as long as your spouse (you in this case) have a long-term residence or permanent residence permit.

      Hope this helps 🙂

      In any case, write us, call us and we can provide you with more detailed information.

      Have a great day!

      Jan on behalf of Move To Prague 🙂

    • I also applied for a family visa on 27th September and haven’t received any feedback yet.Can you please tell me how long did it take to be processed for you ?

  • Hello, and warm greeting to you, and thanks for this great efforts.
    I get an other visa, and now i’m in Prague since 10.7.2017, and i want to ask when i can change my visa to work permit, because i want to work a part time job, and register for Phd Degree in CTU after passing Czech language exam.
    Best Regards.

    • Hi Ahmad,

      thank you very much for your comment.

      If you have the long-term visa with the purpose of “other”, you unfortunatelly do not have a free entry to the Labour market. You need to obtain a permission to work or better the Employee card if you want to work. You will have to find your employer first in both the cases. Once you find the employer though, there is no problem with switching to the employee card anytime.

      Good luck with finding the job!

      Your first friend in Prague! 🙂

  • Hello!
    I am currently working in Prague but I have a student visa and also a work permit. And I would like to change to another work because I am in an internship but the salary is very low.
    Do you know if it’s possible for example just change to another job because I already have the work permit? or Do I have to do all the process again? like request now a business or working visa, because my current visa is only for student purposes and after I will have to request the work permit again

    Thank you and Best Regards!!

    • Hi Daniel,

      thank you very much for your comment.

      First of all, we would have to see your visa and other documents in order to give you a 100% correct answer. So we can only speak in general now.

      In general, if you have a student visa (and we mean real STUDENT visa, not the “OTHER” type which you get for studies at non-acreditted universities or language courses, etc., you automatically get a free access to the Czech Labout market. In that case, you do not need any special permit or anything. Very similar rules as for Czech citizens apply for you too. If you for example want to change your employer, you just give a leaving notice and once you are allowed to leave, you find a new job. Simple as this 🙂

      If you do not have the proper STUDY visa but the “OTHER” one, the situation is completely different. In such case, you do not have a free entry to the Labour Market which mean you need to get a Permission to work for every job you wanna do. If this is your case and you find a new job, you will have to ask the Labour Office for a new permission to work.

      I hope this helps 🙂 If not, please feel free to contact us and book a consultation.

      Thank you again and have a great day! 🙂

      Move To Prague – Your first friend in Prague!

      • Thanks alot for you and for answering me, but i have one more question, i’m married and want to bring my wife to live with me here, what is the possible ways to speed the family reunification process, i have no children.

        Thanks Alot
        King regards.
        Your first friend in prague … 🙂

  • I’m Ian, a student who is finishing a Master’s in Prague and is trying to prolong his long term visa, purpose other, for studying Czech from 2017-2018 at Charles University Albertov. I have most of the documents in order as I have done this before but I really do not understand how many funds I need to have for one year. Literally everyone gives me a different answer and no one has helped.
    Do you have an idea about this? It’s a D Visa, purpose other and I am prolonging it for one year, to clarify. Thank you in advance for any help you can give.

    • Hi Ian,

      thank you very much for your comment.

      Well, I understand your confusion – there are many contradicting information even on official governmental websites.

      As for your situation, I offer three options 🙂

      1. Do the same amount as the first time you applied for the visa. If you are just extending the long-term visa (and not switching to a long-term residence), the same rules will apply as the first time.

      2. Do the maximum – the highest amount of funds is required for a business visa. The minimum required amount for a business visa is equivalent to 110 000 CZK. If you have that much, you´ll be safe for sure 🙂

      3. Do the official calculation described on the following link: http://www.mvcr.cz/mvcren/article/proof-of-funds-for-the-purposes-of-a-long-term-visa.aspx.

      I hope this helps but please feel free to get in touch if you need more info 🙂

      Have a great day!

      Jan – Your First Friend In Prague 🙂

  • Hi,

    I am from India. I recently got job in czech replubic. Since past 4 months i am waiting for my appointment in net delhi for long term resident visa. every time i open https://visapoint.eu/ website and click on long term visa it say:

    ” UTC, India (भारत) – New Delhi, Long-term residence permit
    We are deeply sorry for your inconvenience. However currently there are no available terms for submission of applications due to temporary high interest of applicants for residence permits which consequently caused an occupation of all slots. Registration in the system VisaPoint is possible in maximum advance of 30 days. Available dates are released continuously. The system automatically releases available terms randomly at various intervals (hours or days) a few times a week. Please try to make your registration later. It is recommended, in your own interest, to periodically verify whether there is an available term.”

