Home Office Timekeeping in Czech Law: Employer Duties and Key Risks

Mgr. Jakub Oliva, LL.M., MSc.
Mgr. Jakub Oliva, LL.M., MSc.
14.4.2026 | ARROWS law firm

Working from home has become the standard, but many companies still handle working time records for home office “their own way” – or not at all. That is legally risky. Under Czech law, the employer is required to keep accurate records of the hours worked by all employees, including those working from home. Mistakes in home office timekeeping lead to fines from the Labour Inspectorate, disputes over unpaid overtime, problems with sick pay compensation, and issues in tax records. 

In the image, we see a lawyer during a consultation regarding the recording of working hours while working from home.

Key takeaways

  • The employer is obliged to keep working time records – i.e., to record the start and end of each worked shift – even when the employee works from home; this obligation applies to all employees without exception.
  • Distinguish between working time records and attendance records – working time records are a legally required record of hours actually worked; attendance records (presence at the workplace) are not mandatory, but may form part of working time records.
  • Employee monitoring is not unlimited – without written consent, you cannot install hidden cameras, track keystrokes, or continuously capture the screen; breaches can lead to high fines from the Labour Inspectorate and the Office for Personal Data Protection (ÚOOÚ).
  • With self-scheduling (the employee schedules their own working time), watch out for overtime and obstacles to work – the legal implications differ from standard home office arrangements and require careful drafting in the agreement.

Why keeping working time records is a legal obligation, not a choice

Many employers still believe that working time records are more of an administrative matter, or that when employees work from home it is enough to check work outputs. That is incorrect. Section 96 of the Labour Code explicitly provides that the employer must keep working time records for each employee separately, regardless of where they work.

Final responsibility for proper record-keeping lies with the employer. The employee may cooperate with the employer (for example, by recording their start and finish times), but the legal obligation to keep records remains with the employer.

Labour inspectors are well aware of this, and inspections in the area of working time records are among the most common. Deficiencies or discrepancies between records and reality are one of the main reasons for fines. For a breach of the obligation to keep working time records, the employer faces a fine of up to CZK 2,000,000.

The difference between working time records and attendance records – do not confuse them

In practice, we still encounter companies confusing two concepts: working time records and attendance records. This is not just a terminological nuance – the difference has legal consequences.

What working time records are

Working time records are a record of time actually worked – i.e., recording the start and end of a shift, overtime, night work, and on-call duty. These are the data required by law under Czech legislation.

In a home office setup, this means recording when the employee actually started working and when they finished, whether they schedule their working time themselves or it is set by the employer.

What attendance records are

Attendance records are a record of presence at the workplace – i.e., when the employee arrived at the office, when they left, what breaks they took, etc. From a legal perspective, this is not mandatory, although it is commonly kept.

When working from home, attendance records may also include information about related indicators (presence in online channels, logging into the system, responses to emails), if this is required of the employee.

Here is the problem: attendance records are not working time records. If a company keeps only attendance records (e.g., when an employee logs into an online channel) but does not record hours actually worked, it is in breach of the law. The Labour Inspectorate will classify this as insufficient working time records.

Practical example

An employee working from home logs into the company chat at 9:00. At 10:30, she logs off for a personal matter and picks up her child from kindergarten. She returns at 12:30. She logs off again for lunch from 13:00 to 13:30. Then she continues working and logs off at 17:00.

If the company records only chat logins and logouts, it will record work from 9:00 to 17:00, i.e., 8 hours. But she actually worked only: (10:30–9:00) + (12:30–10:30) + (17:00–13:30) = 1.5 h + 2 h + 3.5 h = 7 hours.

The difference is not trivial – it can affect the calculation of sick pay compensation, holiday entitlement, or overtime.

Legislative framework: Section 317 and Section 96 of the Labour Code

Since 2023, remote work has been governed by specific rules in Section 317 of the Labour Code. An important part relates precisely to how working time is organised and recorded.

Mandatory written agreement

First, let us return to a basic legal fact: home office can only be agreed on the basis of a written agreement between the employer and the employee. An oral agreement is not sufficient. The agreement must include at least:

  • the place (or places) of work,
  • the method of communication between the employee and the employer,
  • the scope of remote work,
  • the conditions for scheduling working time,
  • the method of reimbursing costs,
  • the term for which the agreement is concluded.

It is surprising how many companies still operate with agreed but undocumented home office arrangements. The Labour Inspectorate will always point this out.

Two working time scheduling regimes

The law distinguishes two scenarios:

First: the employer schedules the working time (e.g., the employee must be available from 9:00 to 17:00, works from home, but their working hours are set). In such a case, the standard rules apply – overtime is paid, obstacles to work under various categories are compensated, etc.

