Czech citizenship

It is necessary to examine your residence history and your integration to Czech society.

Obtaining Czech citizenship by way of “udělení” (granting) is possible if you meet several conditions:

1. Permanent Residency
2. Period of stay  – 5 years of permanent residency (or three years for EU citizens) or 10 years total in the Czech Republic 
3. Continuous Stay – during this period, you must have physically resided in the country for at least of 1/2 of the time
4. Clean Criminal Record – You must have no serious criminal offenses in the Czech Republic or abroad
5. Sufficient Income and No Debts – You must prove stable and legal income and no outstanding debts to Czech authorities (tax office, social security, health insurance, etc.).
6. Exams from Czech Language (B1) and Knowledge of Czech Society and History
7. Integration into Czech Society – The authorities assess your social and cultural ties, including employment, education, and family situation in the Czech Republic.
8. Renunciation of Former Citizenship (if required) – In some cases, you may be asked to renounce your previous nationality, depending on your country of origin and Czech international agreements.

Some of the above conditions can be exempted for example due to age, health conditions or for exceptional reasons. There are also some exceptions and relaxations for specific groups, such as former Czech citizens, stateless persons, or minors

The Czech Republic does not grant Czech citizenship based on the ius soli (right of the land), typical for anglo saxon countries. The rights of the baby are deferred from the parents.

The child born in the Czech Republic to a foreign parents, follows their residence status.

If the parents later on apply for a Czech citizenship, the child typically applies with the parents.

You may be eligible and acquire citizenship by process of declaration (art. § 31 para 3 of Law on Czech Citieznship). First it is necessary to examine all the historic documents and ties you can provide. 

A person who has lost Czech or Czechoslovak citizenship before January 1, 2014) may acquire Citizenship of the Czech Republic by a declaration. From 2019, also the ancestor may acquire citizenship if at least one of their parents or grandparents is a current or former Czech/Czechoslovak citizen, unless the declarant is a citizen of the Slovak Republic as of the date of the Declaration.

First and foremost, it is necessary to rule out, that the former Czechoslovak citizens had not lost the Czechoslovak citizenship under any of the following conditions:

1. On the basis of the Constitutional Decree of the President of the Republic on the regulation of Czechoslovak citizenship of persons of German or Hungarian nationality.
2. On the basis of the agreement between the Czechoslovak Republic and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on Transcarpathian Ukraine.
3. He/she is not a Czechoslovak citizen who became or would become a citizen of the Slovak Socialist Republic on January 1, 1969.
4. After January 1, 1969 he/she acquired citizenship of the Slovak Socialist Republic or the Slovak Republic, and still holds that citizenship.

If you great-grandmother lost her citizenship for other reasons, you are probably eligible for citizenship by a way of declaration.