Blue Card
Residency route facts
Identity
| Official name (local) | Modrá karta as of 2026-06-12[6] Act No. 326/1999 Coll. s. 42i uses this name throughout; s. 42i(7) requires the Ministry to enter 'MODRÁ KARTA EU' in the permit-type field of the card. |
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| Official name (English) | Blue Card as of 2026-07-27[1] The Ministry of the Interior's own English page heading. |
| Legal basis | Act No. 326/1999 Coll., ss. 42i and 42j; validity s. 44(7); permanent residence after EU-wide Blue Card residence s. 68(4); salary floor s. 42j(1)(b) read with sdělení MPSV č. 44/2026 Sb. as of 2026-06-12[6] Consolidated text of the Aliens Act in force from 12 June 2026. |
| Instrument type | residence permit as of 2026-06-12[6] s. 42i(1): a long-term residence permit. |
Who can apply
| Nationals not served by this route | EU, EEA as of 2026-07-27[1][6] |
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| Minimum age | Not established from a qualifying source No minimum age is stated in s. 42i or on the route page. |
| Criminal-record condition | Yes as of 2026-06-12[6] s. 42j(1)(a) requires the s. 31(1)(g) criminal-record document as a mandatory item. |
Permit terms
| Initial duration | up to 3 years as of 2026-07-27[1][6] s. 44(7): the blue card is issued for 3 months longer than the term of the employment contract, but for at most 3 years. The ceiling is recorded here; the relation to the contract is carried by initial_duration_basis, and the 'contract plus 3 months' arithmetic has no field of its own. |
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| How the initial term is set | matches the contract |
| Renewable | Yes as of 2026-07-27[1] 'You can extend the blue card's validity repeatedly for up to a period of 3 extra months after the expiration of your work contract, but for a maximum of 3 years.' |
| Renewal duration | up to 3 years as of 2026-07-27[1] Same ceiling on each extension. |
| Maximum total duration | Not established from a qualifying source No aggregate ceiling is stated. |
| Work rights | own activity only as of 2026-07-27[1][6] s. 42i(4): the blue card entitles the holder to reside and to perform employment requiring high qualification for the period stated in it. s. 42i(9) allows a change of employer or work position provided the s. 42i(1) conditions continue to be met, and requires notice to the Ministry within 3 working days; s. 42i(8) requires the same notice when the employment ends. The route page states that failure to report is a ground for revoking the card. |
Permanent residence and citizenship
| Counts toward permanent residence | Yes as of 2026-07-27[1][6] s. 68(4) provides a distinct track: permanent residence is granted to a foreigner who has completed 5 years of continuous residence in EU Member States as a blue card holder, provided the last 2 of them were continuous residence in Czechia as a blue card holder; residence for scientific research or study, and time as a beneficiary of international protection in another Member State, count toward the 5 years, and residence of under 12 months in the issuing Member State does not. The route page states the same in summary. The ordinary s. 68(1) 5-year track remains available. |
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Requirements
| Job offer required | Yes as of 2026-06-12[6] s. 42j(1)(b): an employment contract or a preliminary agreement for employment requiring high qualification must be submitted with the application. |
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| Salary threshold |
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| Labour-market test | No as of 2026-06-12[6] s. 42i imposes no labour-office binding opinion, in contrast to s. 42g(6) for the employee card. What s. 42i(1) requires instead is that the position be one which, under Act No. 435/2004 Coll., may be filled by a non-EU national – the central register of vacancies fillable by blue card holders – which is a listing condition rather than a case-by-case market test. |
| Qualification requirement | degree, equivalent experience, regulated profession as of 2026-06-12[6] s. 42i(2): high qualification means duly completed university education, or higher vocational education where the study lasted at least 3 years, or higher professional skill – knowledge, skills and competences evidenced by professional experience comparable to university education, related to the occupation or sector in the contract and acquired over at least the period that MPSV fixes by decree for selected occupations. s. 42i(5) adds that for a regulated profession the Ministry decides after the recognition authority has commented. s. 42j(4) waives the qualification documents for someone who has worked as a blue card holder in another Member State for at least 2 years. |
