On this page

1. Historical developments

2. Main concepts

Historical developments

A brief history of volunteering in the Czech Republic is provided in the Study on Volunteering (Governmental policy concept towards NGOs until 2020). 

Volunteering, as it is understood today, emerged in the period of the Czech National Revival in the 19^th century. Organised patriotic activities led to the establishment of different clubs, foundations and civic associations. These organisations aimed at supporting art, culture, science, education, and also sport, singing, fire-fighting and other activities. Many of these are still active, e.g. Hlávka Foundation, Sokol, Volunteer Firemen's Associations, and other.

In the 1870s, more than 3 000 associations existed, in the 1890s this number increased to more than 10 000 did. Before the 19^th century, church and social activities were mostly based on voluntary aid.

In 1911, the Scout movement came to Bohemia and it gained a strong position in the field of youth work and youth engagement in societal development. Scouts actively participated in the founding of the Czechoslovak Republic in 1918. In the first days and weeks of freedom and independence, the Czech scouts provided services to the Czechoslovak government by ensuring reliable and fast mail deliveries between different agencies. By the World War II, there were more than 60 000 members (both men and women). After 1945, more than 200 000 people applied to become members of the renewed Scout movement, 'Junák' , which was more than three times bigger than it was in 1938.

A distinctive dimension of youth volunteering exists in the Czech Tourist Club (Klub českých turistů). The Club was founded mostly by young members for various sports activities, but also to ensure nature protection, to develop a tourist route marking system, construction of tourist lodging houses, etc. Marking tourist trails and their regular maintenance is still one of the most important Club member activities. Since 1889 they have marked trails for pedestrians, since 1997 they have also marked trails for skiers and cyclists, and since 2005 they also cover horse trails. The network of marked trails for pedestrians is considered the best in Europe, in terms density, quality, and coverage of all the Czech territory. 

After the founding of an independent Czechoslovakia in 1918, youth organisations and schools were the centres of social life of young people. These organisations were usually a part of a well-structured network including a wide range of centres, from local to provincial and national.

During the World War II, many voluntary organisations were dissolved or transformed according to the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia's administration goals. The German Nazi occupation created the Children and Youth Curatorium to influence Youth (for details see e.g. Kouřil 2015) which was the tool of Nazi power over young people.

In the Communist period after 1948, youth organizations were reduced: particularly those value-based were dissolved (Orel, YMCA, YWCA, Junák) and sometimes replaced with their communist substitutes (such as ČSTV, ČSM, Pionýr), or just subjected to the Communist regime's control. All organizations were united into the all-state organisation, the so-called "National Front". 

A a specific model of a voluntary action in socialist times are the dissent organisations of regime opponents. They often had a high professional quality, were not centralised and managed to get out from under the regime's control. Some young people were also active there.

Volunteering organisational structures included work teams, with a considerable part of management moved to enterprises and different work places. The motivation for state-enforced volunteering was enforced through competitions and symbolic remunerations. Political pressure and propaganda promoted volunteering to 'build' a socialist society (big socialist constructions, voluntary jobs, cleaning etc.). Non-participation in 'voluntary activities' was progressively penalised, devaluing spontaneous civil activity.          

Frič and Pospíšilová (2010) describe the approach of socialism towards volunteering in three gradually merging and replacing phases:

• An agitation phase - characterised by enthusiasm for volunteering in favour of socialism that was awakened by propaganda.
• A repressive phase - characterised by enforcing volunteering through intimidation and blackmailing, which in turn caused a voluntary activity to lose its authenticity.
• A ritualist phase - voluntary activities lost the sense, both functionaries and citizens were only simulating, to a certain degree, volunteering in favour of the regime and avoided it. The only thing that was left was a false ritual.

Changes came during the so-called 'Prague spring' in 1968, but the subsequent Soviet invasion stopped most of them until the end of the regime. In the 1970s, most civic activities and associations were officially banned, including Scouts, and even the oldest Czech environmental NGO - Independent Association of Nature's Friends (Nezávislé sdružení přátel přírody).

