Your trade license needs an address in the Czech Republic: your home, an office, or a virtual office.
Virtual office
A virtual office is a business address you rent. It has clear advantages over your home address:
- Quick start: you can register your trade license before you have found a place to live.
- No landlord problems: no need for your landlord's permission, or for the signatures of all owners when the building belongs to a cooperative (družstvo).
- Privacy: your home address does not appear in the public trade license register.
- Moving is easy: when you move or are abroad for a while, your business address stays the same.
- We arrange it: the contract with the provider and the landlord's permission for the business address.
Since 2023 every trade license holder has a data box (datová schránka), and the authorities write to you there instead of on paper. So for most people a virtual office without mail forwarding is enough, and that is the cheapest option. Prices and addresses: virtual office.
Your own address
You can also register your trade license at your home or another address. Then you need the owner's written consent (Udělení souhlasu), signed by the owner in blue ink, as a paper original. Only if you have it converted to a digital document, the signature needs to be officially verified. If you are on good terms with your landlord, this saves you money. Fill it in with our free generator.
Moving soon? Then better not register at your current address: changing the business address later costs about as much as a year of virtual office.
Do not mix up the two landlord forms: the Udělení souhlasu is for the business address, the Doklad o zajištění ubytování is for the foreign police, for your visa or residence permit.
Your residence address
A virtual office is only a business address: you cannot live there or use it for a visa or residence permit. For those you need a real home address, with the landlord's permission on the Doklad o zajištění ubytování: fill it in with our free generator.
Popular websites to find a place to live: Sreality (the largest offer) and Bezrealitky (directly from the owner, without an agent).
Rental contract check
We are not real estate agents, but we can help you avoid expensive mistakes. Before you sign, we read the rental contract, contact the landlord or agent if needed, and make sure you get the right forms for your visa or residence permit. This costs 2,500 CZK, which is little compared to the trouble a bad contract can cause.
If an offer looks too good to be true, it usually is. Housing is scarce, and Prague prices are now comparable to other big European cities: count on 15,000 to 25,000 CZK a month for a small apartment, including utilities.
Beware of fake residence addresses. Some people sell a landlord's permission, sometimes with a rental contract, for an address where you cannot actually live. Some sell the same address to dozens of people. The foreign police notice this, and it usually means your visa is rejected.
