{"id":18620,"date":"2026-11-10T07:59:23","date_gmt":"2026-11-10T07:59:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/axevera.com\/?p=18620"},"modified":"2026-11-10T07:59:37","modified_gmt":"2026-11-10T07:59:37","slug":"employment-law-czech-republic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/axevera.com\/en\/2026\/11\/10\/employment-law-czech-republic\/","title":{"rendered":"Employment Law in the Czech Republic: A Guide for Foreign Employers"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Employment law in the Czech Republic is more codified than many foreign employers expect. One Labour Code covers almost every employer, the rules on dismissal are strict, and several details changed in 2025. For a company from Italy, Spain or elsewhere that is hiring its first employee in Prague or Brno, knowing these rules before the contract is signed saves cost and disputes later.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">This guide covers what a foreign employer needs to know: the types of contract, probation, leave and sick pay, how dismissal works, and where Czech law differs from Italian and Spanish practice. It reflects the rules in force in November 2026 and is a practical overview, not legal advice on an individual case.<\/span><\/p>\n\n<h2><span lang=\"en-US\"><b>Types of Employment Contract in the Czech Republic<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">The main source of Czech employment law is the Labour Code, Act No. 262\/2006 Coll. It applies to almost all employers in every sector, and Czech law has no equivalent of the sector-wide collective agreements (CCNL) that shape employment terms in Italy. Terms are set by the Labour Code, by the individual contract and, in some companies, by a collective agreement.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Employment contract (pracovn\u00ed smlouva). This is the standard form of employment. It must be in writing and must state at least the type of work, the place of work and the start date.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Fixed-term contract. A fixed-term contract can run for up to three years and can be renewed or extended at most twice, so the total is nine years, subject to some exceptions. A contract that breaks these limits can be treated by a court as indefinite. Fixed-term work suits projects and temporary needs.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Agreements outside employment (dohody). Two forms exist for limited or occasional work. The agreement to complete a job (DPP) is limited to 300 hours per calendar year. The agreement to perform work (DP\u010c) is limited to an average of 20 hours a week, half of the standard working week. They are lighter to administer but give less protection, and they cannot be used to disguise what is in practice regular employment. Pay under them cannot fall below the minimum wage, which has been CZK 22,400 a month for a 40-hour week (CZK 134.40 an hour) since 1 January 2026.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Hiring also triggers steps beyond the contract. The employer registers the employee with social security and health insurance and, since 2026, reports payroll data through the single monthly employer report (JMHZ). Employers hiring foreign nationals must also notify the regional Labour Office before work starts and check that the person has the right residence and work authorisation.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span lang=\"en-US\"><b>Probation, Annual Leave and Sick Leave: Employer Obligations<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Probation. Probation must be agreed in writing no later than the employee&#8217;s first day of work. Since the Labour Code amendment in force from 1 June 2025, it can last up to four months, or up to eight months for managers. On a fixed-term contract it cannot exceed half of the agreed duration. It can be extended by written agreement during its course within those limits, and it is lengthened automatically by working days the employee misses because of leave, sickness or other absence. During probation either party can end the employment in writing.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Annual leave. The statutory minimum is four weeks of paid leave per year for a full year of work. Leave is proportional if the employee works less than a full year, and employers can grant more by contract or internal rules. People working under agreements outside employment have had leave rights since 1 January 2024 if the agreement lasts at least four weeks and they have worked at least 80 hours.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Sick leave. Czech employers pay the first part of sick leave. For the first 14 days of incapacity the employer pays wage compensation (n\u00e1hrada mzdy) for the working days the employee was scheduled to work, at 60% of reduced average earnings. From the 15<\/span><sup><span lang=\"en-US\">th<\/span><\/sup><span lang=\"en-US\"> day, the \u010cSSZ (District Social Security Administration \/ OSSZ) takes over and pays the sickness benefit<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\"><b>60%<\/b><\/span><span lang=\"en-US\"> of the daily base from days 1 to 30<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\"><b>66%<\/b><\/span><span lang=\"en-US\"> of the daily base from days 31 to 60<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\"><b>72%<\/b><\/span><span lang=\"en-US\"> of the daily base from day 61 onwards<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Maximum duration: Sickness benefits can be paid for up to 380 days.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Other obligations employers often overlook. Pay at least the minimum wage, pro rata for part-time staff. Keep overtime within the limits, which are generally 8 hours a week and 150 hours a year, with a premium of at least 25%. Since 1 January 2026, workplace accidents are reported electronically through the S\u00daIP portal: an accident causing incapacity longer than three calendar days must be reported within 15 working days of the employer learning of it.