Whenever you are an EU citizen or non-EU citizen you can buy a Czech Operator SIM card without any restrictions. First, you just have to decide if you would like to have a prepaid card or a tariff programme. A prepaid card is a good option for a short stay or if you are not sure if you will stay in the Czech Republic for a longer period of time. A tariff programme is tied to a certain period of time, usually 24 months.
Where to Buy?
You can obtain a prepaid SIM card at a newspaper kiosk, or at the supermarket. If you would like to have a tariff programme, you will have to visit a Phone Operator’s Providers business point. These are usually based in shopping malls. Another option is to order your SIM card online. It will be delivered by the courier service along with contract documents. For accepting the delivery your ID or passport is a must. In some cases, non-EU citizens are also obliged to have their residence permit.
Which Provider?
There are three main Phone Operators in the Czech Republic: T-Mobile, O2 and Vodafone. All of them have 99% mobile signal coverage of the area of the Czech Republic. There are also many smaller “virtual” providers, basically under the licence of the big three, but with cheaper prices (e.g. Tesco Mobile, Kaktus, Blesk mobil, Sazka mobil, etc.). Please note that the prices for phone calls and data are higher compared to other European countries, so you can also use your SIM card from your EU home country for calling home since there is no roaming within the EU. For international calls to Czech numbers use the dial-in prefix +420 or 00420.
For living and working in the Czech Republic, you will probably need a Czech bank account. Your employer may require you to have a Czech bank account to send your salary. Whatever your reasons, opening a bank account is very easy and many banks offer online account opening with online authorisation.
How Can I Open a Bank Account?
When opening the bank account, you will need 2 personal documents – ID card, passport or driving licence. And also, you will need to prove your connections with Czechia (eg. residence permit, working contract, confirmation of study, and so on). Many banks require a deposit when opening a new account. Some banks require you to have a Czech phone number for authorisation codes.
How to Choose a Right Bank for Me?
The Czech banking sector is stable and you can choose from large international banks to smaller Czech banks. First, identify your needs and do a little research on your own. Almost every bank has a website in English and before visiting their branch you can set up an appointment with English speaking staff.
Additionally, if you are planning to do a lot of international money transfers, double-check the price list of Czech banks. Some of them already have free-of-charge credit and debit euro payments. You can also check offers of so-called “Neo-banks” such as Revolut (which has a very good currencies exchange rate), N26 or Monese. For a simple money transfer, you can use TransferWise.
You can always check the current rate of the Czech koruna on the official website of the Czech National Bank and thus check the deviation from the offered rate by exchange office.
Waste Collection Fee
All citizens who intend to stay in the city of Ostrava for longer than 90 days (even if they don’t have temporary/permanent residency) are obliged to pay the waste collection fee. The responsibility to pay the fee is on individual residents (including children), not on the property owners.
What Are My Obligation?
The fee is CZK 720 per person/calendar year and is paid once a year by June30 and can be paid by bank transfer (you will receive an email with payment details including QR code for the payment).
The payee must register for the fee within 30 days of the day on which the liability originated. It is usually the date of the lease contract or the date of registering for the temporary/permanent residency in the city. There is an obligation to report any changes within 15 days.
How to Pay?
First, you have to register. One option is to come in person to the City Hall (Prokešovo nám. 8, 729 30 Ostrava, Office number 363). It is recommended to come with a Czech speaking person. You have to prove your stay with the home lease contract or temporary/permanent residency card, and also bring your ID/passport. You will then in turn receive paymentdetails via email.
The other option is to register via email komunalniodpad@ostrava.cz. You will get an e-mail reply in English. You have to attach a scan of your ID/passport and scan of your home Lease Contract, or the temporary/permanent residency card. If you decide to also pay for your children, please mention their names in the email as well. Later on, you will receive payment details via email.
Recycling
In Ostrava, we really care about the environment and we separate and recycle waste. OZO, a city-owned waste management company is responsible for waste disposal and recycling. There are various waste bins close to every house in Ostrava, so you can also check the online map with the location of each container for various kinds of waste. If you are a house owner you can apply for waste separation bins at OZO.
What to Separate?
Green bin: mixed residual waste (non-separated waste)
Yellow bin: plastics (CLEAN bottles, cups and food boxes, liquid packaging, tetra packs, bags, foils, polystyrene, CD/DVD media, cosmetics packaging) + metal packaging (cans and tins)
Blue bin: paper (newspapers, magazines, catalogues and leaflets, cardboard and boxes, shredded paper, office paper, exercise books, calendars, notebooks, brochures, drawings, envelopes)
Green bin in the shape of a bell: glass (jars, glasses and bottles, throw away bottles without lids and shards)
Red bin: electro waste (old or unused electrical appliances, electronics, refrigeration equipment)
Brown bin: compost – biodegradable waste (fruits, vegetables, grass and leaves, withered flowers, walnut shells and wood sawdust)
Textile containers: you can donate clean and dry clothes for charity purpose
Collection yard: for oversized, hazardous or construction waste, big electro waste, edible oils and fats and tires. At these yards are you have to prove your city of Ostrava residency (by permanent/temporary residence card).
Public Radio and Television Fees
TV and Radio Licence Fees are paid by every person who has a permanent or a long-term residence permit in the Czech Republic and owns a TV or radio receiver. This fee is paid by the household, no matter how many devices you own, no matter if you use them or not. In principle, every TV or radio device which is able to receive a TV or radio signal is subject to a charge.
