The Czech Republic is mainly run on the principle of jus sanguinis (right of blood) or the idea of citizenship being inherited by descent and not by birth. Rules are not constant, as they depend on the period of history your forefathers abandoned the land.
Important principle
The basis of a successful application is proving that you are a literal descendant of a Czech citizen and that the citizenship was not lost. Or renounced in any way that disconnects with the previous generation to the next generation.
When your predecessors were on the Czech territory (Bohemia, Moravia, Silesia), or the Czechoslovakia. That is when, is the most crucial point is. The regulations can be split into three historical periods.
Some antecedents emigrated after 1968 (Post-1969 Citizenship Law)
This is the simplest of the situations. The Citizenship Law of 1969, amended.
Rule: A child who was born with both parents of Czech citizens or at least one of who is a Czech citizen by birth, irrespective of the country they were born.
What you need to prove:
- Birth certificate connection of you to your Czech parent (direct parenthood).
- That your Czech parent was a citizen at the time of your birth (his/her birth certificate, which may be his/her passport or ID).
Critical point: In case one of your Czech parents lost citizenship (e.g., by voluntarily gaining another citizenship before 2014). The chain would then be broken henceforth.
Progenitors who moved between 1948 and 1968
This era is even more complicated by the fact that citizenship legislations were altered by the communist rule.
Permanent loss of Citizenship by emigration: One of the 1948 laws provided that a citizen who, by 1948. Refused to go back to the USSR and emigrated to a non-democratic nation (including the West) in the period 1948-1953, and could be deprived of his citizenship by decree of a minister. A lot of them were deprived unknowingly.
Automatic loss: In 1953, a law declared that a citizen who had obtained the citizenship of a foreign country lost Czechoslovak citizenship by implication.
How to claim: In case your ancestor lost citizenship through the above, you do not necessarily become a citizen. But there is a very strong claim you have to reacquire it.
The Czech government considers that the denationalisation of 1948-1953 was illegitimate.
By declaration (prohlaseni), you may apply to have the citizenship with the loss for which you have been aggrieved restored.
You will be required to establish that you have an ancestor who was a citizen before emigration and that they were of this sensitive time when they emigrated.
Descendants who immigrated before 1948
It deals with the most ancient claims and presupposes the exploration of the legislation of the First Czechoslovak Republic (1918-1938) and the direct aftermath of World War 2.
Original Citizenship: You have to demonstrate that your ancestor became a citizen of Czechoslovakia. Or otherwise, one of the precursor states (Austria-Hungary) and lived at the time the state was founded (1918) on Czech territory.
No Automatic Loss: Although, in general, citizenship was lost only by:
- Acquiring citizenship voluntarily.
- Marriage (in the case of women, loss at some time on marriage to a foreigner, though this can usually be cured).
- Serving in a foreign army.
How to claim: This is a demand (zadost) and not a declaration. You have to demonstrate a continuous line of lineage of citizenship starting with your ancestor to the present day. You have a heavy burden to prove that not one in the lineage ever did anything that would have broken the chain of citizenship under the laws then in existence.
Who is eligible
The general claim that you can make is:
- Parents.
- Grandparents.
- Great-grandparents and occasionally even farther, the task of demonstrating this becomes more difficult.
Application process: stage-by-stage
- Collect paperwork (The most significant Step): Your documents: Your birth certificate (long form, apostilled/authenticated and translated to Czech in writing).
- Evidence of emigration/date of departure (passport stamps, ship manifests, naturalisation documents).
- Chain documents: The birth, marriage, and death certificates of each individual in your lineage between you and your Czech ancestor, who contains the direct ancestry.
- Apply: You must apply in person at the Czech Embassy/ Consulate in your home country. You will fill out the relevant form (application or declaration).
- Make the administrative fee (at the moment, the declaration costs about 2000 CZK, application costs about 5000 CZK; however, look into this with the embassy).
- Wait for Processing: The processing time is embarrassingly high, 1.5 to 2 years, which is sometimes even higher.
All the applications are done in the Ministry of the Interior in Prague.
You can also view these posts:
Traveling to Czechia: Visa requirements
Living in Czechia
Preparing for the immigration interview in Czechia