    May i know applying visa to czech republic is so touch ?

    Or i am missing something and trying to take appointment in wrong way.

    Could you suggest how can i apply for my visa appointment.

    Thanks,

    Regards,
    Ankit

    • Hi Ankit,

      thank you for the question.

      Unfortunatelly, this is a common problem for most of the countries using the VISA POINT sytem.

      The official explanation is that there are too many applicants (which may be partially true since there are really many Indians (and people from Nepal who also must apply in India) coming to Prague nowadays.

      The unofficial version though is that the VISA POINT system is run by a “mafia”. They usually book all the appointments and re-sell it to applicants either online or in front of the Embassy. Your best bet would be either finding one of those middlemen or just keep trying several hours in a row and hope some available spot will appear there.

      Good luck!

      Jan on behlaf of the whole team 🙂

  • I am a non EU citizen and I have a long term job offer form a leading MNC. Will my spouse be allowed to work if he accompanies me or does he have to find a job and his new employer need to get him a work permit separately? How difficult is it to find employers who are willing to go through the trouble of getting him a work permiy ( His current job profile is not highly skilled)

    • Hi Swetha,

      thank you very much for your question.

      If you come here with the employee card and your husband comes here using the long-term visa with purpose of family reunification, he will not be alowed to work. Once he switches from the long-term visa to the long-term residence (he can do it after 6 months), he will be allowed to work 🙂

      Hope this helps 🙂 Please feel free to contact us directly if you need further explanation 🙂

      Thank you and have a wonderful day!

      Jan one behalhf of Move To Prague team 🙂

  • hi, i am from Nepal. I and one of my friend have applied for a long term student visa to Czech republic. we have applied for Prague business college. according to the COA letter, the Prague business college sent me my class stats for 18th of September but till now we haven’t got the appointment for the interview in New Delhi, India. are there any other alternatives for the interview?

    • Hi Suman,

      you can only apply in the country of your origin (or in your case in India since there is no Czech Embassy in Nepal) or in the country where you hold a long-term or permanent residency. Please go through the comments, we already covered the topic of mafia ruled VISA POINT system.

      Good luck!

      Move To Prague relocation experts

  • Hi im from Philippines.. Waiting for available slot to get a long term visa. How long ussualy time to wait to get a available slot for my visa application? Thank you..

    • Hi Angel,

      thank you for your question.

      It is hard to say like this, it very much depends on what Embassy you are applying in. It also depends on the fact if you use Visa Point or not. In general, in coutries using Visa Point and having many applicants, the available dates are usually booked by a local mafia and resseled to real applications. So if you are in such a situation, try to look online for some resellers/hacker or try to go in front of the Embassy and look for shady looking people – they usually belong to the mafia and are able to sell you appointment dates.

      Good luck!

      Jan on behalf of the whole Move To Prague team!

  • Dear Sir/Madam,
    Good afternoon !

    I have received the letter of offer, employment agreement to work in the Czech Company. I have been informed from one colleague in my country that the vacancy for the foreign workers need to be approved from Ministry of Labor Department. However, as per the documents with company name and ID No.: 43001343, i didn’t found any records shown in the online portal of Ministry of Labor.

    The website is http://portal.mpsv.cz/eures/pracecr/vm?formtype=3

    Please let me know the details regarding this matter.

    Thank you and have a nice day.

    Ashesh

  • Hi,

    I am going to study abroad starting around the 1st of october. However, due to the extensive process of getting the paperwork together and translated (while I was in South America on another program), I am just today submitting the visa. I was wondering what my options are? I am an American so the 3 month visa is not a problem but will there be trouble if I am studying on my three month visa but do not have the student visa yet. I have had friends who only have three month visas but go to Prague to study (only for facility led programs that are not with a university in the Czech Republic). As long as I get my student visa before the other one expires will I be fine?

    Thanks!

    • Hi Rylee,

      thank you very much for your comment.

      Well, the 90 visa-free days are meant for tourist purposes only. You should have a study visa if you wanna study here. On the other hand, double check with your school if they are fine with you studying without the visa.

