Visa Renewals

Under current immigration legislation, student visas will be issued in the first instance for a maximum of 6 months. Students who stay in Prague longer than this will have to renew their visa during their studies. Even though we call it visa renewal, students are actually required to apply for a long-term residence permit for the purpose of studies instead, because student visas can't be extended or renewed.

If a long-term residence permit is granted, students will be issued with residence cards detailing their residency status and carrying biometric data (face depiction and fingerprints). Students will be invited by the Ministry of the Interior to provide biometric data at one of its branches within three days after being granted the permit. When the card is ready for pick up, they will be asked to come to collect it.
There is a fee for issuing the residency card. You can read more about the fee and the biometric data here.

Application for residence permit following up on a long-term student visa must be made no earlier than 90 days and no later than 14 days before the original visa expires.
Application for residence permit renewal must be made no earlier than 120 days and no later than 0 days before the original residence permit expires.
An application for a long-term residence permit following up on a long-term student visa, or an application to extend the current long-term residence permit is filed at the Ministry of the Interior (MOI) offices according to the applicant’s place of residence or at the special MOI office designated for university students only.

The residence permit will be issued in the first instance for a maximum of 1 year. The validity of the long-term residence permit can be repeatedly extended, but no longer than by 2 years.

You can check the status of your residence permit application online at the Ministry of Interior website.

MOI OPENING HOURS

On this website, you can find the available MOI offices in Prague including their opening hours and reservation portals to make an appointment. 

Prior telephone reservation is necessary in order to get an appointment (+420 974 820 680). You can also email to pobyty.hladkov@mvcr.cz or make a reservation on this website: https://frs.gov.cz/en/

• Completed Application Form
• A valid travel document (generally your passport)
• 2 photographs
• A document confirming the purpose of your stay in the Czech Republic (Confirmation of your student status supplied by the International Office)
• Evidence of sufficient funds to cover your stay in the Czech Republic, e.g. a bank statement, or any other document demonstrating your financial situation (for example the Decision from the Ministry of Education regarding awarding the scholarship). If the documents are issued in other languages than in Czech, then they have to be translated. There is a specific amount that must be satisfied for proof of finance. Applicants may be asked to submit a copy of their valid banking card.
• Proof of accommodation in the Czech Republic, for students staying in the dormitory this document can be supplied by the International Office upon request. Students living in private housing must submit an official form Proof of accommodation form which needs to be filled in and signed by the landlord of the apartment in which they live. Landlord’s signature must be certified.
• Evidence of comprehensive health care insurance coverage; a document on having paid the insurance premium may be requested. Insurance must be provided by an insurance company that is authorized to provide its services in the Czech Republic. We have made a preliminary survey of the insurance companies and the following four companies responded positively to our request for information and are able to provide health insurance for foreign nationals.

Note: If the student is a citizen of a country which is exempt from a tourist visa requirement, they can stay for another 90 days on the territory of the Czech Republic or any other Schengen country after the current visa expires. The list of countries whose citizens this regulation applies to is available at Ministry of Foreign Affairs website.

All the important information regarding visas, residency and legal obligations of foreigners in the Czech Republic can be found on the official web portal of The Czech Ministry of the Interior. The portal provides information about how to extend a residence, report changes, it allows to book an appointment at the Ministry of the Interior and has special “Forms and Documents” section with the printable version of various documents.