Welcome to the Czech Business Guide

Dear Readers,

It is my honour to present to you the eleventh annual edition of the Business Guidebook, Czech
Republic. The year 2026 is a moment in whichEurope must demonstrate not only its capacity for
innovation, but above all its strength, self-sufficien-
cy, and global competitiveness. And it is the Czech
Republic that holds the potential to become one
of the driving forces of this European transforma-
tion.
The past years have made it unmistakably clear
that geopolitical stability cannot be taken for
granted and that dependence on external mar-
kets—particularly in Asia—may pose significant
risks for European economies. The growing
pressure from China and other Asian players in the
areas of technology, manufacturing, digitalisation,
and supply chains is a reality that demands ambi-
tion and courage, not passivity.
Europe stands at a crossroads. If it wishes to re-
main relevant, it must accelerate its shift toward
technological independence, strengthen its
industrial capacities, and actively foster innovation
across sectors—from energy and mobility to AI,
semiconductors, clean-tech, and robotics. Relying
on a single technological pathway is no longer 

enough. We need to diversify, invest, and explore
new directions that will allow us to compete suc-
cessfully on the global stage.
And this is precisely where the Czech Republic has
an exceptional opportunity. Our country offers
a strategic location, a resilient economy, talented
people, and a rapidly growing technological eco-
system capable of attracting foreign investment
and generating innovation with European impact.
The transforming automotive sector, the dynami-
cally evolving industry, energy, and electronics—
all of these create space for long-term sustainable
projects that can significantly strengthen Europe’s
self-reliance.
The year 2026 is a year of strengthening partner-
ships. The Association for Foreign Investment will
continue to collaborate closely with CzechInvest,
the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs, and the private sector. Only
together can we ensure that the Czech Repub-
lic—and Europe as a whole—becomes faster, more
flexible, and significantly more competitive.
Thank you to everyone who contributed to the cre-
ation of this edition of the Business Guidebook.
I believe it will offer you inspiration as well as clear
proof that the Czech Republic is ready to be an ac-
tive player in a new era of European industrial and
technological sovereignty.

Dear Readers,

Situated in the heart of Europe, Czechia has been a prosperous country throughout its modern history. As a developed country with an open, trade-oriented economy, Czechia is one of the twenty most advanced and competitive countries in the world, with an excellent position in the index of economic freedom. It is also the twelfth safest country in the world. Having an effective legal environment, healthy banking system, and stable political culture, Czechia is the sixth most complex economy in the world, which provides you with favorable conditions for investments.

Our country’s accessions to the EU and NATO celebrating its 20th and 25th anniversary in 2024, are undoubtedly important historical milestones on our path to democracy. At the end of the year 2022, we have symbolically closed the door behind a successful presidency of the Council of the European Union. All these events have had a significantly positive impact on the Czech economic development and have shaped Czechia’s position in other countries.

However, as important as it is to remind ourselves of our history and celebrate milestones, it is essential, especially concerning investments, to focus on the future. Even though the ongoing Russian aggression in Ukraine and the energy crisis as its consequence have affected Czechia and its economy, we can still rely on our modern export-oriented economy. Our companies focus on modern technologies, R&D and innovations in the long term. Our main goals include the cultivation of an effective start-up environment, innovation centers, smart investments, digitalization of the public sector, and more, all while profiting from the most industrialized environment in the EU. Our economic and scientific diplomacy builds on qualities such as scientific potential and advanced research, well-developed industry, favorable accessibility, and highly skilled people in various fields of industry.

Based on estimates for 2024, Czechia should continue to maintain the status of a country with favorable macroeconomic stability. For this year, Czechia's economy is expected to grow by 1,1%. It still keeps the lowest rate in the EU at around 2.6%. In terms of the world trade, Czechia maintained its position as an eminent world exporter based on the world trade rankings, where it was ranked as the 29th largest exporter and as well the 29th largest importer of goods worldwide.

Even though the aforementioned qualities draw a certain picture of the Czech economy, potential foreign investors need to analyze further many different variables before investing. The current government priority is to highlight Czech science diplomacy through a network of Czech embassies and to attract new researchers to our country. Our Ministry, together with institutions responsible for R&D&I progress, works hard on internationalization of Czech science in order to promote its achievements and capacities. This concerns attractiveness of the Czech higher educational system, extensiveness of research institutes, but also capacities of large research infrastructures, including those with international participation. Czech science diplomacy also opens the door to new opportunities for cooperation with an emphasis on export support, transfer of knowledge and technology into practice and commercialization of research results and innovative solutions.

This collaborative environment has shaped Czechia into one of the most successful transition economies in terms of attracting foreign direct investments. On behalf of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I highly appreciate all activities and initiatives that the AFI, CzechInvest, and other institutions are taking on to support companies based in Czechia. Thank you for your devoted work and we wish you a lot of success in the upcoming years.

Dear Readers,

Not only Czechia, but the entire world has faced many challenges in recent times: the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, new conflict in the Middle East, climate change. These challenges make us stronger, more resilient and more independent. Our society and economy have the opportunity to accelerate the inevitable development of engineering technologies. Czech businesses are seizing the opportunity to engage in modern supply chains and build a more resilient economy. And we can see it in investors who are eager to invest and innovate. This is giving Czechia a new charge.

It is clear that events of the year have deeply affected everyone, including our citizens and businesses, in particular by exposing a weakness in the economy - dependence on energy sources from an unreliable supplier. We can only address this by strengthening the resilience of supply chains, particularly - but not only - in the energy sector. To reduce the vulnerability of the economy, we need to diversify supply chains among our reliable partners and strengthen our own capabilities in strategic areas. Our businesses have a vital role to play in this, and we are here to support them by improving the business environment, including research and innovation. With some distance I can say that in many respects we are succeeding.

Competitive manufacturing in the EU, which is particularly important for capacity building in strategic sectors, can be supported by promoting digitization and the development of the digital economy. At the national level, we reflect this approach in our policies and also in concrete measures to encourage businesses to harness the power of digital tools. Despite the crisis, we are implementing the Resilience and Recovery Facility to financially support our digital economy objectives. More than 22% of the financial resources are focused on the digital transition, including the digital transformation of enterprises.

In the year 2023 there were many positive signs. For example, the Czech innovation ecosystem has continued to thrive even in these challenging times. CzechInvest, which promotes innovation in Czechia, has supported a significant number of high-quality innovative startups this year. These startups have the potential to bring new technologies and products to the Czech economy that can help it grow and strengthen its competitiveness. Our government is pro-investment: an amendment to the Investment Incentives Act has been approved, making it much more attractive to investors. A government committee on strategic investments has been established, where both the Ministry of Industry and Trade and CzechInvest are members, and we are addressing further measures to accelerate economic growth, including further investment in breakthrough technologies and innovation. Further, ammending the law on linear structures will simplify the processing of building permits not only for linear structures, including environmental impact assessments, it will secure simplified permitting process to strategic investments in transformation areas with positive impact on competitivness of Czech economy.

We are one of the leading innovators in Central Europe and the future looks good. Innovation can help overcome current challenges and create a better future for us all. The year 2024 will be challenging in many ways, but I am confident that together we can emerge from the current difficult situation stronger, more resilient, more competitive and more innovative.