| Employer sponsorship | Yes as of 2026-06-12[6] s. 42i(10): after assessing the application the Ministry informs the employer in writing that the conditions are met. The employer supplies the contract and the vacancy number. |
| Job-search route | No as of 2026-06-12[6] The card requires an existing job offer. |
Process
| Where to apply from | either as of 2026-07-27[1][6] s. 42i(3): the application is lodged at a diplomatic mission. It may be lodged with the Ministry inside Czechia by a person granted asylum or subsidiary protection, by a holder of a Blue Card issued by another EU Member State who applies within 1 month of entry, and by a foreigner already residing on a long-term visa or a long-term residence permit for another purpose. |
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| Statutory processing time | up to 90 days as of 2026-07-27[1] 90 days, whether lodged in Czechia or at a mission. Where the applicant holds a Blue Card issued by another Member State the limit is 30 days, or 60 in particularly complex cases. An extension is decided in 60 days. |
| Fees |
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| Quota |
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Family inclusion
| Family members may be included | Yes as of 2026-07-27[1][6] s. 42a(7)(d): where the sponsor holds a blue card, the family-reunification permit is issued without any residence-duration condition on the sponsor. s. 42a(2) additionally lets a family member who lived in another Member State as the family member of a blue card holder apply in Czechia within 30 days of entry. |
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| Eligible relations | spouse, minor child, parent, other dependent as of 2026-06-12[6] |
| Family may apply at the same time | Yes as of 2026-07-27[1][6] s. 42a(7)(d) imposes no waiting period on a blue card sponsor, so nothing prevents the family applying at the same time; the route page states that family members 'can apply at a diplomatic mission for a long-term residence for the purpose of family reunification in a shortened time limit of 90 days', and s. 169t(6)(a)(4) is the provision that shortens the decision period from 270 days to 90. |
| Family members' work rights | full as of 2026-07-01[7] Act No. 435/2004 Coll. s. 98(l): family reunification with the holder of a valid long-term residence permit gives free access to the labour market. |
Your next step
Read the requirements above considering your own situation: the income multiple, the absence limits, who you can bring. Check the country record for the reference figure those amounts are calculated from, and for anything that has changed recently.
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Verification
| Sources cited | 7 |
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| of which official (tier 1) | 7 |
| Oldest as-of date | 2026-06-12 |
| Newest as-of date | 2026-07-27 |
| Reviewed on | 2026-08-26 |
| Schema version | 1.1 |
Sources
- [1] Blue Card
Ministry of the Interior of the Czech Republic · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-07-27 · Accessed 2026-08-23 - [2] Navýšení mzdy pro modré karty a nové formuláře čestného prohlášení
Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-04-16 · Accessed 2026-08-23 - [3] Narizeni vlady o maximalnim poctu zadosti – zamestnani a podnikani (Government Regulation No. 220/2019 Coll., as amended, with the per-mission tables)
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-06-30 · Accessed 2026-08-22 · Archived copy - [4] Visa Fees
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic · fee schedule · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-22 - [5] Sdělení Ministerstva práce a sociálních věcí č. 44/2026 Sb., o výši průměrné hrubé roční mzdy v České republice za rok 2025 pro účely vydávání modrých karet
Sbírka zákonů a mezinárodních smluv (e-Sbírka) · gazette · Tier 1 · Published 2026-03-24 · Accessed 2026-08-23 - [6] Zakon c. 326/1999 Sb., o pobytu cizincu na uzemi Ceske republiky a o zmene nekterych zakonu – consolidated text
Ministerstvo vnitra CR / e-Sbirka · statute · Tier 1 · Published 2026-06-12 · Accessed 2026-08-22 - [7] Zákon č. 435/2004 Sb., o zaměstnanosti (consolidated text in force from 1 July 2026)
Sbírka zákonů a mezinárodních smluv (e-Sbírka) · statute · Tier 1 · Published 2026-07-01 · Accessed 2026-08-23