Pursuant to Section 31, Paragraph 1, a person who has lost Czech or Czechoslovak citizenship before the effective date of this Act (January 1, 2014) may acquire Citizenship of the Czech Republic (hereinafter referred to as the “Declaration”), unless he/she lost Czechoslovak citizenship under any of the following conditions:

• On the basis of the Constitutional Decree of the President of the Republic on the regulation of Czechoslovak citizenship of persons of German or Hungarian nationality.
• On the basis of the agreement between the Czechoslovak Republic and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on Transcarpathian Ukraine.
• He/she is not a Czechoslovak citizen who became or would become a citizen of the Slovak Socialist Republic on January 1, 1969.
• After January 1, 1969 he/she acquired citizenship of the Slovak Socialist Republic or the Slovak Republic, and still holds that citizenship.

The Declaration shall be submitted via the Declaration form according to § 31 par. 1 and 2

Declaration according to § 31 paragraph 2

This Declaration may be made by a former Czechoslovak citizen who had permanent residence in the Czech Republic or the Czech Socialist Republic before going abroad, unless he/she is a citizen of the Slovak Republic as of the date of the Declaration.
The Declaration shall be submitted via the Declaration form according to § 31 par. 1 and 2

Declaration according to § 31 paragraph 3

On September 6, 2019 Act No. 207/2019 Coll., which amends the provisions of Section 31 of the Act on the Citizenship of the Czech Republic, became effective. Pursuant to Section 31, Paragraph 3, a person (the “declarant”) may also acquire citizenship if at least one of their parents or grandparents is a current or former Czech/Czechoslovak citizen pursuant to paragraph 1, unless the declarant is a citizen of the Slovak Republic as of the date of the Declaration.
The declaration shall be submitted via the Declaration form according to § 31 paragraph 3

 

The declarant shall attach the following documents to the appropriate completed form (§ 31 paragraph 1, 2 or 3):

a) declarant’s origina of Czech birth certificate;
b) declarant’s original of Czech marriage certificate, domestic partnership certificate, divorce decree, proof of dissolution of the partnership, or death certificate of a deceased spouse or partner;
c) declarant’s Czech parent’s/parents’ original birth certificate(s), marriage certificate (s), divorce decree, or death certificate(s);
d) declarant’s Czech grandparent’s/grandparents’ original birth certificate(s), marriage certificate (s), divorce decree, or death certificate(s);
e) a document that certifies the date and the basis on which declarant’s parent(s)/grandparent(s) ceased to be Czech/Czechoslovak citizen(s) (e.g. original US Certificate of Naturalization, original Czechoslovak Listina/Osvědčení o propuštění ze státního svazku);
f) an original (preferably Czech) valid ID (e.g. passport, identity card, driving license). If you do not have any ID issued by the Czech Republic, the document may be replaced by another identity document (e.g. US passport, US state driver's license, etc.);
g) a completed declaration of non-acquisition of citizenship of the Slovak Republic - Form of declaration of non-acquisition of citizenship of the Slovak Republic;
h) a completed declarant’s personal data consent form.

Declaration according to § 31 paragraph 5

On behalf of a minor under 18 years of age, his or her parent may make the Declaration on the Czech citizenship.
The declaration for minors shall be submitted via the Declaration form according to § 31 paragraph 5

In addition to the documents mentioned in the previous section, this Declaration shall be accompanied by:
a) original birth certificate of the child;
b) the consent (PDF, 193 KB) with officially notarized signature of the other parent to the child’s acquisition of Czech citizenship. The consent of the other parent is not required if he/she has been deprived of parental responsibility, the exercise of his/her parental responsibility has been restricted or suspended, his/her residence is unknown (but is outside the Czech Republic), or he/she has died;
c) and the consent of the minor if over the age of 15 – minor’s signature must be officially notarized.
d) a completed declaration of non-acquisition of citizenship of the Slovak Republic of the child (PDF, 201 KB);
e) a completed declarant’s personal data consent form.

