Czech Republic permits at risk for 2 repeated minor offenses starting Jan. 1

What changed for third-country nationals

The Czech Republic added a "repeated offences" ground to its Act on the Residence of Foreign Nationals on Jan. 1, 2026, letting authorities refuse, revoke or decline to extend long-term visas and residence permits based on patterns of minor administrative violations. The Information Portal for Foreigners flagged the amendment as the main 2025-26 change affecting non-EU residents.

Procedural shifts followed. Submitting Employee Card and certain long-term residence applications at the Czech mission in Dresden now carries special conditions as of Jan. 1, 2026. Foreigners registered in the Tábor district have been reassigned to different Ministry of Interior local offices since May 15, 2026.

Two EU-wide systems are also landing. The Entry/Exit System (EES) logs biometric entry and exit data for short-stay non-EU travelers and automatically calculates time used against the 90/180-day cap, per the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. ETIAS is scheduled to begin in the last quarter of 2026, requiring visa-exempt travelers from the US, UK, Canada, Japan and more than 60 other countries to obtain pre-travel authorization before boarding to Czechia.

Who feels the impact

Long-term permit holders now face higher stakes for small infractions. Repeated breaches of residence registration duties or other administrative obligations can cost an extension, not just one-off serious violations.

Citizens of Australia, Canada, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, the UK and the US keep the work-permit waiver introduced July 1, 2024 and reconfirmed by the MFA in February 2026. They still need a valid residence title such as an Employee Card; the waiver only removes the separate Labour Authority step and doesn't legalize remote work performed on a tourist stay.

Russian travelers face continued restrictions. Only biometric Russian passports are accepted for entry, with narrow exceptions for children under 15. Visa services for Russian and Belarusian citizens remain significantly limited.

Steps for applicants and travelers

• Track residence obligations carefully, since repeated minor offences can now block extensions
• Confirm the correct consulate or local office before filing, especially if routing through Dresden or living in Tábor
• Prepare for EES biometric enrollment at the border and budget time for ETIAS authorization before Q4 2026 trips
• Russian passport holders should verify biometric status before booking

Read our full Czech Republic guide for the complete picture and check ongoing visa updates for further changes.