Sunday, 19 April 2026—The Information Portal for Foreigners (ipc.gov.cz), the Czech Ministry of the Interior’s one-stop site for visa types, downloadable forms and the on-line appointment system, is experiencing an unplanned “technical shutdown.” A banner message on all language versions of the site simply states that the system is down and that engineers are “working intensively to fix the problem,” without offering an expected time of resolution. The blackout is more than a minor inconvenience. Global mobility teams and foreign applicants rely on the portal to:
• download the latest application forms for long-term visas, employee cards and Blue Cards;
• check documentary requirements by purpose of stay; and
• reserve biometric appointments at Interior Ministry offices—slots that are already notoriously scarce in Prague, Brno and Ostrava.
Because the portal is also the repository for frequently asked questions and official fee schedules, relocation providers report a spike in client queries since early this morning. Several Prague-based immigration law firms have issued alerts advising applicants to use cached copies of forms and to prepare hard-copy packages so that once the portal returns, filings can proceed without further delay.
![Foreigners’ Information Portal Goes Offline, Disrupting Visa Booking & Form Downloads]()
If you need to keep immigration plans moving while the government portal is offline, VisaHQ can help by supplying up-to-date Czech visa information, document checklists and a streamlined application platform. Their Czech Republic resource page (https://www.visahq.com/czech-republic/) consolidates requirements and timelines, and their customer support team can guide travelers and HR managers through alternative filing options while the official system is unavailable.
The Ministry has not specified whether any data have been compromised, but there is no indication of a cyber-attack; insiders suggest a failed weekend software update is the likely culprit. Until service is restored, companies must either postpone new submissions or courier physical documents directly to Interior Ministry branch offices—an option available only for certain categories and one that lengthens processing times.
Practical tips until the outage is resolved:
• Use previously saved PDF forms (check that revision dates match current guidelines).
• Monitor the Ministry’s Facebook page and Twitter feed for status updates.
• Advise relocating staff of probable delays in securing appointments and plan start-dates accordingly.
• Maintain proof (e.g., screenshots) that attempts were made to book appointments during the outage in case of future compliance audits.
• download the latest application forms for long-term visas, employee cards and Blue Cards;
• check documentary requirements by purpose of stay; and
• reserve biometric appointments at Interior Ministry offices—slots that are already notoriously scarce in Prague, Brno and Ostrava.
Because the portal is also the repository for frequently asked questions and official fee schedules, relocation providers report a spike in client queries since early this morning. Several Prague-based immigration law firms have issued alerts advising applicants to use cached copies of forms and to prepare hard-copy packages so that once the portal returns, filings can proceed without further delay.
If you need to keep immigration plans moving while the government portal is offline, VisaHQ can help by supplying up-to-date Czech visa information, document checklists and a streamlined application platform. Their Czech Republic resource page (https://www.visahq.com/czech-republic/) consolidates requirements and timelines, and their customer support team can guide travelers and HR managers through alternative filing options while the official system is unavailable.
The Ministry has not specified whether any data have been compromised, but there is no indication of a cyber-attack; insiders suggest a failed weekend software update is the likely culprit. Until service is restored, companies must either postpone new submissions or courier physical documents directly to Interior Ministry branch offices—an option available only for certain categories and one that lengthens processing times.
Practical tips until the outage is resolved:
• Use previously saved PDF forms (check that revision dates match current guidelines).
• Monitor the Ministry’s Facebook page and Twitter feed for status updates.
• Advise relocating staff of probable delays in securing appointments and plan start-dates accordingly.
• Maintain proof (e.g., screenshots) that attempts were made to book appointments during the outage in case of future compliance audits.