What Are My Obligations?
Every expat with a permanent or a long-term residence permit who owns any TV or radio device is obliged to pay the TV and Radio License Fee. An exemption from payment is provided for expats with a temporary residence (EU and EU family members).
If you’re following the Czech news and radio stations on a computer with an FM/DVB-T tuner or television card, it’s necessary to pay the TV and Radio Licence Fee too.
The TV fee is CZK 135 and the radio fee is CZK 45 per month and it is paid to contribute to the independent and public news and broadcasting of Czech Television (Česká televize) and Czech Radio (Český rozhlas). If you do not pay these fees in time, you will have to pay the sum in arrears and you can also be fined (up to CZK 5,000 for not paying the Czech Radio fee and up to CZK 10,000 for not paying the Czech Television fee).
How to Pay?
CzechPost Offices
You can register to pay the fee in any CzechPost Office via SIPO system (direct debit of multiple payments), see more here.
Online
You can also register and pay the fee online through the Czech Television and the Czech Radio official websites. Unfortunately, both websites are in the Czech language.
Regarding the Czech Television fee, you click on “Register a New Payer” / “Přihláška nového poplatníka” (on the left side of the website). Once you fill in all your personal data, you will be invited to choose the frequency of the payment: monthly, quarterly, half-yearly, or annually. At the end, you should get a bank account number and your specific variable number. You can send the fee by a lump-sum payment or you can set a standing order from your bank account.
Concerning the Czech Radio fee, the procedure is the same as on the Czech Television website.
Beauty Care
Looking for English speaking hairdresser, barber or tattoo artist? We have got you covered! See the lists below.
Ostrava supports micro-mobility and green modes of transport. In addition to convenient public transport (see here), you can rent a shared bicycle, electric scooter, or use car rental services. Furthermore, more and more people use walking to move around the city.
Bike-Sharing
A very popular way of moving around is bike-sharing. To use the Nextbike sharing service, you first download the app, then register with your name and bank card and immediately you can rent the bike via the app (Android, Apple). A registration fee of CZK 50 will be given to you as credit for the rides.
There are more than 250 Nextbike stations all around Ostrava. Please just remember to always return the bikes to the “station” and not leave them lying around. Nextbike pricing: the first 15 minutes are free of charge, the following 45 minutes cost CZK 24, or you can prepaid a monthly tariff. Also you can rent a bike for free more than once a day.
Bolt and Lime want to operate 750 of these scooters in the city. Scooters rentals are not subsidized by the City of Ostrava, which currently supports shared bike rentals. Ostrava electric scooters must be parked in racks.
You can use the Lime application (Android, iOS) directly to rent scooters, or use the Uber application (Android, iOS). It is necessary to add that riding a scooter is, from the point of view of the law, riding a bicycle, ie, riding on it on the sidewalk is prohibited (or it must not exceed the walking speed).
Scooter rental and mileage are charged. Payment is automatically deducted from the payment card, which you insert into the application after the end of the journey.
Taxi
Ostrava is included in the Liftago system. Liftago is very similar to Uber, but is provided by certified taxi drivers with licences. Moreover, Bolt (similar to Uber) is back in Ostrava!
Sometimes, public transport, neither bikes are not enough. Car rentals are here to rent cars, vans, minibusses, and camper vans. The price is agreed upon in advance and the car will be delivered to your needs.
Public holidays in the Czech Republic are divided into national holidays and other holidays. Employers can require employees to work only under special conditions.
The shops of area of 200m² or more have to be closed during the following holidays: Restoration Day of the Independent Czech State, Easter Monday, Liberation Day, End of World War II, Czech Statehood, St. Wenceslas Day, Independent Czechoslovak State Day, Christmas Eve (since 12:00), Christmas Day and The Second Christmas Day, St. Stephen’s Day.
List of Holidays
National and Other Holidays:
1 January – Restoration Day of the Independent Czech State, New Year’s Day
Good Friday & Easter Monday – first weekend after first spring full moon (7 & 9 April 2023)
1 May – Labour day
8 May – Liberation Day, End of World War II
5 July – Saints Cyril and Methodius Day
6 July – Jan Hus Day
28 September – Czech Statehood, St. Wenceslas Day
28 October – Independent Czechoslovak State Day
17 November – Struggle for Freedom and Democracy Day
24 December – Christmas Eve
25 December – Christmas Day
26 December – The Second Christmas Day, St. Stephen’s Day
Lost & Found
It happens to all of us that we forget or lose something. It is all the more complicated if the lost item is valuable or a personal document. Below, you will find tips on what to do.
I Lost My Documents
If you have lost a travel document, national ID or driving licence, or if it has been stolen, it is your obligation to report it as soon as possible to the nearest police station and obtain receipts for the lost item. Afterwards, immediately report your loss to your nearest national embassy.
If your Czech residence permit has been lost, stolen or damaged, you must report this within 3 working days to the MoI Office. See conditions for EU and non-EU citizens.
Thank you for your message. Our office is closed from the 19th of December until the 6th of January due to the Christmas Holiday. For immediate assistance, please contact the Integration Centre (CPIC Ostrava) or the MoI (www.ipc.gov.cz).
We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
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