Foreigners in the Czech Republic

The Ministry of the Interior of the CR is the institution, which is responsible for the international migration and asylum in the Czech Republic both on the level of legislation and conceptions (area of international migration, asylum) as well as what realization concerns (asylum, partially international migration). The Asylum and Migration Policies Department of the Ministry of the Interior of the Czech Republic is responsible for execution of tasks in the area of asylum, refugeeism, conception of immigration policy, for issues of entry and stay of foreigners, their integration and Schengen cooperation.

The course of the asylum procedure is regulated by Act No. 325/1999 Sb., on Asylum, and on the Amendment to Act No. 283/1991 Sb., on the Police of the Czech Republic, as last amended (hereinafter referred to as the Asylum Act).

Course of the administrative asylum procedure

Commencement of an administrative procedure is linked to an announcement of a foreigner, from which it is clear that he or she intends to apply for an asylum. Such an announcement can be done only on the territory of the Czech Republic in writing or in speech into the record. The announcement can be made on a border crossing, in a reception centre, at a department of the Alien and Border Police, in a facility for detention of foreigners, in a health establishment during hospitalisation or in a prison. A foreigner is obliged within 24 hours since he or she made the announcement to come to the reception centre, in which he or she submits the asylum application. Exceptions are possible only provided that they cannot come due to objective reasons (hospitalisation, imprisonment) – in such cases a foreigner is visited by an employee of the Ministry of the Interior of the Czech Republic; the employee will write down the asylum application with him or her in the place of their actual stay. In a reception centre, the police make acts to identify the foreigner. Further, the foreigner is obliged to hand over his or her passport, suffer taking down of his or her fingerprints and making of a visual record. In a reception centre also a medical examination of a foreigner takes place.

In an asylum application, precise wording of which is included in an appendix to the Asylum Act, the Ministry of the Interior of the CR (besides factual data on foreigners and their family) surveys reasons that made foreigners leave their country. The entire procedure is made in the foreigner’s mother tongue or upon his or her consent in the language, in which he or she is able to communicate. Costs of interpreting are paid by the Czech Republic. After all necessary acts are made an asylum seeker is transferred to a residential centre, in which he or she is waiting for the first-instance decision. During that period, an interview is made with the asylum seeker; it is to better specify reasons that were mentioned in the asylum application. The interview belongs to the most important acts of the asylum procedure, because it provides an asylum seeker with a sufficient space to describe his or her problems and situation in the country of origin. The Ministry of the Interior of the CR issues within 90 days (from the day the procedure began) a judgement on merits. When it is not possible (due to the character of the case) to decide within that period, the Ministry of the Interior of the CR can adequately prolong the period. It shall inform the participant of the procedure about the prolongation in writing without undue delay.

The decision comes into force on the day when it is delivered to the asylum seeker. Aliens´ registration office issues on that day an exit order to a foreigner. Against the final and conclusive decision of the Ministry of the Interior of the CR it is possible to lodge a complaint with the regional court, which is relevant according to the place, where the foreigner had reported stay at the time of submission of the complaint. The complaint can be lodged within 15 or 7 days (in enumerated cases) and it has a suspensory effect. Only in the case of discontinuance of asylum procedure according to Section 25 of the Asylum Act and complaint against the decision according to Section 16 paragraph 1 letters e) and f) of the Asylum Act the suspensory effect is not granted by law. Over the period of the proceedings on the complaint against the decision of the Ministry of the Interior of the CR a foreigner is in the position of an asylum seeker; in the period between administration decision comes into force and lodging a complaint the foreigner is subject to the act on the residence of foreigners. From the point of view of providing of health care, accommodation, provision of meals and necessary sanitary goods, a foreigner is seen as an asylum seeker during that period provided that the complaint has a suspensory effect. The amendment also newly regulates provision of health care to asylum seekers. Provision of health care is included in the system of public health insurance.

In the case of dismissal of a complaint, a foreigner has the right to lodge a cassation complaint with the Supreme Administrative Court in the city of Brno. The amendment of the Asylum Act No. 350/2005 Sb. no longer requires proposal for a suspensory effect; every cassation complaint submitted has the suspensory effect guaranteed now directly by the law.

Stay of foreigners in asylum facilities

Asylum facilities are: reception centres, residential centres, and integration asylum centres. They differ in their purpose. The founder of all those centres is the ministry. Due to new legal regulations, there is a change in the concept of stay of a foreigner in refugee camps or centres. While in the past a foreigner was obliged to stay in a refugee camp, the current legal regulations confirm only the right of a foreigner to use those facilities.

In a reception centre, a foreigner is obliged to stay during a certain period of time determined by law (for the purpose of identification, medical examination and the like). When somebody breaches the duty to stay in the reception centre, it is evaluated as a misdemeanour. Reception centres are in: Vyšní Lhoty (No. 234, zip code 739 06 Vyšní Lhoty, phone: (+420) 558692090), and in Praha - Ruzyně airport.

