Death and Taxes in a Police state

Check-In Forms

When you travel to Czechia (or pretty much any other European country) you will encounter the requirement to fill out check-in forms upon accommodation. Either in hotel reception, they'll ask you for a travel documents and other personal information, or it could be an Airbnb/Booking/VRBO/... host that sits down with you or sends you a link to write this information down. It is a bit of nuisance! Why don't they just let me in? Is it even legal to get so much personal information from me? What could they do with it?

Turns out, these people are just following the law. The law about foreigners, to be exact.

Police state

Czechia, like many other countries, mandates that accommodations collect and keep a register of their guests. The hosts also report this information to the Czech foreign police. Am I being tracked?!, you might ask. Yes and no. Unlike in totalitarian regimes, the police force is not so large that every foreigner that enters the country has an officer or two allocated to them. But technically speaking, the data about your stay is being recorded and in case of a police investigation will be used to track down suspects.

Death and Taxes

The second main reason to collect the data is local fees. You can think of it as accounting. And, as a proof of the fees that the hosts pay, they also need to show their guest book. In this book they also have to write personal information about every guest. Excessive? Yes, we think so, but since the law demands it, everybody has to follow. And vice-versa, if you get away with not filling out the forms, chances are the taxes are not properly collected.

Embracing the Process

Filling out check-in forms might feel like busywork, but there’s a method to the madness. It keeps the law happy, helps the police keep an eye on things (without making your life miserable), and makes sure the hosts can collect the right fees. So next time you’re scribbling down your details, remember: you’re not just jumping through hoops—you’re helping the whole system run smoothly. Think of it as your small contribution to making travel in Czechia a bit less chaotic for everyone and helping to improve the local services.