Most people keep the tax in mind and almost nobody keeps the insurance advances there, because on a payroll you never see them: they were simply deducted from your wage. For an OSVČ they become a separate monthly payment and the first reason why “income” and “money in hand” stop being the same thing.
How it works
There are two independent streams: social insurance (ČSSZ) and health insurance (the fund you choose). Both are paid as monthly advances, each with its own deadline and its own recipient. Missing one is not offset by overpaying the other.
You have to notify both systems, but the deadlines are not the same — the "you get eight days for the insurance" line that circulates holds for only one of them:
| Who you notify | Deadline | Provision |
|---|---|---|
| Health insurance fund | 8 days | § 10 odst. 3 of Act No. 48/1997 Coll. |
| Regional social security administration (ČSSZ) | 15 days | § 48 odst. 4 of Act No. 582/1991 Coll. |
Sources: Act No. 48/1997 Coll., § 10 odst. 3 — "Pojištěnec, který se stal nebo přestal být osobou samostatně výdělečně činnou, je povinen oznámit příslušné zdravotní pojišťovně tuto skutečnost nejpozději do osmi dnů ode dne, kdy se stal nebo přestal být osobou samostatně výdělečně činnou"; and Act No. 582/1991 Coll., § 48 odst. 4 — "Povinnosti uvedené v odstavcích 1 až 3 je osoba samostatně výdělečně činná povinna splnit nejpozději do 15 dnů ode dne, v němž nastala skutečnost, která zakládá takovou povinnost".
Work to the shorter one — 8 days. Both can also be filed at the trade office itself: the same § 10 odst. 3 adds that notifying "příslušnému živnostenskému úřadu" discharges the duty. The procedure is in Živnostenské oprávnění: how to get it in one visit.
Social insurance is not one number
The minimum pension-insurance advance is not a single amount for everyone. It depends on whether the trade is your main (hlavní) or secondary (vedlejší) activity, and on whether you are starting out for the first time.
| Situation | Minimum monthly pension-insurance advance from 1 July 2026 |
|---|---|
| Main activity (hlavní činnost) | 5 005 Kč |
| Secondary activity (vedlejší činnost), e.g. alongside a job | 1 574 Kč |
| Main activity of an OSVČ who was not self-employed in the previous 20 years | 3 575 Kč |
Source: ČSSZ — Zálohy na pojistné na důchodové pojištění — “Minimální měsíční vyměřovací základ pro zálohu od července 2026 u OSVČ vykonávající hlavní SVČ činí 17 139 Kč, minimální záloha činí 5 005 Kč.”
The cut is NOT retroactive — and you have to ask for the money back
Zákon č. 90/2026 Sb. cut the minimum assessment base from 40 % to 35 % of the average wage, but only with effect from 1 July 2026. For January to June 2026 the advances stay under the old wording, at a minimum of 5 720 Kč a month.
The difference over those six months (roughly 4 290 Kč) is refunded by the regional social security administration only on a written request, and under Čl. II of zákon č. 90/2026 Sb. only if you file it by 31 December 2026. Nothing comes back automatically. Anyone who assumes it “evens out in the annual statement” simply loses it.
Health insurance
The minimum health-insurance advance is 3 306 Kč a month (13.5 % of half the average wage).
Source for the amount: Finanční správa — Informace k institutu paušální daně pro rok 2025 a 2026, the 2026 monthly flat-advance table, row I. pásmo, column “Pojistné na zdravotní pojištění”.
It does not bind everyone, though. Under § 3a odst. 3 of zákon č. 592/1992 Sb. the minimum assessment base does not apply to someone who is also an employee paying contributions from at least the employee minimum, nor to people for whom the state pays. They pay on their actual base, which can be far lower. For a driver running a živnost alongside a job, that is a material difference.
Source for the exception: zákon č. 592/1992 Sb., § 3a.
The first year, and every year after
The first year. There is no income from a previous period yet, so the advance is calculated on the minimum base. It is the lowest point you will ever see, and it is very easy to mistake for normal.
From the second year. Once the annual reports are filed, the advances are recalculated on your actual income for the previous year. For a driver who has worked a full year the increase is usually noticeable — and it lands exactly when you have got used to that first, minimum payment.
This is not tax
Insurance advances are not part of income tax and do not replace it. Treating them as “tax already paid” is the most expensive mistake of the first year.
How to stay ahead of it
Build the recalculation into your plan early: as soon as you know your annual income, you know roughly what the next advance will be. Second, do not mix this money with your working capital — fuel and advances come out of the same pocket, but the advances have a date and the fuel does not.
How the rest of an OSVČ’s payments work is on Trade licence in Czechia.
