Prague, Nov 28 (CTK) – Foreigners will be able to work in the Czech Republic for a longer time without extending their visas, according to an amendment to the law on foreigners’ stay and changes to the relevant laws that the government approved on Monday, its press section has told reporters.
At present, foreigners can work in the Czech Republic for 90 days and then they must apply for extending their visas.
Under the new piece of legislation, working foreigners could stay in the Czech Republic for up to six months, or exceptionally for up to two years if their business activities concerned a significant investment.
The cabinet postponed the debate on draft amendment several times due to the absence of Interior Minister Milan Chovanec (Social Democrats, CSSD).
Now the Chamber of Deputies, the lower house of Czech parliament, will assess the bill.
The amendment is required by the EU directives that were passed in 2014.
The new bill will introduce the internal employee card that will make it possible for foreigners to stay in the Czech Republic for up to six months if they work in the position of a manager, specialist or trainee in a firm or corporation seated outside the EU.
Foreigners who arrive in the Czech Republic for seasonal work will be able to stay in the country for six months as well.
The respective legal changes will also improve conditions of investors, which the current legislation does not take into account.
“The basic aim of the new amendment is to set more favourable conditions for foreign businesspeople who intend to run business and invest in the Czech Republic, and at the same time to strengthen the principle saying foreigners’ business in the Czech Republic should benefit the state,” the document for the government says.
The new permit will enable foreigners to stay in the country without applying for visas if they prove their investments benefit the state.
The legal changes will also make the delivery of documents in the residence administrative proceedings to foreigners staying abroad more efficient. The documents will be first sent electronically to the relevant diplomatic mission abroad that will deliver them in paper form by post.
Consequently, the Interior Ministry will have to invest around 6.5 million crowns and the Foreign Ministry more than 2.7 million in the upgrading of its information systems.
