Childbirth - when a child is born in the Czech Republic, it is issued with a birth certificate. The birth certificate is issued by the "matriční úřad" (registry office) in the place where the child is born. Newborn babies are automatically covered by the same health insurance as their mother (who must present the birth certificate to the health insurance provider within eight days). You may change the health insurance provider for your child at any time. Families with low incomes are entitled to a one-off contribution to the costs related to the birth of their first or second child. This benefit is called "porodné". It is only available to those who have permanent residence in the Czech Republic and currently live here and to be entitled to it, the family's income during the preceding three months must not have exceeded 2.7x the 'living minimum'. The benefit is a fixed contribution of 13 000 Kč for the first child and 10 000 Kč for the second. Applications for this benefit must be made at the Labour office in the place of permanent residence.
Marriage and divorce - are governed legally by Act no. 94/1963 Coll. Anyone who is single and over the age of 18 can enter into marriage, which is a voluntary, equal union between a man and a woman. Registered partnership also exists for same-sex couples. Under 18s may only get married with a court approval. The wedding ceremony, which can be civil or in church, is a public ceremony and must have at least two witnesses. If one or both individuals to be married do not speak Czech, there must be an interpreter present at the wedding ceremony. A court may grant a divorce if requested by one of the spouses.
Death - in this unfortunate event a doctor (general practitioner or ambulance/first aider) who will write a "ohledací list". If the death occurs in a hospital or clinic, this document is issued by the doctor on duty. After this, a funeral must be arranged and the indivudal's last will attended to. Funeral services are called "pohřební služba" in Czech. The local registry office will issue a death certificate. The deceased's closest family is, in certain situations, entitled to a financial contribution towards the costs of the funeral, this benefit is known as "pohřebné". A widow/widower and her/his children may also receive benefits from the social security system, known as "vdovský/vdovecký důchod" and "sirotčí důchod".
The registration number or "Rodné číslo" - is a ten-digit number that uniquely identifies each individual in the Czech Republic, and is part of your personal data. Similar identification numbers are used in many other countries, and help to identify you for the purposes of social security, pensions, and health insurance. The first six digits of the Czech registration number refer to the individual's date of birth and gender. The last four digits of the number are a unique identifier. These numbers are issued in accordance with Act no. 133/2000 Coll. and the Ministry of the Interior keeps the register of all these numbers. Foreigners who have permission to reside in the Czech Republic for more than 90 days are issued with a "rodné číslo" by the Ministry of the Interior in their place of residence.
Voting in elections - citizens of EU member states are entitled to vote in the Czech Republic in elections for local councils (and local referenda) and in European parliamentary elections, as long as they are of the right age, resident in the Czech Republic, and ask to be added to the register of voters at their local authority, "obecní úřad". Further information about elections can be found here.