A current independent youth organisation existing from the communist era is the 'Brontosaurus Movement' (Hnutí Brontosaurus), established in 1974. The movement promotes education and ecological responsibility.

'Pionýr' (Pioneers), which was the official youth organisation of the Communist party turned into an apolitical movement after the fall of the Communist regime. 

After the Velvet revolution in 1989, citizens started to be interested in the surrounding world and humanistic values, and a nongovernmental sector arose again. The idea of a civil society based on cooperation and mutual solidarity of autonomous and free citizens became the underlying philosophy (the main proponent off which having been President Václav Havel). A new national network of organisations emerged. The majority of organisations kept their membership in big unions, but also registered themselves formally and gained a legal status.

Many associations abolished by the communists were re-established such as YMCA, Sokol, and Scouts or Junák. Many new associations were founded, covering culture, sport, children and youth, charities, social issues, and health. 

New civil society and association legislation included:

• Laws on citizens' associations (Act no. 83/1990 Sb.)
• Act on the freedom of religious faith, and the position of churches and religious societies (Act no. 308/1991 Sb.)

• Later Act on public beneficiary corporations (Act no. 248/1995 Sb.) and on foundations and funds, an Amendment of the Civil Code mentioning interest associations (Act no. 227/1997 Sb.).

   

The Czech Republic's first volunteer centres emerged at the end of the 1990s. The first National Volunteer Centre was called HESTIA, opening in 1999. It was founded with the support of the Open Society Foundation and the Points of Light Foundation (as one of the national voluntary centres in 14 countries of the former communist bloc within the project called Programme for Volunteering Development).

A significant contribution to the development of volunteering  was the UN General Assembly's Resolution no. 52/17 from 18 January 1998, which was co-authorised by the Czech Republic, designating 2001 as the International Year of Volunteers and encouraging a legal arrangement for volunteering. 

The Act on voluntary service (Act no. 198/2002 Sb.) came into force on 1 January 2003. However, it only concerns a small part of the voluntary sector, i.e. voluntary service, not other forms of volunteering. In relation to youth, it only includes a partial arrangement (consent of a legal representative is required for a child to join a voluntary service).

2011 was designated as the European Year of Volunteering aimed at supporting active citizenship. The Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic helped to promote and implement this topic during the Czech EU Council Presidency in 2009. At the national level, it was supported by the Ministry in the form of a special grant programme called 'European Year of Volunteering' (2007-2010). Though this programme the Ministry financially supported NGO activities engaged in volunteer efforts.

A project, entitled “Concept of volunteering development in the Czech Republic with emphasis on ensuring regional and professional accessibility of volunteering in the form of volunteering”, was implemented from 2016 - 2021 by the Ministry of Interior. The project dealt - inter alia- with the analysis of youth volunteering and provided examples of good practice of volunteer centers in the regions. On 8 January 2025, based on this project's results, a "Concept of the Development of Volunteering until the year 2030" was approved by the Czech Government. It is, however, limited mainly to the development of regional youth centers.

In summary, we can observe a long history of volunteering in the Czech territory. One can also see a fundamental disruption of the ethos of volunteering during the World War II and in the Communist era.

The Czech voluntary sector’s restoration began after the fall of communism. It was mostly thanks to NGO sector activities, without overall coordination or systematic legal and financial support.

For a long time, legislative mainstreaming of volunteer work has been unsuccessfully debated (unlike specific voluntary services, defined in 2002).  

Main concepts

There is no specific definition on youth volunteering, nor on volunteering as such.

The State Policy concerning Non-governmental organisations for 2015-2020 only states that volunteering is an extraordinarily positive phenomenon which is essential and typical for civil society and it is a means of active citizenship in public and political issues.

