Dear clients,

With respect to the dynamic course of events regarding the coronavirus situation we hereby inform you of the measures adopted by the Government. On 12 March 2020, Government Resolution No. 194 declared a state of emergency in the Czech Republic, which is in force from 12 March 2020, 02:00 p.m. for a period of 30 days, the maximum possible period, which can be extended only with the approval of the Chamber of Deputies.

The state of emergency can be declared by the Government in the event of natural disasters, ecological or pollution incidents, accidents or other circumstances that significantly endanger lives, health or property values or internal policy and safety. The state of emergency can only be declared while stating the reasons; for a certain period of time and for a specific territory. At the same time as the state of emergency declaration, the Government must define which rights are restricted and to what extent in accordance with the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms, and which obligations are imposed and to what extent they are imposed – that is what the Government did in its Resolutions dated 12 March 2020 and Resolutions dated 13 March 2020 and 14 March 2020.

With effect from 13 March 2020, 06.00 a.m. these measures include:

 No public presence in gyms, natural and artificial swimming pools, solariums, saunas, wellness, music and social clubs, entertainment facilities, public libraries and galleries.

 Prohibition of all catering facilities in shopping centres with a sales area of over 5,000 m2, for the time being 24 March 2020, 06.00 a.m.

 Prohibition of events (theatrical, musical, film and other artistic performances, sports, cultural, religious, associations, dance, traditional and similar events and other gatherings, exhibitions, festivals, pilgrimages, shows, tastings, markets and trade fairs, educational events both public and private) with attendance exceeding 30 persons at the same time (as opposed to the originally stated number of 100 people) excluding meetings, sessions, and similar actions of constitutional bodies, public authorities, courts and other public persons held by law and excepting funerals.

With effect from 13 March 2020, 12.00 a.m.:

 It is ordered to all Czech citizens and foreigners with temporary and permanent residence in the Czech Republic residing in the Czech Republic for more than 90 days or employed in the Czech Republic who return from their stay in the hazardous areas to report this fact immediately by telephone or other remote access to their general practitioner (or, in the case they do not have general practitioner, to any general practitioner).

 At the same time, general practitioners are required to decide on a 14-day quarantine period for persons with temporary or permanent residence in the Czech Republic residing in the Czech Republic for more than 90 days or employed in the Czech Republic when returning from the hazardous areas.

Further is from 13 March 2020, 08.00 p.m. banned public presence in catering establishments from 08.00 p.m. - 06.00 a.m.

As of 14 March 2020, the following restrictions apply:

 Delimitation of 15 hazardous areas (China, Italy, Iran, South Korea, Spain, Germany, France, Switzerland, Norway, Denmark, Netherlands, Sweden, UK, Belgium, Austria; this list may change and thus we recommend to track the up-to-date list of countries which is available HERE), to which the Czech citizens and foreigners with permanent or temporary residence in the Czech Republic for more than 90 days are prohibited entry. At the same time, foreigners (except foreigners with permanent or temporary residence in the Czech Republic for more than 90 days) from the hazardous areas are prohibited entry to the Czech Republic.

This restriction changes from 16 March 2020, so that all foreigners (irrespective of hazardous areas) are prohibited from entering the Czech Republic with the exception of foreigners staying in the Czech Republic in accordance with the temporary residence over 90 days or permanently residing in the Czech Republic. At the same time, Czech citizens and foreigners with permanent or temporary residence over 90 days in the Czech Republic are prohibited from leaving the Czech Republic. However, the exceptions available HERE still apply. For example, it can be noted that citizens of Germany, Austria, Poland and Slovakia who are demonstrably regularly crossing the internal borders, and in particular cross-border workers working within 100 km from the national border (as opposed to the formerly stated 50 km) are not prohibited entry. The restrictions related to the closure of the borders of the Czech Republic do not apply to international transport, so the transport of goods is not affected now.

 Emergency measures apply also to transport. Carriers are prohibited from transporting passengers across Czech borders. Exceptions apply to carriers operating in the international road passenger transport provided by vehicles with a capacity for 9 persons or less, and to occasional international road passenger transport for the return of Czech citizens and foreigners staying in the Czech Republic permanently or temporarily for more than 90 days to the Czech Republic and departure of foreigners outside the Czech Republic. Commercial air transport with passengers on board, in which borders of the Czech Republic are crossed, can be used only via the Václav Havel Prague International Airport.

 Prohibition of public presence in swimming pools and tourist information centres.

 Prohibition of public presence in the indoor and outdoor sports grounds with attendance exceeding 30 persons at the same time.

 Prohibition of retail sale in the market places.

 Prohibition of retail sale and sale of services in establishments, with the exception particularly of food and groceries, computers and telecommunications equipment, fuel, sanitary items, feed, newspapers and magazines, pharmacies and sales via the Internet or other remote instruments, for the time being 24 March 2020, 06:00 a.m.

 Prohibition of public presence in catering establishments with the exception of establishments not serving the public (e.g. employee catering) until 24 March 2020, 06:00 a.m. This restriction does not apply to sales outside the catering establishments (i.e. to the fast food establishments with a drive-thru (or “picking”) window or take away sale of food without entering the establishment).

 Prohibition of gambling houses and casino operation.

Personal presence of pupils and students at elementary, high and higher vocational schools, universities and conservatories, continues to be banned. Furthermore, since 13 March 2020 the ban applies also to elementary art schools, institutions for special-interest education (e.g. after-school institutions), language schools and one-year language courses with daily tuition in registered institutions. Although this ban does not explicitly apply to kindergartens and forest kindergartens, the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports recommended that limitations and/or interruptions of the operation of the kindergartens should be considered.

It is expected that further restrictions will be implemented. We will continue to monitor the development of the situation for you. If you have any questions or requests regarding the emergency state and the current situation in the Czech Republic, we are of course ready to help you.