Work in Czechia for foreigners

Yes. Temporary protection (dočasná ochrana) gives free access to the Czech labor market — a separate work permit (povolení k zaměstnání) is not needed. You can get a job with a work contract (pracovní smlouva), a contract for work performed (DPP), or a contract for work activity (DPČ) under the same conditions as Czech citizens.

Arranging this is the employer's responsibility, not yours: they submit an information card (informační kartu) to the labor office (úřad práce), and they must do this no later than the day you actually start working. You do not need to submit a separate application, and you do not need to pay anything.

The main trap is not in the work itself, but in the address. From May 12, 2025, temporary protection will end by law if you are registered at an administrative body's address (OAMP address) for 90 days. You will not receive a decision or any notification — and without valid temporary protection (DO), you can no longer work, and health insurance disappears. The process is simple: the accommodation provider (ubytovatel) deregisters you, or the police don't find you → the Ministry of the Interior cancels your address → assigns the address of the office → after 90 days, protection expires on its own.

Therefore, you must check your address yourself — in the population register (registr obyvatel) via the Citizen's Portal (Portál občana). What this means for employment is explained by MPSV, and the status itself — ipc.gov.cz.

From January 1, 2026, the minimum wage is 22,400 CZK per month, or 134.40 CZK per hour for a 40-hour week. This is 1,600 CZK more than last year (in 2025 it was 20,800 CZK). If you have a shorter week, the monthly rate is the same, but the hourly rate is higher: 37.5 hours/week → 143.40 CZK/hour, 38.75 hours/week → 138.80 CZK/hour.

However, the guaranteed wage (zaručená mzda) in the private sector has been abolished — the amendment took effect on January 1, 2025. The eight groups of jobs with their own minimums no longer exist at all. For a private employer, there is now only one floor — the same minimum wage (minimální mzda) of 22,400 CZK, regardless of how complex your job is or how many years you have been in the profession.

The guaranteed salary (zaručený plat) remains only in the state and budget sector (§ 109 para. 3 of the Labor Code) — and even there, there are not 8 groups, but 4: 22,400 CZK (1st), 26,880 CZK (2nd), 31,360 CZK (3rd), 35,840 CZK (4th).

Practical conclusion: old articles with the table "8 groups of guaranteed wage" no longer apply — referring to them in a conversation with a private employer makes no sense, this rule simply does not exist for them. The amount for 2026 is confirmed by MPSV.

First, about the myth, because it's still everywhere. About the 'announced agreement regime' (režim oznámené dohody) with two thresholds — 25% and 40% — literally everyone wrote, but it never came into effect: it was repealed by law č. 163/2024 Coll. before it took effect. If you are reading a text about two limits for DPP — it is outdated and never applied in practice.

The reality from January 1, 2025 — one threshold for all DPPs. Time limit: 300 hours per year with one employer. Deduction threshold: 12,000 CZK per month (in 2025 it was 11,500 CZK). If you exceed it, social and health insurance are paid: employee 11.6%, employer 33.8% on top.

DPČ is a different agreement and different numbers: an average of 20 hours per week, a deduction threshold of 4,500 CZK per month. Tax from DPČ is always a down payment (zálohová); from DPP without a signed taxpayer declaration (prohlášení poplatníka), a 15% withholding tax (srážková daň) will be deducted — this can be refunded through the annual tax return.

The most important nuance: thresholds are calculated separately for each employer and are not added together between employers. Two DPPs of 11,000 CZK at different companies are two separate 11,000s, not 22,000. And another thing that is often not known: from January 1, 2024, DPP and DPČ also include vacation (dovolená) — if the agreement lasted at least 4 weeks and you worked at least 80 hours. The legal minimum vacation under an employment contract is 4 weeks (160 hours for a 40-hour week), and since 2021 it has been calculated in hours, not days.

From your gross salary, 11.6% will be deducted (7.1% social + 4.5% medical) and 15% income tax. The employer pays an additional 33.8% on top — you don't see this money on your payslip, but it goes towards your pension and sick pay. Social contributions have an annual ceiling of 2,350,416 CZK; medical contributions have no ceiling.

15% is the rate up to 1,762,812 CZK per year (approximately 146,901 CZK per month). Above this limit, the rate is 23%, but only on the amount exceeding the limit, not on the entire salary: this is the most common mistake in articles. The tax is significantly reduced by the basic taxpayer discount (základní sleva na poplatníka) — 30,840 CZK per year, or 2,570 CZK per month. You get this full annual amount even if you worked only part of the year — this is real money for those who arrived in the summer. To have it applied monthly, sign the taxpayer declaration (Prohlášení poplatníka) ('pink form', form no. 27) with your employer: no later than 30 days after starting and only with one employer.

