Do EU citizens have to register in Czechia?
Two different things hide under “register”. The duty: report your address to the police within 30 days of arrival if your stay will exceed 30 days, unless your accommodation provider registers you. The option: the registration certificate (osvědčení o registraci), which is not a condition of your stay but unlocks practical life and starts your paper trail toward permanent residence.
Who this is for: Citizens of EU, EEA states and Switzerland moving to Czechia to work, study or live.
Not for: Their non-EU family members, who have a real application to make, see the family residence card, and third-country nationals generally, whose rules are the rest of this site.
The duty: tell the police you arrived
Registering your address with the police after you arrive — EU citizens and their family members
Within 30 days of entering, and only if you will stay longer than 30 days
EU citizens, and family members of an EU citizen who is living in the Czech Republic. It only applies if your stay is expected to exceed 30 days, and not at all if your accommodation provider has already registered you. Third-country nationals are under a different deadline with a different trigger — do not read across from one to the other.
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The wording the rule above was read from. It is the authoritative text, and it is in Czech.
“§ 93(2): "(2) Občan Evropské unie 1b) je povinen ohlásit na policii místo pobytu na území ve lhůtě do 30 dnů ode dne vstupu na území, pokud jeho předpokládaný pobyt bude delší než 30 dnů; tato povinnost se rovněž vztahuje na rodinného příslušníka občana Evropské unie, pokud tento občan pobývá na území. Povinnost ohlásit místo pobytu na policii se nevztahuje na cizince, který tuto povinnost splnil u ubytovatele [ § 103 písm. b) ]."”
Read from e-sbirka.gov.cz on 13 September 2026Check it yourself
Hotels and registered landlords discharge this for you, which is why most people never see the police counter. Moving later has its own clocks, see reporting an address change.
The option: the registration certificate
Your right to live here comes from EU law, not from any Czech paper, so the certificate is voluntary. It still earns its keep: banks, employers, insurers and offices ask for proof of residence constantly, and the certificate is the clean answer. It also documents when your continuous residence started, which matters the day you want permanent residence.
EU citizen or their family member — fee for a registration certificate, temporary or permanent residence document, or a change to one
200 CZK
EU, EEA and Swiss citizens and their family members of any nationality, including UK nationals covered by Part Two of the Withdrawal Agreement. Third-country nationals outside that group pay the much higher Položka 116 fees instead.
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The wording the rule above was read from. It is the authoritative text, and it is in Czech.
“Act 634/2004, Sazebník, Položka 116: "5. Přijetí žádosti o vydání osvědčení o registraci, povolení k přechodnému nebo k trvalému pobytu občanu Evropské unie a jeho rodinnému příslušníku bez ohledu na státní příslušnost, o prodloužení doby platnosti nebo provedení změny těchto dokladů Kč 200"”
Read from e-sbirka.gov.cz on 13 September 2026Check it yourself
- 1Collect: ID or passport, one photograph, proof of purpose (work, study or business) or health insurance where required, and proof of accommodation.
- 2File at the Ministry of the Interior office for your address, the form page walks through the fields.
- 3Keep the certificate with your documents; it has no expiry drama of its own.
The long game: permanent residence at 5 years
EU citizens — how much time you may spend outside the Czech Republic without breaking continuous residence
6 months in total per YEAR. Longer is still allowed for compulsory military service, or for one absence of up to 12 consecutive months for serious reasons — pregnancy and birth, serious illness, study or vocational training, or a work posting abroad.
EU citizens, and by extension EEA and Swiss nationals, building continuous temporary residence towards permanent residence under § 87g(7). THIS IS NOT THE THIRD-COUNTRY RULE. Third-country nationals are under § 68(2)(e), which sets a 6-month cap per single trip and a 310-day cap in total. Quoting 310 days to an EU citizen is wrong, and quoting 6 months a year to a third-country national is wrong.
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The wording the rule above was read from. It is the authoritative text, and it is in Czech.
“§ 87g odst. 7: "(7) Podmínka nepřetržitého přechodného pobytu je zachována, pokud nepřítomnost občana Evropské unie 1b) na území nepřesáhne celkem 6 měsíců ročně, nebo přesáhne-li tuto dobu" The two exceptions are separate fragments: a) z důvodu plnění povinné vojenské služby, nebo b) pokud jedna nepřítomnost nebude delší než 12 po sobě jdoucích měsíců, a to ze závažných důvodů, zejména jde-li o těhotenství a narození dítěte, závažné onemocnění, studium nebo odborné školení, anebo z důvodu pracovního vyslání do zahraničí.”
Read from e-sbirka.gov.cz on 13 September 2026Check it yourself
Six months of absence per year is generous, but it is still a limit, and serious-reason absences up to 12 months are carved out separately. When the 5 years are built, the EU permanent residence answer takes over.
Quick questions
- Is there a fine for skipping the certificate?
- No, it is optional. The finable duty is the address reporting, up to the ceiling in the reporting rules, not the certificate.
- I’m an EU citizen but my spouse is not. Same rules?
- No. Your spouse’s residence card is a real application with deadlines and attachments, see the family member answer.
- Does my Czech employer need my registration certificate to hire me?
- Your right to work comes from EU law directly. Employers often ask for the certificate as paperwork hygiene, which is one of the practical reasons to have it, not a legal condition of employment.
Official sources, and when we read them
- Act 326/1999 Sb., §§ 87a and 93, consolidated text in force read 19 September 2026
- IPC (Ministry of the Interior): registration certificate read 14 October 2026
A summary to help you act in time, not legal advice. Rules change; the dates above say when each source was actually read, and the fact boxes carry their own.
What to do next
Related answers
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