      The topic is pretty complex though so please get in touch with us if you wanna know more details.

      Thank you and have a lovely day!

      Jan on behalf of the whole Move To Prague team

  • Hi sir,

    I received an email from the new delhi embassy of czech that my visa is refused under Act. 326/1999, but i did not get any email or post from MOI or embassy regarding the refusal letter. Can i go head and ask the reason for the refusal as i dont see any reason for refusal under this act. Please help or advice. If it is refused for this semester can i apply again for my longterm study visa or will they refuse again with the same reason. please help me sir.

    thanks
    Rak

    • Hi Rakesh,

      thank you for your comment.

      We are sad to hear that your visa was denied 🙁

      The most important thing now is to find out the reason. If the reason was for example that you had a criminal record, there is no point in trying again. If the reason was that there was a mistake in your documents, that is solvable.

      So the main thing for you is to find out the reason. The Ministry of the Interior should send the official letter either to you or to the Embassy. If you do not hear for some time, we can check with the Ministry here. Let us know.

      Good luck!

      Move To Prague relocation experts

      • Hello

        I had the same problem as I got a phone call on 7th of September from the embassy of Czech Republic in Cairo that my study long term visa got denied although I had all papers sorted out and I was supposed to do a Masters in Finance in VSE, so it’s a pretty well known university, and in the phone call I was informed that they will call me to receive the reasons from MOI but I got nothing till today, so I was asking how long does the appeal procedure takes? and what are the possibilities of it working out? considering that University has started two weeks ago 🙁
        please help me

        Thanks,
        Mohamed

        • Hi Mohamed,

          thank you for your comment 🙂

          First of all, I am sorry about your visa.

          As for your questions:

          1. Denial – the Ministry of the Interior (who makes decision about visas) will send a letter to the Embassy and the Embassy will forward it to you. That can take several weeks. Try contacting the Embassy and reminding them.

          2. Reasons – main reason for study visa denial is something people say during the interview. Usually if you do not show high enough interest in the School or you do not give good enough reason why you wanna study here.

          3. Appeal – well, there is no point in making appeals from our experience. Especially if the school has already started (because the appeal process will take another few weeks). It depends on the reasons though so you anyway need to wait for the denial letter from the Ministry.

          Good luck!

          Move To Prague relocation experts

  • Hello sir and mam am interested in study bachelor in information technology in unicorn college at prague i am waiting for appointment slot but due to occupancy of appointment slot because we have to address honory counselor of indian embassy it is pretty far from our locality we cannot address to embassy directly i am stucked please help me on this i am looking for your positive response

    • Hi Nirab,

      thank you very much for your comment.

      Please go through the comments below – we have already replied to similar questions as you have before. Unfortunatelly, there is much we could do from here.

      Have a lovely day and good luck!

      Jan on behalf of Move To Prague team

  • Need your help/suggestion
    1. I’ve applied for visa renewal ( employment card) at MOI Prague Chodov office and my current visa expires on Jan8th of 2018 .
    But am planning to go to india in November last week and return on Jan 23rd ( almost for 2months) .
    Can i apply Bridge visa in November 1st week ? and also some rumors that can’t apply bridge visa more than one month before actual date of visa expiry ? i will provide travel tickets during bridge visa .
    Thank you very much in advance .

    • Hi Pradeep,

      thank you very much for your comment.

      I believe that there is no officil rule about that, it just very much depends on the officer you meet there. If they slept well, they will give you the bridge visa, if they slept badly, they will not..

      The truth is that it is kind of strange to go home for two months and especially when you applied for the renewal (what if the MOI needs some additional document or wanna do interview with you? Will you come back here from India?). On the other hand, if you show the flight tickets, it should be fine. It usually works even for the officers who did not sleep well that day 🙂

      Just do not go there (MOI) too much in advance.

      Good luck!

      Jan

      • Thank you very much for your reply .
        I’ve appointment on 21st November , travelling to india on 4th of Dec – Jan 22nd and my current visa expires on 08th of January .
        I came to know recently when we returing from outside of EU on bridge visa ..passport control at airport asking too many questions and troubling the candidates.

  • Thank you so much for these information. Really useful! I have a concern, i would like to know as a student(with a study visa) i can start up a business in Czech Republic?
    Regards

    • Hi Princesse,

      thank you very much for your comment.

