Author
Under the law, reception conditions for applicants for international protection are provided both in kind and in the form of financial support. Applicants registered as residing in an asylum facility are provided with accommodation, food and basic hygiene items.[1] In addition, the Ministry ensures psychological, social and other necessary services and items, taking into account the individual needs of the applicant and the need to support non-conflictual coexistence within asylum facilities.[2] If food is not provided in kind, a financial contribution corresponding to the subsistence minimum (4,860 CZK; approx. € 200) is granted instead, with the possibility of an increase where medically indicated dietary needs require higher costs.[3]
Financial reception conditions further include pocket money (30 CZK; approx. € 1.2 a day) granted for the period during which the applicant is present in an asylum facility.[4] This amount has not been raised since June 2008. Applicants who perform activities benefiting other applicants and contributing to the operation of the asylum facility may receive increased pocket money. The law also provides for a one-off financial contribution in the event of the death of a family member who was residing in an asylum facility.
During the period in which this financial contribution is provided, entitlement to pocket money does not arise,[5] unless increased pocket money is granted (see above). The financial contribution is paid only for the period of the applicant’s presence in the asylum facility and is provided in advance in the form of a recoverable advance payment.
As regards housing, accommodation is primarily provided within asylum facilities, including reception and accommodation centres. Where the capacity of such facilities is exhausted or where this is necessary due to the circumstances of the applicant’s stay, the MoI may also ensure accommodation outside asylum facilities through contracts with accommodation service providers.
These forms of reception conditions are not merely theoretical but are applied in practice. Accommodation, food, basic hygiene items and pocket money constitute the standard reception conditions for applicants residing in asylum facilities, while financial contributions are used as an alternative where services are not provided in kind. Psychological and social services are actively ensured based on individual needs, and accommodation outside asylum facilities is used as a practical solution in situations where it is required.
Asylum seekers living in private housing are not entitled to material reception conditions except for health care.
In general, material reception conditions are never fully provided only through a financial allowance. In those accommodation centres where meals are not served, asylum seekers receive a financial allowance in the amount of a subsistence minimum that should cover the purchase of food. The subsistence minimum is defined by law and represents the benchmark used to ensure an adequate standard of living. The law thus links the level of financial reception conditions directly to the general social welfare system applicable to nationals.
The law treats the subsistence minimum as the criterion for ensuring an adequate standard of living and subsistence. Adequacy is therefore not defined autonomously within asylum legislation but is determined by reference to the legally defined subsistence minimum and, where relevant, adjusted to individual needs, such as dietary requirements due to health conditions. Different amounts may apply depending on household composition, but the law does not distinguish between different procedural categories of asylum seekers (such as accelerated procedures).
Asylum seekers are generally treated less favourably than nationals regarding material support. While nationals may access the full system of social welfare benefits under general social assistance legislation, asylum seekers are excluded from most mainstream social benefits and instead fall under a separate reception system governed by the law on asylum. Nationals in need may be entitled, for example, to benefits such as housing allowance, child benefits, income support or other forms of social assistance, subject to statutory conditions. These benefits are not available to asylum seekers, who instead receive accommodation, food or financial contributions, and pocket money within asylum facilities. Monetary support for asylum seekers is therefore not equivalent to that provided to nationals. Although the financial contribution for asylum seekers may be linked to the subsistence minimum, it is provided within a more limited and controlled framework and is often combined with in-kind support rather than paid as unrestricted social welfare. As a result, asylum seekers do not enjoy the same level of choice or breadth of social protection as nationals, even where the nominal reference amount is similar.
There have been no reports of lack or difficulty in accessing public funds hampering or limiting the provision of reception conditions.
[1] Section 42(1) of the Asylum Act.
[2] Section 42(2) of the Asylum Act.
[3] Section 42(4) of the Asylum Act.
[4] Section 2 of Decree No. 376/2005.