An asylum seeker is then transferred to the so-called residential centre. A residential centre provides accommodation to asylum seekers until the decision to grant asylum comes into force. Residential centres are in the following municipalities:

· Zastávka u Brna (Havířská 514, phone: +420 5464 11087)
· Bělá pod Bezdězem - Jezová (Bělá pod Bezdězem 1501, phone: +420 3267 01593)
· Kostelec nad Orlicí (Rudé armády 1000, phone: +420 4943 23803)
· Havířov (Havířov - Dolní Suchá, phone: +420 5968 86001)
· Seč (ČSL pionýrů 197, phone: +420 4696 76291)
· Zbýšov (Pamír - Padělky 381, Zbýšov u Rosic, phone: +420 5464 30420)
· Stráž pod Ralskem (Máchova 4, phone: +420 4878 51624)
· Kašava (Klapinky 20, phone: +420 5774 67051)
· Bruntál (Hotel A+H, U potoka 8, phone: +420 554714084)

The integration asylum centre is used to temporarily accommodate foreigners, who were granted asylum. The integration asylum centres are in the following municipalities:

· Jaroměř (Palackého 11, Jaroměř II)
· Zastávka u Brna (P.O.Box 14, Brno)
· Předlice (Husitská cesta 217/4, Předlice)
· Hošťka (Velešice 41, Hošťka)

Methodological notes on the tables

Table 2-1. New applications for asylum procedure and decisions by first instance: 2005

Data on the numbers of decisions include all decisions, i.e. also decisions issued in cases of minor participants of the procedure in the name of whom it is their statutory representative who lodges the application for asylum.

Table 2-2. Decisions of the second administrative instance: 2005

So-called remonstrances were lodged by asylum seekers against decisions of the Ministry of the Interior of the CR only before 31 January 2002.

Table 2-3. Asylum procedure at regional courts of justice: 2005

Asylum seekers can lodge an appeal against the decision of the Asylum and Migration Policy Department with an independent appellate court, which is from 1 January 2003 the relevant regional court(1) (depending on the place of residence of the seeker in the time the appeal is lodged).

(1) = Regional Court in Prague, Brno, Ostrava, Hradec Králové, Ústí nad Labem, České Budějovice, Plzeň, Hradec Králové – branch in Pardubice, Ústí nad Labem – branch in Liberec, Municipal Court in Prague.

Tabulka 2-4. Course of the cassation complaints proceedings at the Supreme Administrative Court: 2005

If an asylum seeker receives a negative decision of the regional court, he ceases to be an asylum seeker (after the decision comes into force). A foreigner can lodge a cassation complaint against the decision of a regional court with the Supreme Administrative Court in the city of Brno. If the legal conditions are met, he or she can be granted a stay sufferance visa.

Table 2-6. Asylum seekers: by place of residence; 31 December 2005

The asylum facilities include reception, residential and integration asylum centres, while other places of stay include hospitals, prisons, and detention facilities for foreigners.

Table 2-7. Asylum seekers: by age, sex, and citizenship; 31 December 2005

Asylum seeker is a person in an administrative asylum proceedings before a first-instance court, regional court and the Supreme Administrative Court in the city of Brno provided that there was lodged a cassation complaint by the Ministry of the Interior of the CR against the decision of a regional court (not by a foreigner himself).

Table 2-12. Citizenship of the CR granted to refugees

According to the Act No. 325/1999 Sb., on asylum, when Czech citizenship is granted the asylum ceases to exist. Columns for the years 2000 to 2005 show numbers of persons, whose asylum ceased to exist because they were granted Czech citizenship.

Development of the total number of asylum seekers in the Czech Republic corresponds to the situation in other European countries. Most of the countries of the EU have recorded a long-term trend of decreasing number of asylum seekers. As for the criterion of the number of asylum seekers, the CR was the fourteenth among EU countries in 2005.

Monthly development of the number of asylum applications in 2005 is more or less stable. With the exception of July and August, no major fluctuations were recorded in monthly numbers of asylum seekers; the Czech Republic recorded every month 300 new applications for asylum in average. The number increased only during the summer months, in which it exceeded 400 individuals per month. This deviation was caused primarily by a migration wave of asylum seekers from Slovakia.

Representation of asylum seekers by individual continent is not changing markedly in the CR in the long term. Most of asylum seekers are coming to the CR traditionally from European countries followed by Asian countries. In 2005, nationals of European countries represented almost 60% of the total number of asylum seekers in the CR. However, in comparison with 2004, the share of Europe as the main source region decreased, while the share of Africa increased. Representation of African countries in 2005 reached almost 6%, which is a double value in comparison to 2004. One third of all asylum seekers were coming from Asian countries in 2005.

Representation of individual nationalities in the total number of asylum seekers in the Czech Republic in 2005 is more balanced than in the previous years. The most marked change in the composition of asylum seekers was a shift of asylum seekers from India from the fourteenth position in 2004 to third in 2005. Another major shift occurred also as for asylum seekers from Slovakia, who became the second most important nationality in 2005. On the other hand, an important fall was recorded among nationals from Georgia and Kyrgyzstan. In 2005, an African country appeared for the first time among the top ten countries (Nigeria).

