How a Czech tax resident reports foreign rent and a property sale in the DPFO: expenses, credit or exemption with progression, the 5 and 10 year tests and filing deadlines.
A person who is tax resident in Czechia pays Czech income tax on income from all over the world. If you own an apartment abroad, the rent and any profit from selling it belong in your personal income tax return (daňové přiznání k dani z příjmů fyzických osob, DPFO), even if tax was already paid in the country where the property is. How the second tax is relieved depends on the double tax treaty between Czechia and that country. This article describes the usual steps; we could not open the Czech tax office pages themselves, so the points below come from tax-adviser and professional portals and must be checked against the current rules.
Rental income from property abroad
Rent from a foreign property is taxed like rent from a Czech one, as income from rental under section 9 of the Income Tax Act (Act No. 586/1992). You can generally choose between flat-rate expenses of 30 percent (simple, no records, but without depreciation) and actual expenses (records, depreciation, repairs, insurance and local taxes). The flat rate has a limit and conditions, so check the current form instructions before using it.
Income is taxed at 15 percent, or at 23 percent on the part above a threshold that we do not state here because it changes with the average wage. Foreign currency is converted either at the uniform annual rate set for the tax year or at the Czech National Bank rate for the day of the income; the portals differ on details, so ask which method applies to your income.
Credit or exemption with progression
Czech residents who have foreign income meet two methods most often. Under the credit method (zápočet), the foreign tax is deducted from the Czech tax, up to the part of the Czech tax that falls proportionally on the foreign income. Under exemption with progression (vynětí s výhradou progrese), the foreign income is left out of the Czech base, but the average rate is calculated on the worldwide income and applied to the remaining Czech income. Which method applies is set by the treaty with the country of the property. One professional source says credit or exemption is available only under tax treaties, so in a country without a treaty you should ask an adviser what relief, if any, is possible.
You can read about the logic in our article on double tax treaties. The Ministry of Finance lists the treaties on mfcr.cz.
Hypothetical example
For illustration only, with round numbers: a Czech resident earns 300,000 CZK of rent abroad and has a 30 percent flat expense, so about 210,000 CZK is the base. If the foreign tax was 20,000 CZK and the Czech tax on that income would be 31,500 CZK at 15 percent, a credit method would deduct 20,000 CZK and about 11,500 CZK would be paid in Czechia. The figures show the logic and are not a forecast.
Documents and retention
For the credit method you need proof of the foreign tax: the foreign assessment or a confirmation from the foreign tax office, bank statements and the lease. Treaty relief abroad may need a certificate of Czech tax residency. One source recommends keeping documents for at least three years after the filing deadline; confirm the period for your case.
Selling a property
Czech law has exemptions for the sale of real estate. Under section 4 of the Income Tax Act, income from selling your own home is exempt if you had your residence there for at least two years before the sale. Otherwise, a time test applies: five years between acquisition and sale for property acquired before 1 January 2021, and ten years for property acquired from 2021. The ten-year period does not have to be met if the proceeds are used for your own housing needs.
For a property abroad, the treaty will usually allow the country of the property to tax the gain, and what happens in Czechia, including whether these Czech exemptions can be applied to foreign property, we could not verify from official material. Ask an adviser before you sell. If exempt income exceeds CZK 5 million, one source says you must notify the tax office within the filing deadline; check it.
Deadlines
For tax year 2025, the return was due on 1 April 2026 on paper, 4 May 2026 electronically, and 1 July 2026 if prepared by a tax adviser with a power of attorney notified in time. The same pattern was reported for tax year 2026 (1 April, 3 May and 1 July 2027). Dates move if they fall on a weekend, so check the calendar on financnisprava.gov.cz.
We found no separate Czech register of private foreign property in our checks, but we cannot rule one out; ask your adviser.
FAQ
Do I have to declare foreign rent if I already paid tax abroad? Yes, as a Czech tax resident you declare worldwide income and claim relief for the foreign tax under the treaty.
Which expenses can I deduct? Either the flat-rate 30 percent or actual expenses with records, as a choice for that income. Check limits in the current form instructions.
Is my foreign sale exempt after five or ten years? The Czech time tests are 5 years for property acquired before 2021 and 10 years for property acquired from 2021, with an exception for own housing needs. Whether they apply to foreign property should be verified with an adviser, and the foreign country may tax the gain.
What if there is no treaty? Ask an adviser: according to one source, relief is available only under treaties.
Can an adviser extend my deadline? Yes, filing through a tax adviser with a power of attorney notified in time moves the deadline to 1 July in the pattern above.
How we help
We are a trilingual platform that finds properties and coordinates independent local lawyers and tax advisers, including advisers for your Czech tax return. This text is informational and is not legal, tax or investment advice; rules and deadlines change, so verify the current rules with your tax office or adviser. See our country pages and calculators. If you are also comparing treaty logic from the Polish side, read this article.