Health insurance

First clarify the basis of your stay

Whether you will be insured in the Czech system, and who pays, depends on your status. Holders of temporary protection have access to public health insurance (veřejné zdravotní pojištění). People who do not yet have protection, or have a different residence status, face different rules, often commercial insurance, which we do not describe here.

So the first step is not an insurer but clarity about your status: see the "I have just arrived" guide. Do not buy expensive commercial insurance "just in case" before you know whether you are entitled to public insurance. And the other way round: do not assume you are insured automatically forever.

How the system works in outline: you choose one of the Czech health insurers (there are seven: VZP, VoZP, OZP, ZP MV ČR, ČPZP, RBP, Zaměstnanecká pojišťovna Škoda). All operate under the same law and cover the same basic care; they differ in bonuses and service convenience.

Tip: this site does not decide whether you are insured. Only your insurer gives the final confirmation. Ask for written or electronic confirmation and keep it.

GP, children’s doctor, pharmacy

The Czech system is built around the general practitioner (praktický lékař). Most problems go to them first; they open your file, order tests, issue referrals to specialists and prescriptions. Children see a paediatrician (praktický lékař pro děti a dorost), teeth a dentist, women's health a gynaecologist.

How to register: 1. Find a doctor nearby using the healthcare map on the NZIP portal or your insurer's website (it has a search of contracted doctors). 2. Call or drop in: ask whether the doctor accepts new patients. Many practices are full — do not hesitate to try several. 3. Bring your passport and your insurer's card (or the replacement document). The doctor will fill in a registration form.

In practice: many specialists require a referral from your GP. Prescriptions are now usually electronic (e-recept): you get a code by SMS or in an app and take it to the pharmacy. The annual preventive check-up (preventivní prohlídka) is paid by the insurer.

Language: ask for a doctor who speaks Ukrainian or English, or bring an interpreter. Help centres (KACPU) and ICP can suggest contacts. Tip: before the visit write down symptoms and the medicines you take, and have them translated.

Emergencies: when and where

Remember the numbers: 112 — the single European emergency number; 155 — ambulance (záchranná služba); 158 — police; 150 — fire brigade. A call to 112 is free and works without a SIM card; the operator will find an interpreter, so do not delay calling because of language.

When to call 155 / 112: loss of consciousness, chest pain, signs of stroke (drooping face, arm weakness, speech difficulty), heavy bleeding, difficulty breathing, serious injury, poisoning. Stay calm, give the exact address (street and house number, floor) and speak clearly. Do not hang up until the operator allows it.

Less urgent but outside surgery hours: in the evening, at night and at weekends there is the out-of-hours doctor service (LSPP — lékařská služba první pomoci), as well as hospital admission departments (pohotovost / urgentní příjem). Look up the out-of-hours practices in your area on your insurer's or the city's site.

At the visit show your insurer's card (or the replacement document) and passport. If insurance is not yet arranged you will still receive emergency care, but a bill will follow — so do not delay arranging it.

Tip: save the address of the nearest hospital on your phone and write yourself a short "medical card" in Czech: allergies, chronic conditions, medicines, blood group.

First clarify the basis of your stay

Whether you will be insured in the Czech system, and who pays, depends on your status. Holders of temporary protection have access to public health insurance (veřejné zdravotní pojištění). People who do not yet have protection, or have a different residence status, face different rules, often commercial insurance, which we do not describe here.

So the first step is not an insurer but clarity about your status: see the "I have just arrived" guide. Do not buy expensive commercial insurance "just in case" before you know whether you are entitled to public insurance. And the other way round: do not assume you are insured automatically forever.

How the system works in outline: you choose one of the Czech health insurers (there are seven: VZP, VoZP, OZP, ZP MV ČR, ČPZP, RBP, Zaměstnanecká pojišťovna Škoda). All operate under the same law and cover the same basic care; they differ in bonuses and service convenience.

Tip: this site does not decide whether you are insured. Only your insurer gives the final confirmation. Ask for written or electronic confirmation and keep it.