      Yes, you can start up a business under the student visa 🙂 You will not be allowed to switch to the business visa before you reach five years in the Czech Republic though.

      Hope this helps!

      Have a lovely day!

      Jan on behalf of the whole team!

  • Hello
    Thanks for your helpful answers.
    I am from Iran and I applied for student visa on 12th September. However, after 50 days I haven’t receive any answer.
    After I have seen some comments, I am concerned about my visa. My following concerns are:
    Firstly, although some applicants said that they were interviewed, I didn’t have any interview and the officer just asked for the required documents and I gave her them. She just asked for my academic diploma and the time of study. Is it that intended interview?
    Secondly, I was admitted in Charles University of Prague for the master of law and my program has been begun since October 2. The university has accepted my delay, however, will the delay cause any problem for giving the visa? To clarify, when the Ministry of Interior observes this delay, it may reject me due to that delay. Does it make sense?
    Please answer me. I really need your help.
    I appreciate your response.

    • Hi Amirhossein,

      thank you very much for your comment.

      First of all, usual time frame for study visa is 60-90 days from the moment when your documents arrive to Prague, not from the moment you apply at the Embassy. This can make several weeks delay.

      As for your questions:

      Interview – every case is different so it is hard to say in general. If the Ministry wants though, they will invite you for the interview later in the process.

      Delay – well, again, hard to say. First of all, it was not wise to apply for your visa 20 days before the intended start of your course if you know that he process can take several months. We usually recommend applying say 4-5 months before your planned arrival. Secondly, it will very much depend on the officer who will make the decision. Some of them would see it as reason to deny the application, some of them not. Unfortunatelly, this is how it works. We had three exactly the same cases applied at the same time (same nationality, same visa, even same address of stay) and each of those got completely different approach.

      Anyway, I wish you good luck and let us know if you make it to Prague and need help with registering with the Foreign Police, finding accommodation, health insurance or anything else after your arrival 🙂

      Jan on behalf of the Move To Prague team 🙂

  • Hi again

    Many thanks for your kind and comprehensive response.
    As you have mentioned for the apply of visa 4 or 5 months before arrival, it is right. However, when I sent an email for the appointment time for the study visa, the embassy of Czech Republic in Tehran responded that unfortunately we could not accept the applications sooner than 3 months in advance and please sent your request 3 months prior to your planned travel. After that, I realized that, they made a mistake. They said that the process of visa would take between 1-2 months and it seems that they made another mistake. I was admitted in several universities like Tilburg University, VU Amsterdam University, Hamburg University and Eotvos Lorand University and I missed most of them. If I knew that the process of visa is longer than 50 days, I chose my other opportunities. However, 3 days ago, the Charles University accepted my delay and they said you could join us winter semester.
    I really appreciate your consideration.

    Best regards

    • Hey dear, i have an question. Did u get ur visa? I have applied same day as u. And at this moment I haven’t received any word from them, wondering what happened to u? My school did that too they said i can start on 2nd semester.

      • Hi
        Unfortunately the The Ministry of the Interior of the Czech Republic has rejected me, They just said, You will receive the full information about reasons of the rejection based on the Act on the Residence of Foreign Nationals in the Czech Republic No. 326/1999 Sb. I don’t know why they made this decision. I had all required documents. If you or dear admin (move to prague.co) knows the reason, please let me know.
        Thanks
        Best regards

  • I am a czech born US naturalized citizen and have been in prague for 80 days without a visa. I have been staying with my mother here and will be traveling back to the US in a week for a 10 day trip and returning back to prague. Does the 90 day stay without a visa reset once i leave czech and return after a few days? I was not planning on staying this long but i am helping my Mother here and it will take maybe another 6-8 months until she does not need me anymore. I am not working while i am in CZ, strictly here for family reasons. I am not a dual citizen, i only have a US passport. My biggest concern is being denied entry without a visa once i come back to CZ from my US trip, any insight would be appriciated. Thanks.

    • Hi Dominica,

      thank you very much for your comment! You all make our website so outstanding!

      As for your questions, unfortunatelly, the 90 days do not reset when you leave Schengen 🙁 You can always spend here 90 days in the last 180 days. That means that if you have been here for 80 days and leave now, you can come back for 10 days in the following 90 days.

