Remote Working Laws & Regulations in the Czech Republic

Laws, regulations and legal information related to working from home and remote work

  1. Is there any legislation relating to working from home in your country?
  2. How can working from home be implemented in a company (e.g. through collective bargaining agreements, a unilateral decision, employment contracts)?
  3. Can an employer force an employee to work from home?
  4. Can an employee force an employer to allow him to work remotely?
  5. Does an employer have to provide the employee with office equipment and supplies for remote work?
  6. Does a company have to reimburse an employee for expenses incurred while working from home?
  7. Does an employer have to grant an employee a specific allowance for working from home? If so, under what conditions does an employer not have to pay such an allowance?
  8. For employees who work remotely, is the employer responsible for ensuring proper working conditions from a health and safety perspective?
  9. Are there any other specific obligations for the employer?
  10. Does an employee need to be insured to work from home?
  11. Is an employee who works from home protected by legislation for work-related accidents and illnesses?
  12. Is an employer permitted to charge its employees a “reimbursement for working from home” for costs saved? (Saved expenses could include the employee’s reduced costs for transportation, petrol, lunches in restaurants and dry-cleaning charges for office attire)
  13. Are there any other specific obligations on the employee?
  14.  Have there been any legislative changes, or updates to immigration rules, designed to encourage short-term remote working in your country (compared to the rules normally found in other countries)?
  15. Any other comments?

1. Is there any legislation relating to working from home in your country?

Working from home is governed by labour law regulations, in particular by the Act No. 262/2006 Coll., the Labour Code.

The Labour Code enables work from home in general for all employees based on a written agreement with employer. The law regulates, among other things, the termination of agreement, reimbursement of costs related to work from home, employer’s possibility to order home working unilaterally and requests for home working for protected employees.

The Labour Code also contains one specific provision that applies to employees who work from home who can, under an agreement with the employer, schedule their working hours themselves. For these employees, the general regulation on setting working hours does not apply (e.g. the employer is not obliged to determine the beginning and end of shifts or to schedule working hours). These employees are generally not entitled to a compensatory wage or salary for certain personal obstacles to work, such as a doctor’s appointment.

2. How can working from home be implemented in a company (e.g. through collective bargaining agreements, a unilateral decision, employment contracts)?

Working from home can only be implemented under an individual written agreement with an employee (i.e. in the employment contract or in a separate agreement). However, the Labour Code does not state the mandatory requirements for such an agreement and, therefore, the agreement can be rather simple and the specific conditions of work from home can be determined unilaterally by the employer in an internal policy.

3. Can an employer force an employee to work from home?

Employers can unilaterally order employees to work from home only if a currently applicable measure of a public authority allows this, and only for a strictly necessary period, if the nature of the work allows it, provided that the home workplace is suitable for the performance of work. In such a case, the employee must specify to the employer the home workplace address in writing at the employer's request without undue delay, or inform the employer that they have no suitable workplace available.

4. Can an employee force an employer to allow him to work remotely?

No, in general, employees cannot force an employer to allow them to work remotely since the consent of both parties is required. However, the employer must justify in writing the reasons for refusing a request to work from home from an employee with care responsibilities (e.g. care of a child under the age of nine years, a pregnant employee, an employee solely caring for a disabled person, etc.).

5. Does an employer have to provide the employee with office equipment and supplies for remote work?

Strictly and legally speaking, yes. According to the Czech Labour Code, the employee’s work is performed at the employer’s expense. Therefore, employers are obliged to provide all employees with the required working equipment and supplies (typically IT and office equipment) regardless of the employee’s place of work. Alternatively, the employer may agree that the employee will be reimbursed for the costs of purchasing supplies.

6. Does a company have to reimburse an employee for expenses incurred while working from home?

Yes. Employees perform work at the employer’s expense. Therefore, employers are obliged to provide a remote work allowance to cover the employee’s expenses incurred while performing work (e.g. expenses for work-related telephone calls, internet connection, increased utilities costs such as electricity and heating). There are two possible options: reimbursement of actual costs or a lump-sum allowance for each commenced hour. In case of reimbursement of actual costs, employees are obliged to calculate these costs and justify them to their employer. It is possible to agree in writing with the employees that they are not entitled to cost reimbursement.

In addition to the above, the employer must also reimburse the employee for the wear and tear of the employee’s own equipment (e.g. chair, desk, monitor) if the employer has not provided the equipment to the employee.

7. Does an employer have to grant an employee a specific allowance for working from home? If so, under what conditions does an employer not have to pay such an allowance?

Yes, as mentioned in previous answer, the employer is obliged to provide the employee with remote work allowance. There are two possible options: reimbursement of actual costs or a lump-sum allowance for each commenced hour. In case of reimbursement of actual costs, employees are obliged to calculate these costs and justify them to their employer. The amount of the minimum lump-sum allowance is set by the applicable legal regulation and in 2023 it is CZK 4.60 per each commenced hour of work.

8. For employees who work remotely, is the employer responsible for ensuring proper working conditions from a health and safety perspective?

Yes, the regulation of occupational health and safety in the Labour Code (and relevant special legislation) applies regardless of the place of work. Employers are still responsible for ensuring occupational health and safety and can be held liable in the event of an injury while working from home.

The specific occupational health and safety measures that the employer must take depend on the circumstances of the individual case. Employers must consider the nature of remote work and adjust their practice accordingly. For example, employees who work from home should receive instructions on how to correctly set up a workstation and health and safety training related to work from home.

9. Are there any other specific obligations for the employer?

No. The employer has no specific obligations relating to employees who work from home. However, the general obligations of the Labour Code apply. Regarding employees working from home, employers have the same obligations to them as they do to employees working on the employer’s premises including, for example, work-time keeping.

10. Does an employee need to be insured to work from home?

An employee working from home must be insured in the same way as an employee working at the employer’s workplace or another work site. No specific insurance is required for employees who work from home.

Yes, due to the absence of special regulations on work-related accidents and illnesses related to working from home, employees are protected by the regulation on occupational health and safety regardless of their place of work. Employers have the same occupational health and safety obligations and liabilities to these workers as they do to any other employees.

12. Is an employer permitted to charge its employees a “reimbursement for working from home” for costs saved? (Saved expenses could include the employee’s reduced costs for transportation, petrol, lunches in restaurants and dry-cleaning charges for office attire)

No.

13. Are there any other specific obligations on the employee?

No. All general obligations set out in the Labour Code apply to employees who work from home.

14. Have there been any legislative changes, or updates to immigration rules, designed to encourage short-term remote working in your country (compared to the rules normally found in other countries)?

No.

15. Any other comments?

There is still an absence of occupational health and safety regulation for home office even after the amendment of the Labour Code in 2023. The law is silent on the issue, and thus an employer’s ability to fulfil OHS standards for home-office employees remains a complicated issue.