The Czech citizenship is mainly acquired by descent from a citizen of the Czech Republic,
which is called jus sanguinis (right of blood), which is a legal principle. This implies that,
citizenship of the parents when the child is born matters the most, but not the place of birth.
This, in contrast to nations that have unconditional birthright citizenship (as chosen in the
United States or Canada). Does not make a child a Czech citizen simply because of birth on
Czech soil of foreign parents.
The rules are designed to:
● Bequeath citizenship to the new generation.
● Stop children born without nationality.
● Be clear and legally certain on the basis of parentage.
The critical situations in which a child is in automatic Czech citizenry are:
● Birth: One of the parents is a citizen of the Czech Republic.
● Prevention of Statelessness: The baby is born in the Czech Republic and would
otherwise be stateless (e.g., the parents of the baby are stateless persons
permanently residing in the country).
This system has guaranteed continuity of the Czech identity even to the succeeding
generations and has also addressed international requirements of safeguarding the right of
all children to a nationality.
The Citizenship Act (No. 186/2013 Coll.) controls the acquisition of citizenship of the Czech
Republic by birth. The principles of jus sanguinis (right of blood) and some jus soli (right of
soil) are used to form the basis of the rules to avoid statelessness.
The situations under which a child is an automatic Czech citizen include a number of
situations.
The main principles: How a child becomes a citizen at birth
A child can be a citizen of the Czech Republic by birth when at least one of their parents is a
citizen of the Czech although the country of birth could be different.
This is the first one and operates by three means:
Married parents
In case the mother is a Czech citizen, the child is a Czech by default.
In case the father is the only citizen of the Czech Republic, and he is married to the mother,
the child is a Czech citizen by default.
Unmarried Parents
In case the mother is a Czech national, the child will be a Czech by default.
In case the father is the sole Czech citizen and both parents are not married, the child will
become a citizen, assuming that the father recognises paternity in the birth registry office.
(Usually at the time the child is registered at the birth registry). This is typically a declaratory
process, which is often quite simple.
Scenario
A Czech father and a Canadian mother had a baby in Germany. The child was born a Czech
citizen by birth.
Special Cases (Preventing Statelessness) & Jus Soli Cases (Preventing Statelessness).
The Czech law has significant provisions to avoid the birth of a child without a state.
The child whose birthplace is the territory of the Czech Republic acquires citizenship of the
Czech Republic at birth. Provided that he would otherwise be stateless and that at least one
of the following requirements is satisfied:
Descent (Jus Sanguinis)
One of the parents is a stateless person with a valid permit for permanent stay in the Czech
Republic and has resided for at least 90 days before the birth of the child.
Residence (Jus Soli)
The parents are also unknown, or stateless and the child is not born as a citizen of either of
the parents. In the case, the child is treated as a Czech citizen unless he or she becomes
stateless.
Case: Two stateless individuals who are permanently residing in Prague give birth to a child.
The child is born in Prague and the child turns into Czech citizenship to escape the
statelessness.
Foundlings
When a newborn is discovered in the Czech Republic, the child is assumed born in the
Czech Republic and to have citizenship in the Czech Republic. Unless and until it can be
demonstrated otherwise (e.g. the parents have been located and the foreign citizenship of
the child proven).
Common misconceptions
Automatic Citizenship by Birth on the Soil (Pure Jus Soli): Unlike the United States or
Canada. A child born on the territory of the Czech Republic to parents who are both
foreigners ( Except that the parents are stateless ). The citizenship of the parents decides
the citizenship of the child.
Grandparents are Czech, parents not: Citizens by birth Citizenship is normally provided in
one generation at the time of birth. In case your parent was a Czech citizen who was born in
the Czech Republic but lost it prior to your birth (e.g. through naturalization in a different
state). Then, in most cases, you cannot make any claim of birthright citizenship of the Czech
Republic. However, you can possibly apply to obtain citizenship by declaration (the simplest
form of naturalisation). Should you be able to demonstrate that you have Czech ancestry
and that you meet other requirements (such as being able to speak the language).
Documentation
In the event that your child is born in a foreign country, but he or she is a Czech citizen by
birth, then you will have to register the birth at the Czech embassy. Or a consulate in the
host country. They will sign a Czech birth certificate and they can issue the child a Czech
passport later. In the Czech Republic, the local Birth Registry (matrika) deals with the
process in case of births.
You can also view these posts:
Living in Czechia
Traveling to Czechia: Visa requirements
Getting a job as an expat in Czechia