The most frequent country of origin of asylum seekers in the CR in 2005 was Ukraine (the same as in 2004). It belongs as usual to the most important source regions of asylum seekers in the CR; during the last five years (with the exception of 2003) it always was the main country of origin of asylum seekers. Nationals of Ukraine consider the Czech Republic in most cases to be their target country and an application for asylum they use to make their stay in the CR legal. However, submitting of applications for asylum on purpose was not so frequent as in 2004. In 2005, 987 Ukrainian nationals applied for asylum in the CR, which is a year-on-year decrease by 38% in comparison to 2004. Average monthly number of Ukrainian asylum seekers in 2005 was about 82 individuals.

The second most important country of origin (as for the number of asylum seekers) in 2005 was Slovakia. The Czech Republic recorded in 2005 in total 711 asylum seekers from Slovakia. Their number increased by 419% in comparison to 2004. The migration wave of Slovak asylum seekers was recorded especially during the summer months; the seekers mentioned as the main reason for their leaving the country of origin their unsatisfactory social and housing situation in Slovakia. The number of Slovak asylum seekers got markedly reduced after the amendment of the act on asylum came into force in October 2005. Since applications for asylum submitted by citizens of EU member states are rejected as inadmissible (and according to the above-mentioned amendment a complaint against that decision does not have a suspensory effect), Slovak citizens are not in the position of asylum seekers any more after the decision is issued about inadmissibility of their application. Thus, this measure is not motivating Slovak citizens to submit asylum applications in the Czech Republic.

Despite very low number of asylum applications submitted in the first half of the year, nationals of India in 2005 became the third most frequent group of asylum seekers. While in 2004 citizens of India did not make even 1% of the total asylum seekers in the CR, in 2005 they represented almost 9%. Nationals of India in most cases submitted their asylum applications on purpose - in the effort to avoid immediate repatriation to the country of origin. That migration wave was connected with security risks, namely due to involvement of networks of people smugglers. An effective reaction of the Ministry of the Interior of the CR on the migration wave of citizens of India was introduction of airport visa.

China belongs since 1999 permanently to main source regions of asylum seekers in the CR. In 2005, the Czech Republic recorded 287 Chinese asylum seekers, which is almost the same number as in 2004. China also remained on the fourth position among top ten countries of origin as for the frequency.

A marked year-on-year decrease by 83% in 2005 was observed among asylum seekers from the Russian Federation. From the second most frequent country of origin in 2004 they fell to the fifth position. Also their share in the total number of asylum seekers changed markedly (decrease from the value of 27% in 2004 to 6% in 2005). As a result of a massive migration wave of persons of Chechnya nationality that started in April 2003, citizens of the Russian Federation were the main source country of asylum seekers until the accession of the CR to the EU in May 2004. After following change of character of migration from Chechnya in relation to application of the so-called Dublin system, the number of asylum seekers of that nationality in the CR was markedly decreasing from the half of 2004 and that trend continued also in 2005.

The Ministry of the Interior of the CR granted asylum to 251 individuals. The biggest number of asylums went to nationals of the Russian Federation (69) and Belarus (47). Among other rather frequent nationalities of asylum seekers, to whom asylum was granted in the Czech Republic in 2005, were: Armenia (19), Kazakhstan (18), Uzbekistan (17), and Ukraine (9).

Almost half of asylums (46.6%) granted in 2005 were granted due to persecution reasons determined in the Convention on legal status of refugees (Section 12 of the Asylum Act). Therefore, asylum was granted mainly to nationals of Belarus and Uzbekistan. In the case of Uzbekistan, it applied to the inclusion of the CR in the programme of resettlement, which is under the auspices of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. Of the total number of asylums granted, 37.8% were granted for the purpose of family reunification (Section 13 of the Asylum Act); most often it applied to nationals of the Russian Federation.

Obstacles to leave according to the Asylum Act were granted by the Ministry of the Interior of the CR in 79 cases. Most often, this subsidiary form of protection was granted to nationals of the Russian Federation (50) followed (with a big difference in frequency) by nationals of Uzbekistan (8) and Cuba (5).

Share of the Czech Republic in asylum applications submitted in the EU in 2005

Decreasing number of asylum seekers is characteristic not only for the situation in the asylum area in the CR; this long-term development is recorded also in other European countries. The trend of a decreasing number of asylum seekers persists for several years already; in 2005, there was recorded even the very lowest number of asylum applications worldwide since 1987.

In 2005, 237 840 applications for asylum were submitted in the EU countries in total. It is a 15% decrease in comparison to 2004. The most marked year-on-year decrease (-35%) was recorded in ten new EU member states, in which 25 250 asylum applications in total were submitted during 2005.

The biggest number of asylum applications within EU member states was registered in France (21% of the total number of asylum applications submitted in the EU), Great Britain (13%), and Germany (12%). Among main source countries of applicants for asylum in the EU countries in 2005 were Serbia and Montenegro, Russian Federation, Iraq, Turkey, and Iran.

Despite the decrease in the number of asylum seekers in 2005, the share of the Czech Republic in the total number of asylum applications submitted in the EU countries in comparison with 2004 did not change markedly; it is about 2%. Thus, the CR was the fourteenth among EU countries as for the number of asylum applications submitted in 2005.