study.vscht.czBoth, the EU as well as NonEU nationals have certain obligations when entering the Czech Republic. Please make sure to fulfill all obligations in order to ensure a legal stay in the Czech Republic.
EU Nationals
European Union nationals aren't obliged to obtain a visa for the purpose of studying in the Czech Republic. However, they can voluntarily apply for a Temporary Permit if they wish to.
If staying in private accommodation, EU nationals must register themselves at the Foreign Police within 30 working days after their arrival. Not fulfilling this lawful requirement can lead to a fine of 3000 CZK (120 EUR).
If you are staying in the dormitories, the dormitories will do the registration automatically for you.
Non-EU Nationals
Long-term Visa or Residence Permit Applying
Non-EU nationals must apply for a long-term visa OR a long-term residence card for the purpose of studying in the Czech Republic. It is up to you to consider which type of permit you choose, however, bear in mind that there are specific obligations connected to each type, especially after your arrival in the Czech Republic.
An application shall be submitted at a Czech embassy abroad. You are entitled to submit the application only at the Czech Embassy in the state of which you are a citizen or which issued your current travel document, or in the state in which you have a long-term or permanent residence permit. You do not have to meet these conditions if you are a citizen of a state presented in the list of countries whose nationals are entitled to apply for a long-term visa at any Czech Embassy whatsoever.
Erasmus Mundus students (IMATEC, IMETE): Apply for a long-term residence card with a validity of 2 years (the whole course of your studies) for the purpose of long-term mobility studies so that you can stay in the other partner countries too. Be informed that should you get a permit with a validity shorter than 2 years, you will, most probably, need to apply for a long-term residence card in the partner country too.
HOW TO PROCEED?
- Decide which type of permit you want to apply for: a long-term visa or a long-term residence card
- Start gathering the required supporting documents
- BSc and MSc applicants, including IMATEC students: Provide delivery address + phone number to the admission officer
IMETE students + PhD students: Arrange delivery service to collect the Acceptance Letter and Accommodation Pre-Agreement - UCT Prague will send you the Acceptance Letter and the Accommodation Pre-Agreement by DHL (+ the Student Agreement in the case of IMATEC students)
- Download an official application form for the long-term visa or the long-term residence card and fill it in (see guide here)
- Schedule an appointment at a respective Czech embassy for your country
- Sign Accommodation Pre-Agreement received from UCT
- Double-check that you possess all documents required at the Czech embassy (photos, proof of funds, criminal record...)
- Inform the admission officer about the assigned date of your appointment at the embassy
- Attend the appointment at the Czech embassy and submit the visa/residence card application and the required documents & pay the visa application fee
- Provide proof of medical travel insurance to the Czech embassy and collect the visa (IMATEC and IMETE students are exempted from this obligation)
- Arrive in the Czech Republic
- If you applied for the long-term residence card, visit the Ministry of Interior within 30 days of your arrival to report your arrival, and to schedule a collection of your residence card
IMPORTANT!
An appointment at the respective embassy must be scheduled in order to apply for a long-term visa or long-term residence card. The appointment must be scheduled by the applicant himself/herself.
Czech embassies require an extract from the Penal Register (criminal record) with authentication (apostille/superlegalization based on the country which issued the criminal record). Arranging this document may take 1-4 months! We strongly advise securing the extract from the Penal Register (criminal record) immediately once you are informed that you have been accepted to the studies at UCT Prague.
Note that it is more than recommended to attend a visa appointment at the respective embassy in May at the very latest. The academic year starts in September, and visa approval takes 30–60 days!
Especially applicants from Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Nigeria, Ghana, India, Sri Lanka and Cameroon should apply for the visa AS SOON AS POSSIBLE once they receive the Acceptance Letter and the Accommodation Pre-Agreement. The competition at the Czech embassies respective for these countries is enormous, and the number of appointment slots is very limited!
VISA FACILITATION PROJECT REŽIM STUDENT (STUDENT MODE)
Applicants complying with specific requirements of the Ministry of Education can get an appointment at the Czech Embassy through a governmental project for visa facilitation called Režim Student (Student Mode).
Eligible applicants will be contacted by the admission officer and will be advised of the necessary steps.
