Three years after the first refugees fleeing Russia’s invasion crossed into Czechia, nearly 400,000 Ukrainians still reside in the country—including almost 90,000 aged 15-24. On 30 October 2025 UNICEF announced new funding and corporate partners for CESTY (“Pathways”), a joint initiative with the Czech Ministries of Labour, Education and Interior that connects young Ukrainians with language courses, apprenticeships and full-time jobs.
The online hub CESTY.Space now hosts over 6,000 vacancies from companies ranging from Škoda Auto to Deloitte. Participants receive Czech-language tutoring and digital-skills training before short internships that often convert into employment contracts aligned with Czech labour-market shortages. According to UNICEF, 71 percent of last year’s cohort secured jobs or higher-education places within six months.
Business associations say the programme mitigates acute talent gaps, especially in IT, nursing and advanced manufacturing. Employers benefit from a vetted talent pipeline and onboarding support—critical for firms relocating operations to Prague or Brno. At the same time, municipalities gain resources for housing and counselling, funded partly by EU Solidarity funds unlocked after the Temporary Protection Directive was extended to 2027.
Integration experts caution that sustainable results depend on fast-tracked recognition of Ukrainian diplomas and improved capacity at Czech language-exam centres—areas where backlogs persist. UNICEF representatives urged lawmakers to channel some proceeds from the new migrant digital-ID fee (effective January 2026) into additional exam seats.
For mobility managers, the takeaway is that Ukrainian staff brought to Czech headquarters can tap CESTY’s free services, easing compliance with work-permit language conditions and enhancing retention.
The online hub CESTY.Space now hosts over 6,000 vacancies from companies ranging from Škoda Auto to Deloitte. Participants receive Czech-language tutoring and digital-skills training before short internships that often convert into employment contracts aligned with Czech labour-market shortages. According to UNICEF, 71 percent of last year’s cohort secured jobs or higher-education places within six months.
Business associations say the programme mitigates acute talent gaps, especially in IT, nursing and advanced manufacturing. Employers benefit from a vetted talent pipeline and onboarding support—critical for firms relocating operations to Prague or Brno. At the same time, municipalities gain resources for housing and counselling, funded partly by EU Solidarity funds unlocked after the Temporary Protection Directive was extended to 2027.
Integration experts caution that sustainable results depend on fast-tracked recognition of Ukrainian diplomas and improved capacity at Czech language-exam centres—areas where backlogs persist. UNICEF representatives urged lawmakers to channel some proceeds from the new migrant digital-ID fee (effective January 2026) into additional exam seats.
For mobility managers, the takeaway is that Ukrainian staff brought to Czech headquarters can tap CESTY’s free services, easing compliance with work-permit language conditions and enhancing retention.
