Financial aid, taxes and insurance

The bonus of CZK 25,000 for the self-employed

1) Who should be eligible

• The self-employed under the Act on pension insurance, i.e., simply all who are doing business on their own, based on a trade licence or, e.g. perform a liberal profession (musicians, writers, etc.), are doing business in agriculture or on the grounds of other Acts of law (medical doctors, attorneys at law, etc.).
• The self-employment has to be the main activity.
• The self-employment can be a side activity of a specified circle of people (beneficiaries of disability or old-age pension, parental allowance, etc.).

2) The conditions

• There has to be a decrease in (brutto) income of at least 10% during the period of January to March 2020 when compared to the period of January to March 2019.
• In the year of 2019 the self-employed earned at least CZK 180,000 in (brutto) income.
• In case the self-employed in question was not doing business in the period of January to March 2019, the income for the period of January to March 2020 is being compared to the first three months of his/her business activity while the required limit of income earned is decreased by CZK 15,000 for every month he/she was not doing business.

3) The amount

• CZK 500 for every calendar day in the period from March 12th to April 30th, 2020.

4) How to file a request for the bonus

• The request should be filed to the Tax Office with the relevant territorial responsibility up to June 29th, 2020.
• There should be a statutory declaration attached to the request stating that the self-employed met the conditions for this bonus.
• The Tax Office should be disbursing this bonus without a delay and that solely by a cashless payment to the account of the self-employed; the bonus is not to be a subject of a possible distraint.

The Antivirus program by MoLSA

Starting from April 6th, 2020, the Labour Office of the Czech Republic admits the employers requests for partial wage expenses reimbursement in the form of wage compensations for employees for the duration of the obstacles at work caused by quarantine, emergency precautions, crisis measures related to the COVID-19 infection spread.

The contribution is intended for the wage expenses coverage for employers in a form of wage compensation paid, the payments to the State included, and that only for the employees in an employment relationship. Eligible for the support from Antivirus program are all the employers in wage sphere who employ at least one employee in the framework of an employment relationship, who are taking part both in sickness and pension insurance premiums according to the Czech legislation, comes under the conditions of Regime A or B of the Antivirus program. Details can be found here (in Czech only).

As a follow up to the ever repeating questions of employers to the requests of support from the Antivirus program, we have prepared for you answers to the 12 most frequently asked questions (in Czech only).

COVID programs of CMZR Bank

Those entrepreneurs who are negatively impacted by current economic difficulties connected with the coronavirus can make use of the offer of State services, particularly those of the Czech-Moravian Guarantee and Development Bank (CMZR Bank). Those services include, e.g., the preferential credits for companies or guarantees for operations or project financing.

For companies impacted by the coronavirus, starting from March 16th, 2020, CMZR Bank offers interest-free loans for business people COVID ranging from 500,000 to 15,000,000 Czech crowns. Further information regarding the process for drawing the COVID Credit and the answers to frequently asked questions is to be found here (currently in Czech only). The applications will be accepted by all branch offices of the CMZR Bank, however, strictly via e-Registry. The applications admission was temporarily stalled on March 20th, 2020.

On March 30th, 2020, CMZR Bank announced together with the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic the program COVID II. CMZR Bank will, for tradesmen, therefore the self-employed included, and the small and medium size enterprises alike, guarantee the credits provided by commercial banks and will also contribute up to 1 million Czech crowns to interests payment. The program is financed by the Operational Programme Enterprise and Innovations for Competitiveness (OP EIC) of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic. Commercial banks are prepared for the COVID II program. The applications admission for this program is to start on April 2nd, 2020. Considering the low allocation of funds and the expected big demand, we recommend you to carefully read all the particulars in advance to be able to afterwards quickly submit your application. In this context, we have prepared a summarizing information which is to help you in this situation (currently in Czech only).

Call XII COVID-19 of the TECHNOLOGY support program

The Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic announced on April 15th, 2020, the Call XII of the Technology program in the framework of the Operational Programme Enterprise and Innovations for Competitiveness 2014-2020 implementation. This call is aimed at business activity support with a focus on medical and personal protective equipment production or on infectious waste disposal. Mainly when it comes to projects directly linked to the fight against further spread of the coronavirus infection via new technological devices and equipment acquisition.

The funds allocation for the Call XII of the Technology support program is set in the amount of 300 million Czech crowns. It is a continuous call with a one-round evaluation model. The support requests admission will start on April 27th, 2020, and will last until May 29th, 2020. The support rate is 50% of the total eligible expenditure at maximum. The minimum grant is 250 000 Czech crowns, while the maximum is 20 million Czech crowns. More information is to be found here (in Czech only).

Tax related issues

Detail tax related information is available on the website of the Ministry of Finance of the Czech Republic and the Financial Administration of the Czech Republic. The problematics of relieves and premiums, however, is (as yet) not being solved centrally. Insurance payers always have to submit their applications for changes in insurance premiums, applications for insurance payments and penalties in instalments and in case of healthcare insurance premiums also the applications for penalty remissions individually. More information is available on the website of the Czech Social Security Administration and also on the websites of the healthcare insurance companies.

When it comes to insurance,

• the Czech Chamber of Commerce strives for, in case of self-employed, a better synchronization of submission deadline for income and expenses report with the new option to submit the income tax return later including the penalty remission for an eventual balance premiums both granted by the new decision of the Minister of Finance of the Czech Republic. It does not make much sense for a tradesmen to submit income and expenses report and pay their balance premiums in May when the tax return and income tax payment is supposed to be due on July.
• in the case of employers who are paying monthly premiums the Czech Chamber of Commerce requests the ministries and the Government to find a solution which would guarantee penalty remissions linked to deferred (by instalments) insurance premiums. One of the options would be to quickly adopt a special amendment to the Act on the social security insurance premiums in the regime of legislative emergency together with a draft legislation on some changes in social security with regards to the emergency measures during the 2020 epidemic by which the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs wants to flexibly supplement the current system of the care-giver’s allowance. Such an amendment could in this emergency situation introduce also the option of retrospective penalty remissions.

Tax payment deferment (currently in Czech only)

Tax liberation package of the Ministry of Finance of the Czech Republic (currently in Czech only)

EGAP prepared a package of measures for exporters affected by the pandemic of COVID-19 disease

The Export Guarantee and Insurance Corporation (EGAP) did, in order to facilitate the insurance arrangement, prepare a package of measures meant to suppor exporters who are dealing with the negative consequences of the necessary restrictions keeping the viral infection from further spreading. The aim of this package is to lower the companies’ risks, accelerate their cash-flow and increase the availability of such an important financial instrument as a credit. More information can be found here (currently in Czech only).

On April 1st, 2020, the Government also approved a change of the Act on State supported export insurance and financing. In case this amendment is approved by the Parliament of the Czech Republic, EGAP will newly be providing guarantees for credits of commercial banks applied for by companies of more than 250 employees due to the coronavirus. EGAP will guarantee the credits ranging from 5 million to 1.4 billion Czech crowns. More to be found here (in Czech only).