Working time records in this regime are straightforward: record the start and end of the working day according to the schedule and record any deviations (overtime, obstacles to work).

Second regime: the employee schedules their own working time (Section 317(4) of the Labour Code). This is often agreed for mothers on maternity leave or persons caring for a dependent person. In this regime, the employee decides when during the week or month they will work the selected hours, provided they meet the agreed weekly or monthly scope.

This is where it becomes more complicated: in this regime, overtime is not paid, compensation for certain obstacles to work does not apply, and a number of standard compensations are not used. However, working time records are still mandatory.

Practically: what this means for time records

If you work with employees under the first regime (fixed hours), standard records are sufficient: clock-in in the morning, clock-out in the evening, and recording obstacles to work (sick leave, vacation, training).

If you work with employees under the second regime (self-scheduling), you must keep more detailed records: each working day, the employee records the specific hours worked so that it is clear they actually worked the so-called “flex working hours” and did not shorten them arbitrarily. Without such a record, you have no evidence that the person fulfilled their obligation to work the prescribed number of hours per week.

The attorneys at ARROWS, a Prague-based law firm, encounter these pitfalls precisely during inspections or disputes – and companies often realize their records are not evidential only when it is too late.

Most common questions on the legal setup of home office

1. Do I have to have a home office agreement in electronic form, or is paper enough?
The agreement must be in writing. Electronic form is permissible and is sufficient if it is sent to the employee by email. If the agreement is signed only in printed form, both copies (the employer’s and the employee’s) should exist.

2. Can I unilaterally order an employee to work from home?
No, not in the usual case. Home office may be ordered only in absolutely exceptional situations where this is stipulated by a measure of a public authority (e.g., during a pandemic or a natural disaster). In a normal situation, the employer and the employee must agree on home office.

3. What is the difference between an agreed “flex home office” and lawful self-scheduling under Section 317?
Flex home office, where the employee merely “agrees” and does not work specific set hours, but it suits you later, is not lawful self-scheduling under Section 317. To have legal certainty under Czech law, the conditions must be clearly stated in the agreement: weekly or monthly scope, place, and the method of record-keeping.

Technical aspects of record-keeping: What works, what doesn’t

Today, a range of solutions is available – from manual tables through Excel to sophisticated attendance systems. Which solutions are legally compliant?

Manual records and Excel

Manual entries in a notebook or an Excel spreadsheet technically meet the statutory requirement (“recording”), but they are not legally safe for several reasons:

  • It cannot be proven when the record was made. The employee can “fill in” shifts retroactively.
  • In a conflict (e.g., the employee claims they worked overtime and wants it paid), you will not succeed in court or before the labour inspectorate. A manual entry is considered low-credibility evidence.
  • In the event of an inspection by an inspector or a court expert, the data will be easily challenged.

If you already use Excel, both parties – the employer and the employee – should at least sign a monthly summary as confirmation of accuracy.

Online attendance systems

Modern attendance systems (such as GIRITON, SYSDO, iTA, etc.) are legally much safer. They offer:

  • Automatic backups and logs – it is not possible to interfere with records retroactively without leaving a trace.
  • Mobile clock-in and clock-out – the employee records times directly from a mobile phone, which increases credibility.
  • GPS location – it may be part of the record (if agreed in the home office agreement and proportionate).
  • Analytics and reports – for both the employer and the inspector, they clearly show how many hours the employee worked.

Labour inspectorates accept such systems – their outputs are considered reliable evidence.

GPS and biometric elements

Many companies think GPS tracking or face scanning is a natural part of record-keeping. It is not. GPS location can be agreed in a home office agreement, but only if it is purposeful and not overly invasive. For example: GPS tracking is justified for an employee who delivers small parcels to customers. For an employee who programs from a home office, it is unnecessary and disproportionate.

When using GPS, be mindful of GDPR – you must have a lawful basis to process location data (i.e., it must be in the agreement and must be proportionate), and the employee must be informed that they are being monitored.

Most common questions on technical solutions for record-keeping

1. Which attendance system should I choose for home office?
It should allow: digital recording (web and mobile app), it cannot be changed retroactively without leaving a trace, it exports data in an accepted format (CSV, Excel), and it enables analysis by projects or employees. Price is not the most important factor – security and transparency are.

2. Can I require an employee to keep their camera on for the entire working day?
No. Without a specific reason, this is a breach of the right to privacy and a breach of GDPR. The employee has the right to respect for private life even during working hours at home. Cameras are permissible only in exceptional cases (e.g., where the employee works with very valuable goods) and always with written consent.

