Prague, April 7 (CTK) – The Czech Chamber of Deputies approved an amendment tightening the conditions of foreigners’ stay and curbing economic migration, but it preserved the chance of a court revision of turned-down applications for Czech residence as NGOs said its abolition would go counter to the constitution.
The bill will now be submitted to the Senate, the upper house of parliament.
The approved bill includes most modifying proposals submitted by MP Vaclav Klucka (Social Democrats, CSSD) in cooperation with the Interior Ministry, which met with protests of human rights organisations including the government human rights council.
The critics, including deputies for the government ANO movement and the opposition Communists (KSCM), dislike the bill restricting the right for foreigner families to reunite.
Interior Minister Milan Chovanec (CSSD) told journalists that the amendment reacts to the migrant crisis and a recent national security audit.
“The bill…means no restriction or an effort to chase foreigners from the country, but an effort to define clear rules that will apply to everybody,” Chovanec said.
The originally proposed abolition of the possibility of a court revision was aimed to speed up the residence permit proceedings, since the Interior Ministry’s system of revisions would suffice,” Chovanec said, adding, nevertheless, that the preservation of the court revision in the bill causes no complications.
Following the asylum law model, the amendment enables to stop the residence permit proceeding if the foreigner failed to turn up without any serious reason, if they lied or submitted forged documents.
A foreign applicant’s conviction of a deliberate crime will also influence the proceedings, according to the amendment adopted in reaction to recent problems foreign workers caused in some Czech industrial zones.
To curb undesired economic migration, the bill punishes the practice of latent agency employment without the Employment Office’s work permit.
It introduces the unreliable employer label for the entities that are indebted, fail to pay insurance for employees and employ people illegally. Such firms would be banned from employing foreigners.
This provision was stormily opposed by employers’ association with the Czech Chamber of Commerce at the head.
On the basis of this provision, any firm can be labelled as an unreliable employer, even due to minor administrative mistakes, the Chamber of Commerce said in a press release criticising the passed amendment. This is why it will call on senators to modify the legislation and prevent its abuse.
According to the bill, foreign workers will be able to stay in the Czech Republic for up to six months without having to apply for visa extension after three months.
Foreign entrepreneurs will be able to stay for up to two years if their business involved a significant investment.
The amendment was also necessary due to the new EU directives approved three years ago. They introduce a company employee card that will enable foreigners to stay for six months if they hold the post of a manager or a specialist in a firm seated outside the EU.
A six-month stay possibility will also be introduced for foreigners doing seasonal work.
The amendment improves the conditions of investors. If investors prove that their investment benefits the Czech state, they will be able to stay in the country without having to apply for a visa.
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