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span lang=\"en-US\"><b>Dismissal Procedure: What Czech Law Requires<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Czech law treats the two sides differently. An employee can give notice for any reason or for none. An employer can give notice only for a reason in the exhaustive list in Section 52 of the Labour Code.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">The notice must be in writing, delivered to the employee and state the reason clearly. The reason must be specific and cannot be changed afterwards, and a dismissal without a valid reason is invalid if the employee challenges it.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Written warning. Before dismissing for unsatisfactory performance or for repeated less serious breaches, the employer must first give the employee a written warning and a chance to put things right. The warning must be recent: within the last 12 months for unsatisfactory performance and within the previous six months for repeated breaches.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Notice period. The notice period is at least two months. Since 1 June 2025 it starts on the day the notice is delivered, no longer on the first day of the following month, unless the Labour Code provides a different term.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Severance pay. An employee whose employment relationship is terminated by notice given by the employer for any of the reasons specified in Section 52(a) to (c), or by mutual agreement for the same reasons, is entitled to receive severance pay from the employer upon termination of the employment relationship in an amount of at least:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">a) One times the employee&#8217;s average earnings, if the employment relationship with the employer lasted less than 1 year;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">b) Two times the employee&#8217;s average earnings, if the employment relationship with the employer lasted at least 1 year but less than 2 years;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">c) Three times the employee&#8217;s average earnings, if the employment relationship with the employer lasted at least 2 years.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Protected periods. The employer cannot give notice during certain periods, for example during temporary incapacity for work, pregnancy, maternity or parental leave, subject to conditions and exceptions. Dismissing someone on long-term sick leave may be legally impossible.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Delivery. Notice takes effect only when it is delivered. Hand delivery at the workplace with a signed receipt is the safest method. Electronic delivery to the employee&#8217;s data box is also allowed, and postal delivery is subject to strict rules. An invalid dismissal can lead to back pay for the whole duration of the dispute.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span lang=\"en-US\"><b>Key Differences from Italian and Spanish Labour Law<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Employers used to Italian or Spanish rules should not assume the same logic applies. The points below are a general comparison; the exact position in each country depends on the contract and on the applicable collective agreement.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Source of the rules. Italy relies on the Civil Code, the Workers&#8217; Statute and sector-wide collective agreements. The Czech Republic has one Labour Code for almost all industries and no sector-wide equivalent of the CCNL.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Fixed-term work. In Italy fixed-term contracts are typically limited to 24 months. In the Czech Republic a single contract can run for three years and be renewed twice, up to nine years in total.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Grounds for dismissal. Italy requires a just cause or a justified reason, and Spain distinguishes objective from disciplinary dismissal. In the Czech Republic the grounds are the exhaustive statutory list, and poor performance requires a prior written warning.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Severance. In Spain objective dismissal carries 20 days of salary per year of service, and 33 days for unfair dismissal. Czech severance is fixed at one to three months of average earnings according to length of service, not per year of service.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Written form and probation. A Spanish contract can be valid without a written document, while a standard Czech employment contract must be in writing before work starts. Probation in Spain is typically two to six months, depending on the role, against four months (eight for managers) in the Czech Republic.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">If staff are sent from Italy or Spain rather than hired locally, the rules on <a href=\"https:\/\/axevera.com\/en\/2026\/08\/24\/posting-employees-to-the-czech-republic-as-a-foreign-company-complete-guide\/\">posting of workers<\/a> apply instead of a Czech employment contract.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span lang=\"en-US\"><b>How Axevera Manages HR Compliance for You<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Axevera supports foreign employers on the administrative side of employment in the Czech Republic. Through its <a href=\"https:\/\/axevera.com\/en\/tax-area-accounting-and-budgets\/\">payroll management services in Prague<\/a>, a multilingual team working in English, Italian and Spanish handles payroll for employees in the Czech Republic, from calculating salaries to preparing payslips, and keeps it in line with social security and insurance requirements, so the contract on paper matches what the company actually pays.