      As for coming back here after the 10 days trip – you will not be denied entry if you still have say the 10 days left. You can be asked for a return ticket though. Once you enter, no one really cares about you being here so if you just cancel the return ticket and stay here for another 6 months, no one will very likely find out. It will be illegal stay though so if eventually someone finds out, you can be deported and even banned from coming back here for some time. The chance of you being caught is really small but you should keep that in mind.

      If you do not want to stay here illegally, you would have to apply for a short-term visa while in the US – see here: http://www.mzv.cz/jnp/en/information_for_aliens/short_stay_visa/index.html. Short-term visas are usually issued pretty swiftly. Any long-term visa is always a process for several weeks or even months.

      Please get in touch if you need any more information, we´ll be happy to consult you 🙂

      Your first friend in Prague!

  • Hi,

    I’m just waiting for my Employee Card to be granted hopefully this November and December. And I’m very much excited. However, my employer has not state my salary on the contract. He only tell it to me through email. Is it possible to ask him to revise my contract and put my salary on it? Another question is can I travel to another EU countries using my employee card? Hope you’ll notice my message. Thanks in advance.

    • Hi Mira,

      thank you very much for your comment.

      As for the salary, salary is one of the most important parts of the contract since it must match the job description at the Labour Office and it is also a legal requirement for employment contracts. If the salary is not written anywhere in your official documents (it does not have to be directly in the contract, it can be in a separate “wage assessment”), the Ministry will for sure ask you for that in an official letter.

      Regarding traveling abroad, yes, you can spend 90 out of each 180 days traveling within Schengen.

      Hope this helps and wish you good luck with the Employee Card!

      Your first friend in Prague 🙂

      • Hi,

        Thank you for your response. Actually I’ll be staying and working in Mikulov. I’ll definitely post to this site again once I landed in Prague. Can’t wait to see the beautiful Czech Republic.

        Hope you have a wonderful day!

        Your friend from the Philippines.

  • Hi,
    I found an employer who is willing to offer me a job in Czech, i just wanted your advice and services in this regards, Is it advisable to apply for my Spouse visa along with my work visa application or should i leave it blank for now and reapply for my spouse later when i granted the work visa. I heard that the chances of rejection might go up when u apply along with your Spouse as u might be seen as a potential immigrant.

    Regards
    V.Krishna

    • Hi 🙂

      We usually recommend to wait with the spousal visa until you get your employee card approved.

      It is not officially required, you can theoretically apply all together but it can complicate the process in several ways.

      Please get in touch if you need to consult in more details 🙂

      Jan on behalf of the whole team!

      Jan

  • Hello , i would like to ask about partnership Visa. I would like to move together with my boyfriend And apply for that. What Are the chances for success for example how long should our relationship last So they would see it as strong with potential And approve. Also would there be problem if we wouldnt live together alone but with roommates? Thanks in advance

    • Hi Klára,

      Thank you for your comment 🙂

      We deal with mixed couples (EU + Non-EU) every day 🙂 The shortest relationship that we tried and it worked was 9 months. But of course, the longer the better. If you are a real couple, you have been together for a long time and the application is well prepared, the chances are high.

      Living with flatmates might be fine but we recommend living alone. You should be in a relationship similar to a marriage. I do not know any married couple living with flatmates..

      Please get in touch in case you want us to help you with the process, we do it on a daily basis 🙂

      Have a lovely day!

      Jan on behalf of the whole team 🙂

  • Hey, I would like to ask about our situation…
    We are a married couple, EU (slovak) and non-EU (colombian), and we would like to move and work in CR. I am concered about getting a temporal residence permit for my colombian husband. Do you have idea how much can the whole process take if we do it right in Prague? I have seen the official limits, but what is the reality?
    And do I (EU citizen) get my residence permit as well, so he can get his like my family member? Or is it enough to have accommodation/ job there?

    And also, do you have idea how hard is it to get a job in Prague for someone who doesnt speak any czech?

    Thank you¡¡¡

    • Hi Lenka,

      Thank you very much for your comment!

      Well, you should for sure get your Temporary Residence certificate too if your husband wants to have a chance to get his.

      As for the timeline.. the main thing is that once your husband applies for the permit, he´s legal and he can even start working right away so you do not really need to care much about how long it takes – even if it took 2 years to get it approved, your husband would be safe 🙂

      If you anyway wanted to know how long process to expect, it officially should not take longer than 60 days for your husband. One out of poeople get it done in time though. You should realistically count with 3-6 months. We have seen cases going on for 8 months and longer though.

