The Czech Ministry of Justice is proposing amendments to the Criminal Code to eliminate prison sentences for child support non-payers.
Instead, enforcement through judicial collection proceedings would suffice. Currently, hundreds of people are serving prison sentences annually for failing to pay child support.
“According to the 2023 report from the Prosecutor’s Office, this offense (non-payment of child support) still accounts for 7% of all criminal activity,” the ministry stated in its proposed amendments, which will soon be discussed by the government.
At present, anyone who fails to meet child support obligations, even negligently, for more than four months faces up to one year in prison. Repeat offenders risk up to two years, while those whose actions place the dependent person in a critical situation can be sentenced to up to three years. In 2023, 3,849 individuals were convicted for failing to pay child support in Czechia. Among them, 485 are serving prison sentences. The majority—2,708 individuals—received conditional early release, while others were penalized with fines, house arrest, or community service. In 40 cases, the punishment was overturned.
“It is important to emphasize that while in prison, the overwhelming majority of convicted individuals lose the ability to earn income, which only increases their child support debt. For chronic non-payers, repeated criminal sanctions have proven ineffective,” the ministry stated.
The ministry suggests shifting child support disputes from the criminal level to the civil-administrative or administrative domain. Typically, debtors would face penalties such as suspension of their driving licenses. This year, there has also been an increase in judicial enforcement proceedings for child support collection. “In 2023, 4,750 proceedings were initiated,” reported the Enforcement Chamber.
The ministry proposes to criminalize only cases where the dependent person is put in a critical situation due to the non-payment of child support.
“At the same time, the ministry proposes to decriminalize this offense in cases where the offender can be punished with a maximum sentence of one year instead of the current six months to three years,” the ministry added.