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">The usual sequence is simple. First we review the position: who you are hiring, on which type of contract and from which entity. Then we set up payroll and the social security and insurance side, and align it with the Czech deadlines. Where a case goes beyond administration, such as a dismissal or a dispute, we say so before you act, with 30+ years of experience in Czech company administration.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span lang=\"en-US\"><b>Conclusions<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Employment law in the Czech Republic is predictable once its structure is clear: a written contract, a probation period of up to four months, four weeks of leave, sick pay shared between employer and the state, and dismissal only on statutory grounds with a notice period of at least two months. The costly mistakes are usually procedural, such as a missing warning, a vague reason or a notice delivered the wrong way. Choose the contract type and plan the exit rules when you hire, not when the relationship ends.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span lang=\"en-US\"><b>FAQ<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<h3><span lang=\"en-US\"><b>What law governs employment in the Czech Republic?<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Employment is governed mainly by the Labour Code, Act No. 262\/2006 Coll., which applies to almost all employers in every sector. Czech law has no sector-wide collective agreements comparable to the Italian CCNL, so the Labour Code, the individual contract and any company-level agreement set the terms of employment in practice.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span lang=\"en-US\"><b>Does a Czech employment contract have to be in writing?<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Yes. A standard employment contract must be in writing and state at least the type of work, the place of work and the start date. Probation, termination by agreement and notice of termination must also be in writing. A written contract protects both sides if the terms are later disputed.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span lang=\"en-US\"><b>How long can a probation period be in the Czech Republic?<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Since 1 June 2025, probation can last up to four months, or up to eight months for managers. On a fixed-term contract it cannot exceed half of the agreed duration. It must be agreed in writing no later than the first day of work, and absences during probation lengthen it automatically.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span lang=\"en-US\"><b>How much sick pay must a Czech employer pay?<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">For the first 14 days of incapacity, the employer pays wage compensation at 60% of reduced average earnings for scheduled working days. From the 15th calendar day, the Czech Social Security Administration (\u010cSSZ) pays the sickness benefit. There is no unpaid waiting period, because it was abolished in July 2019.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span lang=\"en-US\"><b>Can an employer dismiss an employee freely in the Czech Republic?<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">No. An employer can give notice only for a reason in the statutory list in Section 52 of the Labour Code. The notice must be in writing and state the reason, and the notice period is at least two months from delivery. <\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span lang=\"en-US\"><b>What is the difference between a DPP and a DP\u010c?<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span lang=\"en-US\">Both are agreements outside employment. The agreement to complete a job (DPP) is limited to 300 hours per calendar year. The agreement to perform work (DP\u010c) is limited to an average of 20 hours a week. Pay cannot fall below the minimum wage, and neither should be used to replace regular employment.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Employment law in the Czech Republic is more codified than many foreign employers expect. One Labour Code covers almost every employer, the rules on dismissal are strict, and several details&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":18621,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[855],"tags":[],"yst_prominent_words":[],"class_list":["post-18620","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-blog-en"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/axevera.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18620","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/axevera.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/axevera.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/axevera.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/axevera.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18620"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/axevera.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18620\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18727,"href":"https:\/\/axevera.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18620\/revisions\/18727"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/axevera.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18621"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/axevera.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18620"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/axevera.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18620"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/axevera.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18620"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/axevera.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=18620"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}