      The only way you can cut the time down is to have everything perfectly prepared and know the upcoming process in detail.

      As for jobs for non-Czech speakers, depends on the specialization but in general, I do not see any problems in finding jobs here 🙂 The unemployment is lowest ever so companies are even forced to hire foreigners 🙂

      Please get in touch with me (jan@movetoprague.com) if you need more assistance! 🙂

      Have a great day!

      Jan on behalf of the whole Move To Prague relocation services team 🙂

  • Hi
    After 82 days, I was rejected by the ministry of interior yesterday. Although I had all required documents, they rejected me. I don’t know why they made this decision. I wait for their reasons.
    Now I need your help. Can I appeal this decision?
    In addition, If I apply for the next year, will they reject me again?

    Thanks for your answer.
    Best regrads

    • Hi,

      Thank you for your comment.

      Unfortunatelly, we can not advice much if we do not know your case.

      Please wait for the decision letter from the Ministry where they have to list the reasons for denial and we can then take it from there.

      Good luck!

      Move To Prague relocation experts

    • Hi Mary,

      Thank you for your question.

      We are all in the EU but we are still independent countries so all the visa/residence permit types for the Czech Republic only apply for the Czech Republic. You can travel to other Schengen coutries using the employee card but you can certainly not work there.

      The only residence permit which allows you to work in other countries is the permanent residence permit along with a status of an EU resident. But that can only be given to you after five years of being here.

      Hope this helps and wish you a magical Christmas! 🙂

      Jan on behalf of the whole team 🙂

  • Does someone know what is considered documentation confirming you are a family member? And how do you become a registered partnership. Since partnership is considered as being a family member for the purposes of visa application but it requires documentation. So how do we go about documenting our partnership? I can’t find anything anywhere…

    • Hi Caitlin,

      Thank you for your comment 🙂

      Of course we know 🙂 And we´ll be happy to share a bit of the knowledge with you 🙂

      If you are from a non-EU country and you have an EU partner, you can apply for a special residence permit (the best one you can get as a non-EU person). You do not have to be married but you need to be able to prove that you have been in a relationship similar to a marriage. That means that you should be together for say at least about a year, live together, pay each other´s expenses, travel together, etc.

      The ways to prove the above depend on what you wanna prove:

      If you wanna prove that you live together, you should present a joint lease agreement, if you wanna prove that you pay each other´s expenses, you should present a joint bank account or statements showing your transactions, if you travel together, you should submit photos of you in different places, etc.

      This is a bit of magic but all our applications so far have been approved so I think we know how to do it 🙂

      Hope this helps!

      Please feel free to get in touch if you need more specific information.

      Thank you again and have a lovely evening!

      Jan on behalf of the whole team!

  • Hello,
    I’ve just been accepted for a langauge course in prague and my study begins from October, however, I am applying for a visa in March. My worry is I have been to Prague in 2012 and 2013 which I studied there at Unviersity, and unfortunately, I had to come back my country due to family issues. I am worrying that could I be rejected because I did not finish my study 4 years ago in Prague, or is it completely ok to reapply for a visa again after I have been to Czech

    • Hi Gulomjon,

      Thank you for your comment.

      It is kind of hard to give you some advice if we do not know anything about your case. On the other hand, there are two things we can say:

      1. Officially, unless you broke some law or did something similarly serious, every visa application should be considered separately. So they should not connect the two applications together (i.e. to deny your new visa because you did not finish the previous one).

      2. They might ask you about your last visa during an immigration interview so you should be ready to answer such questions if they arise. If you had to leave due to family reasons, the immigration officers should understand it.

      Please get in touch if you wanna discuss further 🙂

      Move To Prague relocation experts!

  • I’m come from VN. I got all needed documents for employee card but I can not arrange any appointment with the embassy in my country. Is there anyway I can do now ? Can I go to Czech with tourist visa then apply for employee card there ?

  • hello
    i am from nepal.i applied working visa last 23 oct2017 until now it ,s more than 3 month no decision embassy yet.. why ?

  • Good day
    I would like to ask quite extraordinary question,
    Me(Non-EU) and my Girlfriend (CZ citizen) applied for “OAM-****/PP-2018” Temporary Resident Permit for a family member of EU/Czech citizen. Like in the 4th week of January and in they gave me 60 days multiple entry visa and I left EU like 2 weeks ago. My question is that: are there any restriction or limitation for staying abroad and can I enter CZ/EU one or two days before my 60 days’ visa expire or any time sooner when MOI office send us invitation or interview letter or call ?