If both parents have died, were deprived of parental responsibility, have had their parental responsibility restricted or suspended, or their residence is unknown (if they live outside the Czech Republic), the declaration of acquisition of Czech citizenship may be made by a legal representative for the child or a guardian who attaches to the Declaration:
a) original birth certificate of the child;
b) a form verifying a court’s legal appointment of the guardian.

Administrative Consular Fees
A fee is charged for the acceptance of a Declaration of acquisition of Czech citizenship pursuant to Sections 31. The current amount of the fee can be found in the Tariff of Administrative Consular Fees (item 159b).
Send the administrative fee payment together with the completed, legible application supported by the required documents. The fee payment must be in the form of a Money Order, Cashier's Check, Certified Check (payable to the Czech Consulate General), or in cash.
The Consulate General cannot accept payment in the form of personal or company checks.

Common provisions for the acquisition of Czech citizenship by the Declaration
The citizenship declaration can be submitted at the Czech Consulate General in New York:

• by the declarant in person at the Consulate (a prior appointment is necessary via e-mail to consulate_chicago@mzv.gov.cz.);
• or, if you cannot come to the Consulate in person, you can (after prior agreement with the Consulate General), ​​contact the nearest honorary consulate in our jurisdiction, which will verify your identity and signature on the Declaration.
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Documents must be submitted in their original form, or as copies certified by a Czech Public Notary. NO PLAIN PHOTOCOPIES CAN BE ACCEPTED. Prior to submission for use in the Czech Republic, every public document issued outside the Czech Republic must be legalized (through an Apostille issued by the appropriate Secretary of State in the US, or through superlegalization in some foreign countries). All such foreign public documents (e.g. birth certificate) and their legalizations must also be submitted with a certified translation into the Czech language. Certified Czech translations are carried out by interpreters appointed by the Czech courts.

A document proving the date and manner of acquiring foreign citizenship is considered to be a naturalization document. If the applicant does not have a naturalization document, it is necessary to apply for a duplicate through a local Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services.

If declarants intend to use their first and last names in the Czech Republic in the form used after naturalization (i.e. normally without diacritics), it is necessary for them to fill out the form "Declaration of Authorization to Use Their Current First and Last Name".

The subsequent decision-making process on the citizenship declaration takes place at the appropriate regional office in the Czech Republic. During this process, the authority verifies the history of the Czech/Czechoslovak citizenship of the declarant or declarant's parent(s)/grandparent(s).

Acquisition of citizenship of the Czech Republic occurs on the day of reception of the document declaring the declarant’s acquisition of Czech citizenship. If the document declaring the declarant’s acquisition of Czech citizenship is taken in by the declarant, it is necessary to sign a confirmation of the reception of the document directly at the Consulate, or deliver the confirmation to the Consulate via mail. Without the return of the signed and dated confirmation, the proceedings are not closed and citizenship is not recognized.

The Consulate shall make copies of the necessary documents and an extract from the naturalization document and send them to the Czech Republic. The document of naturalization will remain deposited within the Consulate General and will be returned to the applicant together with the other documents after the application has been processed. If the declarant requests that the original naturalization document or originals of the sent documents be sent back to him/her immediately after their verification by the Consulate, he/she should send/bring a pre-paid self-addressed FEDEX envelope to the address of the Consulate General of the Czech Republic , ensuring it has a tracking number for future reference.

Send the complete application to:
Consular Department
Consulate General of the Czech Republic in Chicago
205 N Michigan Ave, Suite 1680
Chicago, IL 60601

Please note that:

• Since the Declaration of Czech citizenship is governed by the Act on the Citizenship of the Czech Republic, all written submissions must be made in the Czech language only.
• The Consulate General cannot act as a translator, interpreter or lawyer.
• The Consulate General cannot assist with searching for deceased ancestors: these activities are performed on a commercial basis by detective agencies or genealogical societies.