3. Is there a mandatory minimum standard for record-keeping, or can I choose any format?
The legal obligation concerns only the content (start, end, overtime, night work, etc.), but the form is flexible – except that it must be evidential. The Labour Code does not prescribe a specific system, but inspectors know what is and is not provable.

Monitoring employees on home office: Legal boundaries

This is a chapter that contains a huge number of legal pitfalls. Many employers think that if an employee works from home, they can subject them to any kind of surveillance – and that is a mistake that can cost millions of Czech crowns in fines.

What you can do without issues

Checking work outputs is a basic right of the employer. You can require reports, status updates, and the results of completed tasks. This is not monitoring the person; it is checking performance of work.

Verifying that the employee works during the agreed hours – you can simply verify (e.g., through a manager) whether the employee is available at the agreed time.

Monitoring logins to the system is possible if the employee needs to be logged into the company chat or email during the agreed hours. But only login/logout, not individual activities.

What constitutes breaches of the law

Hidden cameras in a home office – regardless of the reason. The home is protected by the right to inviolability of the home under the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms. If you want to verify OSH (occupational safety and health), you can agree on regular reports from the employee or a photo of the workplace, but entering the apartment or installing hidden cameras is a serious violation of rights.

Continuous screen capture, mouse tracking, and keystroke logging are invasive monitoring that violates the right to privacy. Without a serious reason and without consent, it is unlawful. High fines may be imposed by the Czech Data Protection Authority (ÚOOÚ – Office for Personal Data Protection) (up to 4% of worldwide turnover) and by the labour inspectorate (up to CZK 1,000,000).

Continuous audio or video recording – without the consent of all persons involved, this is a breach of data protection law and may be a criminal offence.

Inspectors must not review the content of emails and private messages without a serious reason, although they may monitor the frequency of received and sent emails.

 

Who can you contact?

GDPR and the Labour Code: Double risk

Here is the serious catch: if you break the law when monitoring, you may face fines from two authorities at the same time:

  •  (the Office for Personal Data Protection) for a breach and the data minimisation principle – a fine of up to EUR 20,000,000 or 4% of turnover.
  •  for a breach of the right to privacy under Section 316 of the Czech Labour Code – a fine of up to CZK 1,000,000.

An example is a case where an employer uses the Time Doctor program, which takes a screenshot every few seconds and monitors how much time an employee spends on social media. Without the employee’s explicit consent and without a serious reason, this is very risky. If it is discovered, a series of problems may follow.

Attorneys at ARROWS, a Prague-based law firm, encounter situations where companies only later realise how serious their approach to monitoring is – and then it is too late.

Most common questions about employee monitoring

1. Can I use software that tracks whether an employee is working or just sitting there helplessly?
If you have the employee’s consent and use it only to verify that they are logged in and doing something on a work account, that is fine. But if the software takes screenshots or tracks the mouse, it is intrusive and, without a valid reason, unlawful.

2. I don’t use cameras – is it enough if the employee records when they started and when they finished?
Yes, that is enough. That is exactly the right approach – trust in the employee and control of results, not the person.

3. Can I require an employee to provide video evidence that they are at home during the working day?
Definitely not without consent and without a serious reason. The home is precisely what the law seeks to protect. If you suspect fraud, address it through the manager or HR, not through surveillance equipment.

Overtime and obstacles to work during home office: Where rights get lost

This is one of the biggest pitfalls. The legal regime for overtime and obstacles to work differs depending on how home office is agreed.

If the employee schedules their own working hours

Under self-scheduling (regime under Section 317(4) of the Czech Labour Code), the employee is not entitled to overtime pay or compensatory time off for overtime work. The reason is clear: they have a high degree of flexibility, so if they need to extend their work, they can adjust the schedule themselves.

The same applies to meal and rest breaks – in this regime, the employee is responsible for taking breaks when they need them. The employer is not obliged to provide them at a specific time.

Obstacles to work (sick leave, holiday, training) are dealt with according to the agreed “fictional schedule”. This is an indicative schedule that the employer creates for the purposes of calculating compensation. If the employee falls ill, they receive wage compensation not in all circumstances, but only based on this fictional schedule.

If the employer schedules the working hours themselves

If, on the other hand, the employer determines the working hours themselves (e.g., the employee works 9:00–17:00 from home office), then the standard rules apply. Overtime must be paid, obstacles to work are compensated according to the law, etc.

Practical warnings

This is where the huge potential for disputes comes in. Many employers agree on “self-scheduling” and then pressure employees to work at certain hours, or tell them that overtime is not paid, even though they effectively determine the hours. This twists the system, and labour inspectors see right through it.