    Thank you in advance

  • i have given an interview in 26th october,2017 but there is no response shown by the embassy .it has been 4 months that i have applied .will the visa be rejected or the i will get the visa ?

  • Hello,
    my long-term visa was rejected but the official reason still have not arrived (I’m 100% sure it is not related with criminal or something serious). Is there any waiting period for reapply? I could not find any information about it on the Ministry of Interior’s website. Thank you in advance for reply.

    • Hi Sophia,

      We are sorry to hear your visa was rejected 🙁

      You usually have 15 days to make the appeal from the moment when you receive the letter. The chances of changing the decision depend mainly on the reason of the denial though.

      Please get in touch if you need assistance once you get the letter!

      Thank you and good luck!

      Move To Prague relocation experts

  • Hi Jan & Daria.

    Very grateful for this forum/ blog.
    Hope all is well for both of you.
    I want to know if the in case the holder of Long term stay is a student in CZ can she/ he apply for the parents a Family reunification visa.

    Thanking you in advance for your response to my inquiry.

    With regards,
    Edna

  • Hi Jan & Daria.

    Very grateful for this forum/ blog.
    Hope all is well for both of you.
    I want to know if the in case the holder of Long term stay is a student in CZ can she/ he apply for the parents a Family reunification visa.

    Thanking you in advance for your response to my inquiry.

    With regards,
    Edna

    • Hi Edna,

      Thank you very much for your comment!

      Well, it is a bit tricky question. In general, if you want your parents to apply for the family reunification visa, you would have to prove that the parents are dependent on you (that they can not take care of themselves). Otherwise, they will have to apply for some other type of visa.

      Please feel free to get in touch if you need more information 🙂

      Thank you and have a lovely (almost spring) day!

      Jan on behalf of the whole team!

  • Hello,
    in April, I am applying for study visa, but my program is nor accredited, my visa would be long term visa for the purpose of other, they said I must pay 240$, and my visa will be issued in 120 days (which is twice more than ordinary student visa) and I also must legalize my bank note at embassy, it is ok) however, I can see that if the program is not accredited, there are a lot of limitations, do you think I could face a lot of further problems? or does czech republic government does not like study programs that are not accredited? am I now making mistake by choosing non-accredited program?

    • Hi Ahror,

      Thank you for your comment.

      Well, the truth is that there are many differences between the “study” and “other” visa. I suppose you are applying for the visa to get the education you want and are passionate above and not only to get in Europe and move to a different country. In such case, you should go for the program you like and not for the one who will give you more benefits. If you want to study something you like, the visa interview will be much easier for you because many questions of the officers will go that way (why did you choose the program, etc.).

      People apply for each of those (study and other) and they are approved so I do not think you made a mistake just because of choosing non-acreditted program 🙂

      Good luck and let us know if you need any further help! 🙂

      Jan on behalf of the whole team 🙂

  • Hi there! I’m looking for where should I go to do this long-term visa, as EU citizen (italian).
    They say there are 2 offices in this link: http://www.mvcr.cz/mvcren/docDetail.aspx?docid=21573507&doctype=ART#10
    But in the same page, you can access to another one to make a reservation, and there are 4 places to go: https://frs.gov.cz/en
    But all of them are quite far from my house and I’ve to get to work ASAP, so my question is:
    Is is possible to tramit the residence permit in the Foreign Police (Olšanská 2176/2)?
    Thank you very much.

    • Hi Luigi,

      Thank you very much for your comment!

      You as an EU citizen do not any visa/residence permit to stay here legally 🙂 The only duty you have is to get registered with the Foreign Police within 30 days after arrival. Please read more about that topic in our blog here: https://movetoprague.com/foreign-police-prague/.

      You CAN (do not have to though) apply for a Certificate of Temporary Residence if you plan on staying longer than 3 months. The residence certificate will allow you to register your car here or get a mortgage and such things.

      If you wanna apply for this permit, you have to do it at a branch of the Ministry of the Interior depending on what part of Prague you live in (see below):

      If you live in Praha-Východ, Praha 1, 3, 6, 7, 8 or 9, you have to go to Žukovského 888/2, Praha 6.

      If you live in Praha-Západ; Praha 2, 4, 5 or 10, you have to go to Cigánkova 1861/2, Praha 4.

      Hope this helps and wish you a great day!

      Jan on behalf of the whole team 🙂

  • Hello,
    I would like to know more information about the “long term other visa”. I am planning to move to Prague with my boyfriend who is from Czech Republic and I am wondering which visa I need to get. I have been told there is a partnership visa, but I am struggling to find information on this type of visa. My boyfriend will be working in Prague and I also plan to work, but I won’t have a job when we get there, so I don’t want to do a working visa. If you can give me more information about the “long term other visa” that would be great!

    Thanks,
    Becky

    • Hi Becky,

      Thank you very much for your comment!

      There are plenty of useless and even contradictory information on the Internet so it is great you ask professionals 🙂

      If you have a Czech boyfriend and you have been together for say a year and you can prove it (photos, etc.), you can apply for a special type of residence permit which will be valid for 5 years 🙂 It is so called Temporary Residence Permit for a family memebr of an EU citizen.

      Please get in touch with us if you want to discuss details.

      Thank you and have a lovely day!

      Jan on behalf of the whole team! 🙂

  • Hi i have a Visa appointment at New delhi at czech embassy for a work permit on march 26th 2018 and i have got a job in a well known German MNC ( where i work now in India branch) at ceske budejovice. i have all my documents like work contract ( for unlimited time), accommodation certificate, PCC in english and czech language legalized, educational certificate legalized and translated with proof of funds ( should i translate the proof of funds) is these documents are sufficient to crack the work permit interview.
    pl. reply with success rate and usual time required for the approval.

    • Hi Prasanth,

      Thank you for the comment.

      In general, all the documents submitted during your visa appointment should be in Czech. Proof of funds is not required for an employee card application though 🙂

      As for your chances, if all the documents are correct and your documents were prepared by professionals, your chances are pretty high. Since there is a big company behind you, the Ministry usually do not make any trouble.

      As for the time frame, you can expect anything between 2 and 6 months, if I should guess, if everything is correct, it will take 3-4 months.

      Good luck tomorrow!

      Jan on behalf of the whole team 🙂

  • Ahoj!
    I’m Jeffrey from the Philippines but currently working in Saudi Arabia.
    I’d like to ask for clarification, when applying for long-term visa, as I’m planning to take a 1-year adaptation programme at a college in Prague, do I need to translate (from english to czech) all of my documents like birth certificate, police clearance, diploma, transcript of records, etc.?

    Any advice would greatly appreciated.

    Dekuji!

  • Hello!
    I moved to Prague on family long term visa in january and in February I submitted my long term residence permit for family reunion and I’m still waiting for the decision.I’m also studying in university and I was wondering if I’m allowed to look for some part-time jobs ?
    Look forwards to your point of view on my case!

    • Hi Delly,

      Thank yuo for your comment.

      Unfortunatelly, it is hard to tell you something specific if we know exactly two sentences about your case 🙂

      In general – full time students are allowed to work here as long as they study an acreditted program. Your type of visa, though, is not student but family reunification so I think some employers might have a problem with employing you.

      As for the long-term residence permit, the MOI officially has up to 270 days to make the decision. In real life, it usually takes about 2-3 months if everything is fine with the application. So I would recommend you to wait for a bit 🙂 Once you get the long-term residency, you will have a free entry to the Labour Market so there should be no problem for you to find a job 🙂

      Good luck!

      Jan on behalf of the whole Move To Prague team 🙂

  • Hello,
    I wanted to know about a few things regarding the long-term student visa.
    Firstly, about the translated documents from English to Czech. Can I attach the translation on an A-4 paper and ask the embassy to verify them, or there needs to be a stamped document by any authority.
    Secondly, if the original documents are submitted at the embassy, do they return it back in case of visa refusal?
    Help would be appreciated.

    • Hi Jasvant,

      Thank you for your comment.

      As for your questions:

      1. Translations – yes, some Embassies can verify your translations. But we recommend you to check with the concrete Embassy in advance so you do not get surprised when submitting your application.

      2. Returning documents – unfortunatelly no, all the original documents stay with the Ministry of the Interior in the Czech Republic.

      Hope this helps and wish you good luck!

      Move To Prague relocation experts

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