Now about the 'average'. In 2026, there are three different figures in circulation, and you should not confuse them: 50,282 CZK is the actual average salary for Q1 2026 (ČSÚ); 48,967 CZK is the figure from which tax and insurance thresholds are calculated; 48,171 CZK is the base for calculating unemployment benefits. When articles mention 'average salary in Czechia', they almost always mean the first figure, but calculate based on the second or third.

Also: ČSÚ does not currently publish median figures temporarily, so any statement like 'the median salary in 2026 is X' is fiction. Current rates and thresholds are available at ČSSZ.

The Flexinovel of the Labor Code is effective from June 1, 2025, and affects exactly what hurts the most. The zkušební doba (probationary period) can now last up to 4 months instead of 3, and for management positions - up to 8 instead of 6. You cannot agree on a longer period, but you can agree on a shorter one. By the way, there are only three mandatory details in a work contract (§ 34 ZP): type of work, place of work, and start date; the form must be written, and it must be signed no later than the day you start working.

The main change is that the výpovědní doba (notice period) now runs from the day the notice is delivered, not from the first day of the next month, as it was for years. If it was delivered on May 5th, the period expires on July 5th, not July 31st. The minimum is 2 months (in some cases, the law allows 1 month). Those who still count "from the next month" are wrong by several weeks - and it is precisely in these weeks that money is usually hidden.

Odstupné (severance pay) (§ 67 ZP) in case of dismissal for organizational reasons depends on the length of service: less than a year - 1x average monthly earnings, from one to two years - 2x, over two years - 3x. In case of a work injury - 12x.

And this is where people lose the most: the right to odstupné is also preserved in a dohodа (agreement), if the reason for termination is organizational. Many people sign "by mutual agreement" without stating the reason - and are left without the two or three salaries that the law guaranteed. The reason must be directly stated in the text of the dohoda; no reason - no proof that you are entitled to odstupné.

Let's start with the unemployment benefit, as it decides everything: you must submit an application to the labor office within 3 working days after your employment ends. If you make it on time, you will be registered retroactively, starting the day after your dismissal. If you are late, these days are lost and cannot be recovered. You can register online via the Jenda portal (jenda.mpsv.cz) using an Identity of a Citizen or in person.

The condition for receiving benefits is 12 months of pension insurance within the last 2 years. The amount is calculated based on your previous net earnings in phases: first 80%, then 50%, then 40%. The duration depends on your age: up to 52 years old – 5 months (80% for months 1-2, 50% for months 3-4, 40% for month 5); 52–57 years old – 8 months; from 57 years old – 11 months.

From January 1, 2026, the maximum has increased from 26,163 CZK to 38,537 CZK per month – almost one and a half times. Rekvalifikace (retraining) is now paid at 80% instead of 60%; if you cannot prove your earnings, it is 19,269 CZK.

And the most important change that most people don't know yet: the penalty for quitting voluntarily or by agreement has been canceled. Previously, in these cases, the benefit rate was reduced, so people clung to unbearable jobs or demanded to be "fired for cause." Now, benefits are paid in full – leaving on your own no longer costs you benefits. Details of the changes are on the labor office website.

Very often – no. And let's start with a fact that few people know: diplomas issued in the USSR from June 6, 1972, to February 27, 2000, inclusive, are automatically recognized in the Czech Republic – without any nostrification at all. The basis is the Protocol on the Equivalence of Documents from 1972. If your diploma falls within this period, you already have a recognized education and do not need to pay for the procedure.

For the rest, it depends on the profession. For non-regulated professions, nostrification is not mandatory: the decision to hire is made by the employer themselves, looking at your documents and experience. Many people spend money and months on a procedure that the law does not require of them.

For regulated professions (doctors, nurses, lawyers, teachers), it's important to understand something else: nostrification itself does not grant the right to work. Diploma recognition and professional admission are two different procedures, and the latter is handled through the relevant professional body. These are constantly confused, leading to wasted time.

If nostrification is indeed required: secondary education is recognized by the krajský úřad (regional office), and higher education by a public university with a similar program (private universities cannot do this). The fee is 3,000 CZK; the old figure of "1,000 CZK" became outdated on March 1, 2025.