State payment: 90 days from the first grant of protection

As of 3 November 2026 the following scheme applies according to the insurers' official pages. The state pays premiums for people with temporary protection during a so-called "protection period" (ochranná lhůta). For protection granted from 11 February 2025 this period is 90 days; for protection granted earlier (up to 10 February 2025) it was 150 days. The period is counted from the day protection was granted.

An important detail: insurers (VoZP, OZP) state that the 90-day period does not apply to those receiving repeated or extended protection — the count runs from the first visa. You do not get another "free" 90 days with each extension. For your specific case, confirm with your insurer.

What happens after the period. Children under 18 and people aged 65 and over remain state-paid. Adults aged 18–64 must tell the insurer who pays for them (see the next steps). If nothing is done, a premium debt arises, including late-payment penalties.

Tip: put in your calendar the date 90 days after the first grant of protection and start the paperwork two weeks earlier. Typical mistake: waiting for a letter from the insurer — they may not write, and the duty to report lies with you.

Registering with an insurer and the insurance document

How to become insured. Apply to your chosen insurer — via the online form on its website (many insurers have separate pages for people from Ukraine) or in person at a client centre. You will need your passport, visa sticker or confirmation of your protection application, and an address in Czechia. For a child born in Czechia, registration takes place at a client centre.

The insurer issues a temporary document (a replacement card) while you wait for the plastic card. Its validity is usually tied to the visa. For example VoZP describes extending insurance together with extending protection: first the confirmation of online registration extends insurance to an interim date, and after the new visa — by sending a photo of it or showing it at a client centre — insurance is extended to the end of the visa's validity. Other insurers take similar steps; before each extension of protection open your insurer's page and check what is required of you.

How to choose: consider the nearest client centre, languages of service (Ukrainian, English), the online account, bonuses. You can change insurer, but not arbitrarily often — check the rules (deadlines and frequency) on your chosen insurer's site.

Tip: take a screenshot of the submission confirmation and keep the replacement card on your phone — the doctor will ask for your insurance number (číslo pojištěnce).

Who pays the premium next

For adults aged 18–64 there are these options after the state-paid period, as stated on insurers' sites (VoZP, OZP, ZP MV ČR): - You work under an employment contract (HPP): the employer pays the premium and also notifies the insurer. For agreements: according to VoZP, if income under a DPP exceeds 12,000 CZK a month, or under a DPČ 4,500 CZK a month. - Self-employed (OSVČ): you pay monthly advances yourself; for 2026 at least 3,306 CZK a month. Notify the insurer when you start business. - You do not work and do not fall into a state category (OBZP — a person without taxable income): you pay yourself; the 2026 amount is 3,024 CZK a month. Payment is due by the 8th of the following month, the variable symbol is your insurance number. - The state pays for you (upon proof): registered jobseekers, students aged 18–26, people caring for a child under 7 with no income, long-term ill and disabled people who cannot work, and their carers. You must provide proof (a Labour Office certificate, proof of study, the child's birth certificate, a medical report or a ČSSZ assessment).

Tip: identify your category and submit documents on time; a gap is not always accepted when explained retroactively. Typical mistake: not reporting a change (for instance, leaving a job) — from the next month a debt starts accumulating. Insurers no longer accept cash (OZP from 1 January 2026): pay by bank transfer.

Report changes on time

The insurer cannot see your life until you tell it. The golden rule from insurers' sites: a change of premium payer must be reported within 8 days (VoZP, OZP). This covers starting or ending work, registering or deregistering at the Labour Office, starting or ending study, a change in carer status, a change of surname, address or bank account.

Long-term stay abroad is a special case. According to OZP a long-term stay abroad must last at least 6 months and cannot be declared retroactively: the written declaration is submitted before departure, the duty to pay ends on the date stated in it (but no earlier than the day after receipt). After returning you must provide proof of foreign insurance and of the length of stay (for example a border-service confirmation). If you leave and report nothing, you will still be treated as insured in Czechia and premiums will keep being charged.

How to report: the online account, the insurer's e-mail (usually shown on pages for people from Ukraine), a client centre. Keep the confirmation.

Tip: set a calendar reminder "tell the insurer" right after every significant event — a change of job, a move, a child's birth.

