How Many Foreigners Live in Czechia in 2026: Interior Ministry Data Explained
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As of 30 April 2026, 1,130,280 foreigners held registered residence in Czechia. That is 49,907 more (+4.6%) than a year earlier. We went through the Interior Ministry's monthly tables by nationality, type of residence and district, and compared April 2026 with April 2025.
Key numbers
- Roughly one in ten people living in Czechia is a foreign national.
- 402,207 hold permanent residence (+5.6% in a year), 343,637 temporary residence (+4.4%) and 384,436 temporary protection (+3.8%).
- Filipinos are the fastest-growing group: +42.7%, or 4,918 people in a year.
- 367,451 foreigners live in Prague, 32.5% of the total.
- Growth has stalled since the start of 2026: there were 1,131,197 foreigners on 31 December 2025 and 1,130,280 at the end of April.
Where Czechia's foreign residents come from
More than half of all foreigners are Ukrainian citizens: 606,991 people. Of them, 383,731 live under temporary protection, 122,408 have permanent residence and 100,852 temporary residence. Slovaks come second and Vietnamese third.
| Country | People | In a year |
|---|---|---|
| Ukraine | 606,991 | +6.1% |
| Slovakia | 126,526 | +3.0% |
| Vietnam | 70,036 | +1.1% |
| Russia | 37,444 | −1.8% |
| Romania | 21,301 | +0.6% |
| Poland | 17,600 | −0.5% |
| Bulgaria | 17,402 | −1.4% |
| Philippines | 16,429 | +42.7% |
| Mongolia | 15,172 | +4.9% |
| Hungary | 12,243 | +3.4% |
| India | 11,940 | +10.7% |
| Germany | 10,934 | −4.8% |
| Kazakhstan | 10,765 | +1.5% |
| China | 10,350 | +0.8% |
| United States | 10,240 | +4.0% |
Who is arriving
Among nationalities with more than 3,000 residents, the number of Filipinos is growing fastest. Czech companies bring in Filipino workers through the government's Kvalifikovaný zaměstnanec (Qualified Employee) programme, which sets aside a quota of around 10,000 places a year for the Philippines. The map shows it: outside Prague, most Filipinos live in the industrial cities of Plzeň, Brno and Cheb. The numbers of Turks, Indians and Uzbeks also rose noticeably.
| Country | People | In a year |
|---|---|---|
| Philippines | 16,429 | +42.7% |
| Turkey | 6,579 | +12.0% |
| India | 11,940 | +10.7% |
| Uzbekistan | 4,144 | +7.5% |
| Ukraine | 606,991 | +6.1% |
| Mongolia | 15,172 | +4.9% |
Who is leaving
The biggest falls over the year were among Russians (−676), Germans (−553) and Belarusians (−344).
Foreigners in Prague
The capital is home to 367,451 foreigners, +4.0% more than a year ago. The mix differs from the country as a whole: Russians rank third, and the numbers of Indians and Americans are growing fastest.
| Country | People in Prague | In a year |
|---|---|---|
| Ukraine | 174,513 | +5.0% |
| Slovakia | 33,923 | +4.3% |
| Russia | 23,883 | −1.7% |
| Vietnam | 16,345 | +1.2% |
| Kazakhstan | 7,058 | +2.2% |
| United States | 6,921 | +6.6% |
| China | 6,477 | −1.8% |
| India | 6,446 | +9.9% |
| Romania | 6,110 | +1.1% |
| Bulgaria | 4,965 | −0.6% |
Where most foreigners live and where numbers grow fastest
After Prague, the largest foreign communities are in Brno, Plzeň and Prague's suburbs. The fastest growth is in smaller industrial districts where factories need workers.
| District | Foreigners | In a year |
|---|---|---|
| Prague | 367,451 | +4.0% |
| Brno | 67,617 | +3.1% |
| Plzeň | 44,315 | +2.6% |
| Prague-East | 27,619 | +6.1% |
| Mladá Boleslav | 24,445 | +7.1% |
| Ostrava | 23,432 | +3.2% |
| Pardubice | 21,981 | +3.1% |
| Liberec | 20,774 | +2.8% |
| Prague-West | 20,269 | +3.8% |
| Kladno | 19,167 | +7.6% |
| Fastest growth (over 3,000 foreigners) | Foreigners | In a year |
|---|---|---|
| Rychnov nad Kněžnou | 6,018 | +13.7% |
| Opava | 4,503 | +11.0% |
| Prostějov | 4,637 | +10.9% |
| Ústí nad Orlicí | 8,663 | +10.9% |
| Prachatice | 3,460 | +10.6% |
| Třebíč | 4,300 | +10.3% |
How we counted
The source is the Czech Interior Ministry's information tables "Cizinci s povoleným pobytem" (foreigners with residence permits) for 30 April 2026, 30 April 2025 and 31 December 2025. They cover non-EU nationals with permanent and temporary residence, EU citizens with registered residence and people under temporary protection. We added up the district figures, leaving out the total rows. The ministry describes these tables as informative rather than official statistics. "One in ten" is based on a Czech population of about 10.9 million.
By the Around Prague newsroom
