Domestic Violence and the Law: What You Can Do and Where to Find Help

This article may be read by someone who is in a difficult situation right now. Someone who is afraid and unsure whether what they are going through is "serious enough" to seek help. It is serious enough. And there are concrete steps you can take.

If you are in danger right now, stop reading and call 158 (police) or 112.

¶ What domestic violence means in law

Since 1 July 2025, Czech law has had a statutory definition of domestic violence (Section 3021 of the Civil Code, as amended by Act No. 78/2025 Coll.). Domestic violence is violent conduct in any form, usually involving an abuse of power or of an unequal position, by which:

• the victim's physical integrity was or was meant to be harmed,
• the victim's mental integrity, freedom, dignity, honour or privacy was or was meant to be repeatedly or seriously harmed,
• the victim's ability to meet their own basic needs or those of their household was seriously threatened or disrupted.

In practice, besides hitting, strangling or sexual violence, this also covers persistent humiliation, intimidation, control of someone's movements and phone, isolation from family and friends, or withholding money for food and rent. Violence does not have to leave bruises.

You do not have to live together. A victim can be someone who lives or used to live in the same household as the violent person, but also someone close to them now or in the past (such as a former partner), the other parent of a shared child, or a person with whom the violent person exercises parental responsibility. Divorced parents who take turns looking after their children are therefore protected too.

¶ Eviction: immediate protection

The police can evict the violent person from the shared home (in Czech, vykázání). The eviction lasts 14 days, and the evicted person cannot cancel it. During that time they may not return to the home or its surroundings, and they may not contact you or meet you.

What it looks like: you call the police, and the officers assess on the spot what has happened and whether a further attack can reasonably be expected. Your consent is not required, and you do not have to file a criminal complaint. The evicted person may take personal belongings and identity documents, hands over the keys and must leave.

The police notify an intervention centre of the eviction. The centre will contact you itself and offer legal, psychological and practical help.

¶ Interim measure: longer protection through the court

An eviction can be followed by an interim measure for protection against domestic violence. You file the application with the district court for the place where you live. The court decides within 48 hours, without a hearing.

If you file the application while the 14-day eviction is still running, the eviction is extended until the court's decision on the application becomes final. This way there is no gap between the eviction and protection by the court.

In particular, the court can order the violent person to:

• leave the shared home and not return to it or its surroundings,
• not come near you or remain in your vicinity,
• not have contact with you,
• not follow or otherwise harass you.

The interim measure lasts one month. If you apply for an extension before it ends, it remains in effect until the court decides. In total it can last up to six months. You can file the application yourself; an intervention centre or a lawyer can help.

Two things that are often confused:

• This is not a "provisional decision". Since 2026 that term refers to the tool used to arrange the care of children and contact with them, and the court issues it only after everyone, including the other parent, has been able to respond to the application. Protection against violence follows a separate, faster route.
• You do not have to show that living together has become "unbearable". That was the old test. Since July 2025, the court considers whether the conduct shows the features of domestic violence under the new definition, or whether it amounts to unwanted following or harassment. In April 2026 the Constitutional Court quashed a decision of a regional court that had still applied the old wording (finding file no. II. ÚS 90/26; a finding, or nález, is a Constitutional Court ruling on the merits of a constitutional complaint). So in your application, describe the specific conduct and link it to the new definition.

¶ The criminal side

Domestic violence can amount to a number of criminal offences. The most common are:

• abuse of a person living in a shared dwelling (Section 199 of the Criminal Code): the basic sentencing range is six months to four years; where the abuse is particularly brutal, causes grievous bodily harm or goes on for a longer period, two to eight years; in the most serious cases up to twelve years,
• bodily harm, where there is an injury,
• dangerous threats and stalking,
• rape, including within marriage or a relationship,
• restriction of personal freedom.

You can file a criminal complaint orally or in writing at any police station or with the public prosecutor's office. What happens to it afterwards is described in my article Criminal complaint — what happens when someone files one.

Filing a criminal complaint against a partner or family member is a very hard decision, and nobody is forcing you to make it. Neither eviction nor an interim measure depends on it.

¶ Domestic violence and divorce, children and property

Domestic violence has consequences beyond criminal proceedings.

• Division of community property: the court takes into account that one spouse committed domestic violence against the other, or an act of the nature of an intentional criminal offence (Section 742(1)(g) of the Civil Code).
• Mediation: the court may not order a first meeting with a mediator while an interim measure against domestic violence is in force, or while criminal proceedings are under way against one party for an offence against the other, such as abuse, bodily harm or dangerous threats (Section 100(3) of the Code of Civil Procedure). A joint session with a violent person should never be a condition for anything.
• Care of children: violence between parents is also relevant to decisions about children who witnessed it. What the court examines in custody proceedings is covered in my article Child custody disputes — what parents need to know.

¶ Where to find help

• Czech Police: 158, emergency line 112. If you are in immediate danger, call straight away.
• Helpline for victims of crime and domestic violence: 116 006, 24/7 and free of charge. It is run by Bílý kruh bezpečí, the White Circle of Safety (bkb.cz).
• ROSA – centre for women: 116 016, 24/7 and free of charge, crisis help for women experiencing domestic violence, including shelter accommodation (rosacentrum.cz).
• Intervention centres operate in every region. They contact you themselves after an eviction, but you can turn to them at any time, even without one.

If you need help in another language, the 116 006 helpline can arrange it. European contacts are gathered by the Women Against Violence Europe (WAVE) network and by Victim Support Europe.

¶ When it is not black and white

Domestic violence rarely looks like the textbook version. You may be afraid nobody will believe you. You may feel it is your own fault, or you may depend on your partner financially and worry about what will happen to the children.

None of these fears takes away your right to protection.

A lawyer can help you work out what makes sense: eviction, an interim measure, divorce, arrangements for the children. ROSA or Bílý kruh bezpečí will help even if you have no money and without you having to file a criminal complaint straight away.

If you recognise yourself in this article, call 116 006 or 116 016. You do not need to have decided what you want. It is enough to say what is happening.