In the opposite situation: an employee remembers that they were supposed to work under self-scheduling, but then quietly recalls that they in fact had fixed hours, and demands overtime pay retroactively (up to 3 years back). Without a clear, written agreement and detailed records, it ends up in court.

Attorneys at ARROWS, a Prague-based law firm, see these disputes regularly – and emphasise that a clear agreement and detailed working-time records resolve these situations completely.

Most common questions about overtime and obstacles to work

1. An employee in a “self-scheduled” regime suddenly claims she was supposed to work from 9:00 to 17:00. How does that differ from what we have in writing?
If you have self-scheduling agreed in writing, but the employee now says that in practice she had fixed hours, you need to verify what is in the agreement. If the evidence from the agreement is unambiguous, you will win. If the agreement is vague, it will be difficult. For the future: the agreement must be extremely specific.

2. An employee works under self-scheduling but demands overtime pay because they worked beyond the scope for a month. Is that justified?
Under self-scheduling, there is no entitlement to overtime. The employee could have arranged their working time differently. But if you suspect this is a circumvention of the law (i.e., you effectively set their hours but pretend you do not), it will be a problem.

3. Can I work at night in a home office regime?
Yes, but with special rules. The employer must ensure medical examinations before assignment and then annually. If you want to reasonably limit night work, it can be agreed in the agreement, but the employer cannot ban night work entirely.

Risk table: What you face and how ARROWS helps

Potential issues

How ARROWS helps (office@arws.cz)

Failure to keep working-time records, or keeping insufficient records that the labour inspectorate will challenge. You face a fine of up to CZK 2,000,000.

ARROWS attorneys help companies set up and document a proper working-time recording system that will stand up even to an inspector. We ensure that all records are evidential and compliant with statutory requirements.

Disputes with employees over unpaid overtime. The employee “remembers differently” and demands back pay for up to 3 years.

ARROWS helps prepare a clear written home office agreement with a detailed description of the working-time regime. We represent the company in any disputes and defend the records against the employee’s allegations.

Violation of the employee’s privacy rights through excessive monitoring. High fines from the Office for Personal Data Protection (up to 4% of turnover) and the labour inspectorate (up to CZK 1,000,000).

ARROWS attorneys will review your monitoring system, assess its compliance with GDPR and the Czech Labour Code, and help set up monitoring so that it is legally safe and necessary.

Errors in reimbursement of home office costs – the employer does not pay them or calculates them incorrectly. The employee may request it and inspectors will check it.

ARROWS explains the rules for cost reimbursement (lump sum vs. proven costs), helps regulate the reimbursement method in an agreement, and ensures the company is not exposed to breaches of the law.

Failure to approve the home workplace from an OSH perspective. A workplace accident in poor conditions = employer liability.

ARROWS, a Prague-based law firm, assists with a risk analysis of the home workplace, preparation of employee training, and documentation of measures to ensure occupational safety and health protection.

Mandatory expense reimbursements: What you cannot afford to overlook

Since 2023, a specific obligation has applied to home office work: the employer must reimburse the employee for expenses incurred while working remotely – unless something else is agreed in writing.

Lump-sum reimbursement

As of 1 January 2026, the lump-sum reimbursement of expenses is CZK 4.70 for each commenced hour of remote work (pursuant to Decree of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs No. 572/2025 Coll.).

This means: if you have an employee working 20 hours per week from home, they will receive per month: 20 hours × 4 weeks × CZK 4.70 = CZK 376. Not much? Yes. But it is the statutory minimum unless agreed otherwise.

Documented expenses

If no lump sum is agreed with the employer, the employee is entitled to reimbursement of documented expenses.

  • Electricity, heating, water – i.e., household operating costs attributable to work.
  • Internet – if it is necessary for work.
  • Wear and tear of the employee’s own equipment – for example a laptop or phone, if the employee uses it for work.

Key detail: It must be expressly agreed that no reimbursements will be provided

One problematic scenario: the employer and employee agree that the employee will “not seek reimbursement” for home office costs. This is permissible, but it must be expressly evidenced in a written agreement signed by both parties.

Practical warning

Many employers think that an arrangement “without entitlement to reimbursement” is a standard part of the contractual relationship. But labour inspectors see this situation differently. If the employee later claims they knew nothing about the agreement, or that they signed under pressure, reimbursements may be claimed retroactively – up to 3 years.

The attorneys at ARROWS focus on whether such an agreement is drafted clearly enough and whether the employee always gave clear consent to it.

