Number of foreigners staying illegally in the Czech Republic is rising, according to police

Prague, Jan 30 (CTK) – The immigration police uncovered 5,677 illegally staying foreigners in the Czech Republic last year, which was 685 more than in 2018, director of the immigration police Milan Majer and Deputy Police President Martin Vondrasek told journalists today.

In most, 1,504 cases, these were Ukrainians.

The police uncovered 5,174 people with illegal stay. They entered the Czech Republic legally, but they stayed in it after their residence permit expired.

Majer said most of them were from Ukraine (1,456), Moldova (825), Vietnam (353), Russia (234) and Uzbekistan (199).

The number of refugees who used the Czech Republic as a transit country rose by 75 to 266 last year.

They primarily came from Slovakia or by air from a different Schengen Area country, mostly heading for Germany. They were mostly from Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and Iran, Majer said, adding that these were mainly individuals and small groups.

At international airports, the police uncovered 503 people, 164 more than a year ago. Apart from five, all of them were detained at the Vaclav Havel International Airport in Prague.

Last year, 7,067 expulsion decisions were issued, 1,354 more than two years ago. In the crushing majority, the people were expelled over illegal work.

“In the long run, there is a prevalence of Ukrainians and Moldovans among them,” Majer said.

In recent years, the number of illegal foreigners was quite steady. The police only recorded a surge in connection with the migrant crisis in Europe in 2015.

Number of illegal foreigners in the Czech Republic since 2008:

Source: Czech Police