The Czech Republic Embassy in Hanoi is processing the first batch of visa applications from 200 Vietnamese workers.

According to the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, the move is a step to realise the agreement between Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and his Czech counterpart Andrej Basis during the former’s Europe visit in April 2019.

PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc on the visit to the Czech Republic in April this year

The Czech Republic has high demand for foreign labour as it currently lacks of over 200,000 workers and the figure is predicted to triple in the coming time thanks to the country’s stable economic growth and the fact that native Czech workers come to other West European countries to work.

In July last year the Prague Daily Monitor reported that the Czech Republic Ministry of Foreign Affairs had suspended applications for visa applications for either employment or business activities.

According to the ministry, the measure was taken as a result of the soaring number of applications in Vietnam and what they claimed were security concerns.

There are more than 65,000 Vietnamese people living in the Czech Republic, making it the third biggest group in the country, after Slovaks and Ukrainians.