Most common questions about expense reimbursements

1. Can I agree with an employee that home office costs will not be reimbursed because they have already set up a home office?
Technically yes – but only if it is expressly and clearly agreed in a written agreement. The employee must not be able to claim later that they did not know about it. Without such an agreement, you are obliged to pay at least the lump sum.

2. What expenses can I, as an employer, deduct in my accounts when I reimburse an employee?
This is a tax question that goes beyond the employment-law framework – it depends on the specific situation and the interpretation of the tax authorities. We recommend discussing it with a tax advisor.

3. The employee claims that home office costs them CZK 1,000 per month. What is the legal limit?
Legally, there is no upper limit – if the employee proves it (invoices, calculations), they should receive it. However, inspectors or a court will review whether the calculation is reasonable.

Administration and archiving of working time records

Be mindful of another aspect: working time records must be archived and retained for at least 30 years. That is a long time and creates data-related obligations.

Also note: working time records are personal data under the GDPR. This means you must protect them, control access, and employees must have the right to review them.

An employee has the right to request an extract from the working time records, and your system must enable this – without undue delay and without additional fees.

Final summary

Keeping working time records for home office work is not an unnecessary administrative burden – it is a legal obligation under Czech law that protects both parties, and breaches can cost millions of Czech crowns in fines, disputes, and delays.

The most common mistakes we see:

  • Confusing concepts – the company thinks that if it keeps attendance records (logging into chat), it is also keeping working time records. It is not the same.
  • Missing agreement – the employer agrees home office verbally and then fails to notice that, legally, it does not exist.
  • Excessive monitoring – attempts to control employees lead to breaches of the GDPR and the right to privacy.
  • Unclear overtime and obstacles to work – when it is not clear whether the employee schedules their own time, disputes arise.
  • No reimbursement paid – the employer forgets the lump sum or documented expenses.
  • Loss of evidence – manually kept records get lost or are challenged.

Our attorneys in Prague at ARROWS can help you set up a legally robust system – from preparing the correct home office agreement, through selecting suitable time-recording software, to representation in the event of an inspection or a dispute with an employee. If you want certainty that you are on the right side of the law and do not want to risk mistakes, contact us.

Contact ARROWS advokátní kancelář at office@arws.cz and have your working time records set up professionally.

Most common questions about working time records for home office

1. I know the employee is working because I know when they do the work. So I do not have to keep working time records, right?
Incorrect. The Labour Code expressly requires you to keep working time records. “Knowing” they are working is not evidence. During an inspection or in a dispute, you will need a written record. Without it, you face a fine of up to CZK 2,000,000.

2. Can I require the employee to keep their own working time records and then I will copy them?
Partly yes – the employee can provide cooperation (e.g., recording start and end times). But the ultimate responsibility for keeping and ensuring the accuracy of the records lies with you. If you merely transcribe what the employee tells you and it does not match reality, you are liable.

3. How often do I have to check that the records reflect reality?
At least monthly, you should verify that the data in the records is logical and corresponds to the facts. For employees who self-schedule, it is important to check that the employee actually worked the agreed number of hours. For employees with fixed hours, a basic check for anomalies is sufficient (e.g., 0 hours every day).

4. Our employees are spread around the world – are working time records the same as in the Czech Republic?
For employees employed in the Czech Republic, Czech legislation applies (§ 96 of the Labour Code), regardless of where they actually work from. For employees abroad, the legislation of the relevant country applies. This complicates matters and requires an expert approach. The attorneys at ARROWS assist companies with international teams – more information is available via ARROWS International.

5. The employee has disappeared and stopped logging in – how should I keep working time records for them?
At the moment they stop appearing and communicating, their working hours stop running. You should record this and attempt to contact the employee. If this is an obstacle to work (e.g., health reasons), the employee should report and document it. If it is simply an absence without reason, it constitutes a breach of work discipline.

6. How long do I have to retain working time records?
At least 30 years. This is a very long time and requires digital archiving (paper archives are not practical). It is therefore important to maintain backups and ensure that the records remain readable even decades later.

Notice: The information contained in this article is of a general informational nature only and is intended to provide basic guidance on the topic based on the legal status as of 2026. Although we strive for maximum accuracy, legal regulations and their interpretation evolve over time. We are ARROWS advokátní kancelář, an entity registered with the Czech Bar Association (our supervisory authority), and for the maximum protection of our clients we are insured for professional liability with a limit of CZK 400,000,000. To verify the current wording of the regulations and their application to your specific situation, it is necessary to contact ARROWS advokátní kancelář directly (office@arws.cz). We accept no liability for any damages arising from the independent use of the information from this article without prior individual legal consultation.

Read also: