Czech government extends emergency lodging rules for refugees

The Czech government extended the validity of the rules for emergency accommodation of refugees from Ukraine by one year until March 31, 2024. Until then, the temporary protection of refugees will remain in effect in Czechia and other EU states.

The cabinet also prolonged payment of the solidarity subsidy to those who accommodate refugees in their homes or vacant flats for free or for just the price of consumed energy by another three months until the end of June.

The state provides subsidies for emergency accommodation of refugees in hostels, hotels and guesthouses. It pays CZK 300 per person a day to accommodation facilities operated by towns and regions, and CZK 350 to other accommodation providers.

Without the prolongation, the directive would expire at the end of March and there would be no rules for refugees' accommodation, Interior Minister Vít Rakušan said.

Under the amended "Lex Ukraine," the state will cover Ukrainians refugees' accommodation in hostels, hotels, guesthouses, and other facilities for only a limited period of time. After 150 days, refugees should either start to cover their accommodation costs by themselves or find other lodgings. This does not apply to parents with small children, disabled people, and seniors.

Based on the law, refugees should not stay in emergency accommodation for a long time. They should not stay in accommodation facilities longer than three months and in gyms, arenas, and similar places for longer than one month. Experts say that accommodation in flats is more suitable for the refugees' social integration, and is also cheaper.

The payment of the solidarity subsidy to those providing free accommodation to refugees in their homes or vacant flats has been prolonged until the end of June, the eligibility criteria and the subsidy sum remaining unchanged based on the directive approved by the cabinet, the Labor Ministry said.

Labor Minister Marian Jurečka told journalists today that the solidarity subsidy will continue after July 1, but the system will change.

The state sends CZK 5,000 to flat owners for one refugee accommodated for free in a vacant flat, CZK 9,000 for two, CZK 12,000 for three, CZK 14,000 for four, and CZK 15,000 for five and more persons.

Those accommodating refugees in their homes are eligible for CZK 3,000 per person a month, but a total of CZK 9,000 a month at the most.

The state monthly spends CZK 167 million on solidarity subsidies, and the total sum spent on them from March 2022 to the end of February 2023 was over CZK 2 billion.