Working Hours in the Czech Republic: 2026 Guide

Standard Working Hours in the Czech Republic

The standard weekly working time is generally 40 hours per week. Where possible, working time is normally scheduled over a five-day working week.

Shorter statutory weekly limits apply to certain working regimes:

• Two-shift operations: 38.75 hours per week
• Multi-shift and continuous operations: 37.5 hours per week
• Certain underground mining activities: 37.5 hours per week

The employer normally determines the working schedule and the beginning and end of shifts. Since 2025, employees may also arrange their own working time in certain cases if this is agreed in writing with the employer.

Overtime Work: Limits and Compensation

Under Czech labour law, overtime should be exceptional. An employer may order overtime only for serious operational reasons.

• Maximum ordered overtime: 8 hours in an individual week
• Maximum ordered overtime: 150 hours in a calendar year
• Additional overtime: possible only by agreement with the employee

The total amount of overtime must not exceed an average of 8 hours per week over a reference period of up to 26 consecutive weeks. A collective agreement may extend this reference period to a maximum of 52 weeks.

Overtime is generally compensated by normal salary plus an overtime premium, unless compensatory time off is agreed instead. In some cases, salary may be agreed with overtime already taken into account within the limits permitted by law.

Breaks and Rest Periods

The Czech Labour Code provides minimum rest periods designed to protect employees’ health and safety.

• Meal and rest break: generally at least 30 minutes after no more than 6 hours of continuous work
• Daily rest: generally at least 11 consecutive hours between shifts
• Weekly rest: at least 24 hours of uninterrupted weekly rest combined with the statutory daily rest, resulting in a continuous rest period of at least 35 hours in standard cases

Specific exceptions may apply in certain sectors and working regimes.

Annual Leave

The statutory minimum annual leave is generally 4 weeks per year. Many employers provide 5 weeks as an employee benefit.

Annual leave is calculated in hours rather than days. For an employee working a standard 40-hour week, four weeks of annual leave corresponds to 160 hours.

Flexible Work Arrangements: DPP and DPČ

Czech labour law also provides two common forms of work agreement outside a standard employment relationship:

• DPP – Dohoda o provedení práce: generally up to 300 hours per calendar year with the same employer
• DPČ – Dohoda o pracovní činnosti: work may generally be performed up to an average of one half of the standard weekly working time

Employees working under DPP and DPČ agreements may also qualify for annual leave and are subject to working-time, rest-period and premium-pay rules in the situations provided by law.

Working Time Compliance for Czech Employers

Correctly managing working hours in the Czech Republic is an important part of employing staff through a Czech company. Employers should keep proper records of working time, overtime, breaks and leave and ensure that work schedules comply with the applicable statutory limits.

For related information, see our guides to:

• Employment contracts in the Czech Republic
• Labour law in the Czech Republic
• Severance pay in the Czech Republic

Contact us if you need practical assistance with employment documentation or Czech labour law requirements.