The policy differentiates two kinds of volunteering:

1. Voluntary service, which is marginal in numbers;
2. Wider volunteering, which is not legislatively covered but is usually performed within non-governmental organisations.

In practice, volunteering in the Czech Republic is implemented mostly outside of scope of the Act  on voluntary service (Act no. 198/2002 Sb.). §2 of the Act defines voluntary service as follows:

'(1) Voluntary service is the following activity performed by a volunteer:

a) Assisting the unemployed, persons dependent on welfare, the disabled, the elderly, ethnic minorities, immigrants, persons released from prison, drug addicts, victims of domestic violence, and children, youth, and families in spending their free time;

b) Assisting during floods, environmental, or humanitarian disasters, protecting and improving the living environment, protecting and maintaining cultural heritage, and organising cultural and charitable activities;

c) Assisting in the process of implementing development programmes as well as in operations, projects, and programmes organised by international organisations and institutions, including NGOs.

1. Activities performed to satisfy the personal interests of an individual, activities performed as a part of a business or any other income generating activity, and/or performed by an employee, a member of a service, or a member of an organisation shall not be considered voluntary service.
2. Voluntary service shall be in its nature short-term or, should it exceed three months, long-term.'

§3 of the Act on voluntary service (no. 198/2002 Sb.) also defines, in a narrow and utilitarian way, the term volunteer:

(1) A volunteer may be any physical person who is:

a) Over 15 years of age, should the activity in question be voluntary service performed in the territory of the Czech Republic;

b) Over 18 years of age, should the activity in question be volunteer service performed abroad and should such person have volunteered, based on his/her capabilities, knowledge, and capacity, to perform volunteer service abroad.

(2) A volunteer shall perform a voluntary service based on a contract concluded with the deploying organisation; for a long-term volunteer service or in the case of a short-term volunteer service performed abroad, the contract shall be concluded in writing.

(3) Should the physical person be employed, be a member of a service, or a member of an organisation, or should he/she be a student, he/she shall perform the voluntary service in his/her free time, i.e. not as a part of the employment, service, organizational membership, or school.

(4) Military conscripts or persons serving in alternative civilian service shall not perform volunteer service.

(5) Members of a social cooperative cannot render voluntary services for their own social cooperative.

As seen above, it is possible to consider youth volunteering within the framework of the Act on Voluntary Service, since voluntary service is available to young people from the age of 15, or 18 in the case of voluntary service performed abroad. 

In practice, volunteering in the Czech Republic is implemented mostly outside of the scope of this Act.

A commonly used distinction between formal and informal volunteering, or in other words, between volunteering performed within and outside of the organisational structures (mostly NGOs), is inapplicable in the Czech Republic, because so-called formal volunteering can be performed either within the scope of the Act on voluntary service, or outside thereof.

The only legal reference to 'youth voluntary service' can be found in the Act on the residence of foreign nationals in the territory of the Czech Republic (Act no. 326/1999 Sb.). It is a partial of transposition of European legislation (Directive 2004/114/EC) facilitating the aquisition of a long-term residence permit in the case of young people volunteering in a Czech host organisation.

The definition of 'youth voluntary service' according to this Act (no definition is contained in the Act itself) is:

'the voluntary service of a young foreign national between 18 and 25 years of age aimed at acquiring practical and professional experience of a foreign national and carried out in a domestic host organisation, provided that this takes place as a part of a project under a programme or an initiative of the European Union or under a similar governmental programme and provided that the same is organised or coordinated by a legal entity accredited by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports and established in the Czech Republic or a legal entity established abroad but having an organisational unit in the Czech Republic.

• The duration of stay will be established for a period of 1 year. In exceptional cases, if a programme lasts longer than one year, for a period that is appropriate for the duration of the programme. The duration of stay cannot be extended and the purpose of the stay cannot be changed.
• In the framework of the application procedure for a long-term residence permit, the foreigner will not be required to prove his/her knowledge of the Czech language.'