_{General COVID-19 Travel Advisory in Operation}

Increasing travel restrictions and the measures introduced as part of the Irish Government’s efforts to interrupt the transmission of COVID-19 means that travel may not be possible and even if possible is not advisable unless absolutely essential. It is currently against the law for any person (regardless of nationality or passport) to travel within Ireland for non-essential purposes and people can be fined for doing so. Enforcement of this has been strongly increased.

From the morning of Saturday 16 January, 2021 all passengers arriving into Ireland should have a negative / ‘not detected’ result from a pre-departure COVID-19 PCR test taken within 72 hours prior to arrival in Ireland. Passengers may be asked to present evidence of their negative/’not detected’ result from a PCR test before boarding their airplane or ferry, and to produce this evidence to Immigration Officers on arrival at points of entry to the State. 

For details on inward travel to Ireland, including COVID-19-related requirements and the limited exemptions in place, please see www.gov.ie and the HSE website.

Please note the requirement is for a negative PCR test (not antigen). A list of testing centres in the Czech Republic is avialable here and information on the testing centre at Vaclav Havel Airport, Prague can be found here.  

Embassy Services

Passports  

The Passport Service is open for applications but has paused processing as Ireland is at Level 5 of the National Framework for Living with COVID-19. You can still apply online for passport renewals and first time applications. All applications will be processed once normal passport operations resume in Ireland. If you have a query regarding an existing passport application or require a passport for emergency travel, you can use the WebChat service. In line with restrictions in place in the Passport Service in Ireland, the Embassy is temporarily not accepting or processing passport applications made in person.

Processing of Foreign Birth registrations is paused during Level 5 of the National Framework for Living with COVID-19. Please visit the Foreign Birth Registation website for updates. 

Visas 

As part of the combined efforts to tackle COVID-19 and to ensure customer safety, the Department of Justice has taken the decision to temporarily cease accepting new visa/ preclearance applications. This is effective from close of business 29^th January 2021.

While it will still be possible to apply for an Irish visa/preclearance online in the normal manner, these temporary measures mean that applicants will not be able to complete their application process and we apologise for any inconvenience this might cause. Please note that any application made online will remain valid until such time as restrictions are lifted.

We intend to resume accepting applications as soon as safety concerns abate.

Certain priority/emergency cases will continue to be processed. For further information please see the website of Immigration Service Delivery.

For priority/emergency visa applications, please contact us directly so that we can guide you through the application process and advise you how to submit your documentation.

Other Services

Due to current measures in place in the Czech Repubilc, the Embassy is operating on an appointment basis only for urgent/emergency consular services and assistance. Please email the Embassy to arrange an appointment. 

Contact Us 

If you have an enquiry, please contact us and we will respond to you as soon as possible. We are also monitoring our voicemail. If you would like to leave a voice message, please call: +420 257 011 280 to leave your name and phone number and a member of our team will contact you. 

Covid-19

Advice and updates on latest developments is available in English and Czech here:

-          Czech Government Coronavirus Webpage koronavirus.mzcr.cz     

-          Czech Ministry of the Interior  www.mvcr.cz

-          Government of Ireland www.gov.ie

-          Health Service Executive Ireland https://www.hse.ie

-          Prague Airport www.prg.aero  

Please monitor Prague Airport for flight updates and contact your carrier for further information on flight schedules.

Ukraine

Please check the latest Travel Advice for Ukraine for information on current travel resitrictions in Ukraine. You can also contact the Embassy using the details above. 

These arrangements will remain in place until further notice.

Thank you for your understanding.