Foreign students from extreme risk countries allowed to stay in Czechia

Foreign students at Czech universities who come from states classified by the Czech government’s coronavirus travel map as extreme risk countries are now allowed to stay in the Czech Republic for their studies, Health Minister Adam Vojtěch announced after Friday’s cabinet meeting.

The decision comes after student communities petitioned Czech authorities to exempt Czech students from the ongoing coronavirus travel ban on extreme risk states. The move is aimed at ensuring that foreign students do not lose their scholarships and study opportunities at Czech universities. Health Minister Vojtěch said that this will, for example, benefit students of medicine who would have otherwise missed out on an year of study.

The website of the Ministry of Health currently lists 18 countries in the extreme risk states category. They are Botswana, Brazil, Eswatini (Swaziland), India, South Africa, Colombia, Lesotho, Namibia, Malawi, Mozambique, Nepal, Paraguay, Peru, Russia, Tanzania (including Zanzibar Islands and Pemba), Tunisia, Zambia and Zimbabwe.