A guide to the export and import of cultural goods between Russia ...

Czech Republic
Chapter 3: European Union Member States
To apply for a Certificate, the owner must make the application (or issue a letter of attorney
to authorise a third party to deal with it). You should apply to either the Ministry of
Culture or one of the many Specialist Organisations who also issue Certificates. The Specialist
Organisations are listed in Annex No. 2 of Act No. 71/1994. Each covers a different
geographical territory as well as having a specialist field of knowledge, depending on the
type of object. If you are resident in the Czech Republic, you apply to the Specialist Organisation
for the region where you live. If you are not resident, you apply to the Specialist
Organisation in the region where the object was located at the time of its acquisition.
The application forms are in Annexes No. 3 and 4 of Act No. 71/1994. They must be completed
in quadruplicate. The owner must make the object available for examination and
cooperate with the relevant authorities.
According to the legislation, the Specialist Organisation should deliver the Certificate
within 21 days of the application being received. If, after examination, it decides not to issue
a Certificate, it will refer the application to the Ministry of Culture who then have three
months to make a decision on whether to issue a Certificate.
A Certificate for temporary export may be issued for a period of no longer than five years,
while a Certificate for permanent export is valid for three years from the date of issue.
For the Permit, you need to consult Act No. 122/2000. This covers objects which are part of
collections of museum character, i.e. any collection that is “significant for prehistory, history,
art, literature, technology, natural or social sciences”. Such objects are recorded in central
records maintained by the Ministry of Culture. Cultural objects covered by this legislation include
all publicly owned collections permanently located in the Czech Republic as well as
objects meeting the criteria which are owned by private individuals and other organisations.
Act No. 122/2000 mostly contains provisions for the protection of these objects through
documentation in the Central Registry and other responsibilities for the owners of the objects.
Section 11 deals with the Export of collections abroad. A Permit will only be issued
for such objects for the purposes of exhibition, conservation or restoration, or scientific
study, and only for a limited period of time. Therefore, if you want to export a cultural
object which is listed in the Central Registry, you will only be able to get permission for
temporary export.
Once you have the Certificate or Permit, you can then apply for the EU export licence.
There are special forms for this which can be obtained from the Ministry of Culture (Department
of Moveable Cultural Heritage, Museums and Galleries). You must submit the
Certificate or Permit with your application to the Ministry of Culture. It issues the EU export
licence within a maximum of ten days of receiving the application. Only the standard
licence is available in the Czech Republic (see Chapter 2 for more information) which is
valid for twelve months from the date of issue.
Since the application process is cumulative, in planning your export, you must allow
enough time to apply first for the Certificate/Permit and then for the EU export licence.
64