According to the Czech Republic immigration law, foreigners can obtain Czech citizenship through the options which are prescribed by the applicable regulations. However, there isn’t any straightforward procedure for obtaining Czech citizenship by marriage, although foreigners married to Czech citizens are entitled to apply for it. Details on this subject are presented in this article.
Our immigration lawyers in Czech Republic can help foreigners who want to obtain Czech citizenship by marriage with in-depth advice on the legal procedure one should follow after the wedding took place.
If you have not yet married to your future Czech spouse and you are interested in getting married in this country, you can also rely on our lawyer for advice on the procedures and the documents you should prepare if the event will be registered with the Czech institutions.
Table of Contents
What is the process of obtaining the Czech citizenship by marriage in 2025?
If you are a foreigner interested in moving to Czech Republic on a permanent basis and getting married to your partner who is a Czech national it is necessary to know that you can easily conclude the marriage ceremony as civil procedure or as a wedding ceremony, depending on your wishes. If you want to obtain Czech citizenship by marriage, you need to know that you will first have to become a permanent resident.
Here, two basic situations can occur, which are given by the nationality of the foreign partner – citizen of one of the member states of the European Union (EU) and the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland, and citizen of third-party countries.
In the beginning, a foreigner moving to Czech Republic can apply for a temporary residence permit, which, after a given period of time, be transformed into a Czech long term residence permit.
In Czech Republic, a person can apply for Czech citizenship by marriage after living on a continuous basis in this country for 5 years, as a national of a third-country state, or after three years, if the person is a citizen of a member state of the EU, EEA or Switzerland.
Persons who apply for Czech citizenship by marriage benefit from certain advantages with regards to the issuance of the permanent residency, which can be obtained after two years of continuous living in the Czech Republic, and this can have important benefits for their daily life.
What should foreigners know on marriage in Czech Republic?
In the last decades, the procedures for getting married were simplified to accommodate the needs of a changing framework, where more and more international marriages are registered, as well as same-sex marriages or civil partnerships.
The same applies for the procedures for divorce and in numerous Western European countries the divorce rates have drastically increased. With regards to the matrimonial trends, we present the following:
- when we refer to international marriages, where a spouse has a different nationality than the other spouse, in Europe it is estimated that approximately 12% of all marriages are mixed marriages (according to Eurostat, Luxembourg and Switzerland have a rate of 18% of international marriages, while in Czech Republic, it stands at approximately 5%, the lowest being in Romania, of approximately 1%);
- the fees for getting married in Czech Republic vary based on the residency – if both parties do not have permanent residency here, the marriage fee is CZK 3,000 and if one has the permanent residency here, the fee is CZK 2,000;
- in the case in which the couple prefers a wedding outside the standard working hours of the City Hall and outside its location, an additional fee of CZK 1,000 will apply.
If you want to get married in Czech Republic in 2025 you must know that other marriage registration fees can apply. For instance, according to the Ministry of the Interior of the Czech Republic, it is also required to pay a fee of CZK 500 for the issuance of a certificate which shows that the fiancé has the legal competence of entering into a marriage completed on the Czech Republic’s territory.
The fees presented above have to be paid prior to the initiation of the marriage procedure and they can be paid by cash or through a postal cheque.
Regarding fees and other taxes, you should know that if you plan to become a Czech citizen based on the marriage to a Czech national you will have to pay a processing fee for your citizenship application. The current fee charged to adult applicants is CZK 2,000 and it can be reduced in certain circumstances to only 500.
The Czech authorities prescribe other citizenship fees that are reduced compared to the ones presented above, but they are available for other categories of individuals (minor applicants and asylum seekers). We invite you to get in touch with our team of immigration lawyers if you are interested in knowing what other costs may be associated with the process of becoming a citizen.
Czech language requirements
One of the main conditions of being granted citizenship, regardless of the country in which a foreigner initiates a citizenship application, is to demonstrate language skills in the national language of the nationality of interest. The same applies in Czech Republic for all types of citizenship pathways, including for those who apply for Czech citizenship by marriage.
Thus, in order to obtain Czech Republic citizenship by marriage, foreigners must make proof of having the appropriate language abilities, by submitting suitable certificates, diplomas, attesting the level of Czech proficiency that they have gained, unless exemptions are granted by law for specific situations.
It must be noted that the application for Czech Republic citizenship by marriage implies passing an examination for the purpose of acquiring citizenship with the Institute for Language and Preparatory Studies at Charles University.
The examination held at this institution is not limited to language requirements only, but it also involves a test concerning the knowledge of the Czech constitutional system, language, culture, history, etc.
The obligation to pass an exam through this institution is not imposed in the case of foreigners who apply for citizenship who have been enrolled in school education held in the Czech language (at least 3 years of education must be proven, regardless of the level – primary, secondary or tertiary).
Persons above the age of 65 years old are also exempt from passing a language test, along with those who have a physical disability that prevents them from learning a new language. Of course, for the latter case, medical documents attesting the issue must be presented when making the application.
Legal assistance on marriage and citizenship by marriage in Czech Republic
Our immigration lawyers in Czech Republic can offer more information on any other obligations that you may have when getting married here. Our team can also present any additional information to those who have been married for a sufficient amount of time so that the citizenship by marriage formalities can begin.
Obtaining Czech citizenship by marriage is one of the most favorable ways to acquire citizenship in this country. This is given by the fact that the procedure is simpler compared to the standard naturalization process, in the sense that it can be completed in a shorter amount of time compared to the standard procedure, which takes 10 years. As mentioned above, the foreign applicant must be the holder of a residence permit in Czech Republic.
A main preoccupation of the authorities that will evaluate the application for citizenship will be to verify if the marriage is authentic and not completed just so that the foreigner will obtain certain rights, as is the citizenship. If the marriage is a fraud, the applicant can face deportation.
We invite you to contact our immigration lawyer for additional information regarding the procedure for citizenship by marriage in 2025. If you are interested in other legal matters and you want to relocate to Czech Republic in 2025, our lawyers remain at your service.
Bringing close family members in Czech Republic
Our immigration lawyers in Czech Republic can help you with in-depth advice on how to relocate here, on how to apply for a visa if this is necessary and can also provide legal assistance if you want to bring close family members in this country, so do not hesitate to address our specialist, who can help obtain a Czech long term residence permit.
Our team can also represent foreign clients who are interested in Czech citizenship for family members. Depending on their nationality and the client’s residency and/or citizenship status in Czech Republic different policies may apply.
Our team can help you find out the most suitable options concerning visas for your family members, the residence permits that can be obtained here and offer assistance in other related matters. We can make sure that you and your close family members can easily immigrate to Czech Republic.
The ways family members can immigrate to Czech Republic can be influenced by many factors, the age of the respective family members, their connection to the applicant (parent, children, minor children, etc.,) therefore it is important to address for personalized assistance.
You can also contact us if you need to appeal a decision made by the Czech authorities concerning your/family member visa application or the application for citizenship. If you need further assistance on how to obtain the Czech citizenship by marriage, we invite you to contact our lawyer.