GP, children’s doctor, pharmacy

The Czech system is built around the general practitioner (praktický lékař). Most problems go to them first; they open your file, order tests, issue referrals to specialists and prescriptions. Children see a paediatrician (praktický lékař pro děti a dorost), teeth a dentist, women's health a gynaecologist.

How to register: 1. Find a doctor nearby using the healthcare map on the NZIP portal or your insurer's website (it has a search of contracted doctors). 2. Call or drop in: ask whether the doctor accepts new patients. Many practices are full — do not hesitate to try several. 3. Bring your passport and your insurer's card (or the replacement document). The doctor will fill in a registration form.

In practice: many specialists require a referral from your GP. Prescriptions are now usually electronic (e-recept): you get a code by SMS or in an app and take it to the pharmacy. The annual preventive check-up (preventivní prohlídka) is paid by the insurer.

Language: ask for a doctor who speaks Ukrainian or English, or bring an interpreter. Help centres (KACPU) and ICP can suggest contacts. Tip: before the visit write down symptoms and the medicines you take, and have them translated.

Emergencies: when and where

Remember the numbers: 112 — the single European emergency number; 155 — ambulance (záchranná služba); 158 — police; 150 — fire brigade. A call to 112 is free and works without a SIM card; the operator will find an interpreter, so do not delay calling because of language.

When to call 155 / 112: loss of consciousness, chest pain, signs of stroke (drooping face, arm weakness, speech difficulty), heavy bleeding, difficulty breathing, serious injury, poisoning. Stay calm, give the exact address (street and house number, floor) and speak clearly. Do not hang up until the operator allows it.

Less urgent but outside surgery hours: in the evening, at night and at weekends there is the out-of-hours doctor service (LSPP — lékařská služba první pomoci), as well as hospital admission departments (pohotovost / urgentní příjem). Look up the out-of-hours practices in your area on your insurer's or the city's site.

At the visit show your insurer's card (or the replacement document) and passport. If insurance is not yet arranged you will still receive emergency care, but a bill will follow — so do not delay arranging it.

Tip: save the address of the nearest hospital on your phone and write yourself a short "medical card" in Czech: allergies, chronic conditions, medicines, blood group.

Children, pregnancy and newborns

Children under 18 remain state-paid after the protection period, and the insurer does not require a separate report (per VoZP and ZP MV ČR). This means a child's treatment and vaccination are covered. Register your child with a paediatrician and keep their replacement document or card. School: according to ipc.gov.cz a child should start compulsory schooling within 90 days of the visa being granted; schools ask for vaccination details, so take the vaccination record.

Pregnancy: see a gynaecologist as early as possible. The insurer covers pregnancy care and delivery. Ask the doctor to explain the schedule of examinations and the available antenatal courses; many centres run them in Ukrainian.

A newborn in Czechia. A child born in Czechia is insured from birth for 60 days (per VoZP and OZP). Within this time you must register the child with the insurer (a birth certificate is needed), obtain a temporary protection visa for the child and give the insurer a copy. Do not miss the 60 days: afterwards insurance lapses and treatment becomes payable.

Adults caring for a child under 7 with no income can remain on state payment upon proof (the birth certificate, a copy of the child's visa, a signed declaration).

Tip: keep copies of all birth certificates and vaccination records — both the original and the translation.

Special long-term residence and insurance

If you are considering special long-term residence (ZDP), be aware that insurance is one of the conditions assessed. According to OZP, the insurer checks continuous insurance from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2026 and that no debt is owed as of 31 March 2026. Premium debts can therefore cost you eligibility for ZDP.

Registration for ZDP, for those who expressed interest in April 2026, runs from 1 October to 31 December 2026; the evaluation results are visible in your user account on ipc.gov.cz (login with an electronic identity). If a condition was not confirmed because of insurance, OZP says disputed cases can be e-mailed with your insurance number and copies of supporting documents; with other insurers, go to their pages for people from Ukraine.

After ZDP the payment rules differ: employed holders stay in the public system; self-employed holders without employment must have commercial insurance (OZP gives Vitalitas as an example); minors are in the public system, with the legal guardian paying.

Tip: if you have a debt — pay it and keep the proof; do not wait for the evaluation result. Verify the ZDP conditions on ipc.gov.cz; this site does not decide whether you meet them.