REŽIM STUDENT – What it is and how it works
Režim Student (Student Mode) is a governmental project designed to facilitate the visa procedure for selected students.
For the Režim Student, universities can nominate only applicants complying with specific requirements given by the Ministry of Education of the Czech Republic. A nomination can be submitted to the Czech Ministry of Education only on specific dates. The Ministry of Education determines whether the nomination will be accepted. If a nomination is accepted, the applicant is contacted by the respective Czech embassy regarding the date of an appointment for the visa/residence card application submission.
When nominating a student, the university must submit the following documents:
- Diploma/Graduation certificate (issued within the last 3 years)
- Acceptance Letter
- English Language Certificate
- Certificate of Nostrification / Recognition Certificate / IAU number of the university / Confirmation of Accreditation of a Study Programme that you graduated from issued by your school
The Ministry of Education has 3–5 working days to process the nominations and based on certain criteria choose, which nominations are accepted.
If the nomination is accepted, then the Embassy assigns an appointment to the applicant – the appointment is usually assigned within 1–4 weeks. If the application for the visa/residence card is complete and right, the embassy sends all documents to the Czech Ministry of Interior, and the Ministry of Interior then has 60 days to approve the application. If the application is approved, the Ministry of Interior contacts the embassy, and the embassy contacts you to schedule an appointment for visa collection.
Universities can nominate students for the project only on these dates:
| 16. 2. | 22. 3. | 19. 4. | 24. 5. | 21. 6. | 26. 7. | 23. 8. | 20. 9. | 18. 10. | 22. 11. |
| 8. 3. | 5. 4. | 10. 5. | 7. 6. | 12. 7. | 9. 8. | 6. 9. | 4. 10. | 8. 11. | 6. 12. |
Because the approval process may take up to 60 days, and the Enrolment Day of Bachelor's and Master's degree students takes place in the first week of September, it is highly recommended to nominate a student at the beginning of June at the latest so that the visa is issued on time.
Students, who apply for a long-term visa, get a visa sticker with a validity of 365 days (usually) and MULTI entries to the Czech Republic. Students with long-term visas who do NOT stay in dormitories, must, within 3 days after their arrival, visit the Department of Foreign Police to report their arrival.
Students, who apply for a long-term residence card, get a visa sticker that authorizes them to enter the Czech Republic (SINGLE entry, authorized stay up to a maximum of 60 days). They must visit the Czech Ministry of Interior within 30 working days after their arrival to report their arrival and provide biometrical data (which means that the Ministry of Interior will take a photo of you and also scan your fingerprints in order to issue a residence permit card). After this procedure, the student is provided with a date of collection of the residence permit card (which may have a validity of 1–2 years).
NOTE
APPOINTMENT AT THE EMBASSY
Make sure to arrive at the appointment at the Embassy on time! Not arriving at the appointment at all or being late will result in postponing the process of obtaining the visa. In some cases, you may not be given another time slot to visit the Embassy which will result in the impossibility of arriving in the Czech Republic for the Enrollment day and your non-acceptance to the studies!
HEALTH INSURANCE
As a result of being parties to the International Treaty on Cooperation in the Area of Health and Social Security, medical travel insurance is not required from citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Cuba, Japan, Macedonia, Montenegro, Turkey, and Serbia. The same exception applies to participants of the Erasmus Mundus program, Fulbright scholarship program, European Voluntary Service of the EC Youth in Action programme, as well as holders of the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) issued by another EU member state and a GHIC card issued by the UK.
COMMUNICATION WITH THE EMBASSY
Kindly note that UCT Prague cannot legally help you with the visa appointment at the embassies, this is a responsibility of yours. You are also responsible for collecting all the required documents.
Please check the embassy website and follow their instructions and requirements. Note that the requirements vary from country to country, make sure to have the correct information related to your citizenship.
Please bear in mind that UCT Prague cannot communicate with the embassy or Ministry of Interior on your behalf. Information about your visa status is confidential and cannot be provided to UCT Prague. We understand that it might be stressful to wait for the embassy to contact you, however, note that during the summer, embassies are extremely busy. Once the visa is ready to be collected, you will be contacted.
UCT Prague does not provide any assistance or invitation letters for your friends/partners/family members. In such a case, you shall follow the instructions on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic and the respective embassy of the Czech Republic.
