Do you manage guest and stay records directly in Superhostem?
Superhostem helps prepare data from reservations and the guestbook. For the guest register itself, check the current legal requirements: it must be available in paper form for an inspection.
What is a guest register and who must keep one?
A guest register is a record of accommodated foreign nationals under the Czech Act on the Residence of Foreign Nationals. For this purpose, an accommodation provider includes, among others, anyone who provides accommodation for payment. If you accommodate foreign nationals, check whether the accommodation-provider duties apply to your situation.
It is not merely an internal reservation list. During an inspection, it serves as evidence of foreign nationals who are currently accommodated and must be clear, legible and arranged chronologically.
What information does a guest register contain?
For each accommodated foreign national, record the information required on the registration form, together with the start and end of accommodation. In practice, this includes:
- first name and surname,
- day, month and year of birth,
- nationality,
- travel-document number,
- arrival and departure dates.
Guest register vs. local-fee register
These terms are often confused, but they do not mean the same thing. A guest register concerns records of foreign nationals and duties towards the Foreign Police. A local-fee register is generally used to record guests for the municipal stay fee; its scope and retention may be governed by the rules of the particular municipality.
You may work with the same reservation data in one system, but do not automatically combine the legal duties or retention periods. Set a separate control process for each register.
Paper or electronic guest register?
An electronic system is useful for collecting and checking information. For an inspection, however, the law requires the guest register to be presented in paper form. If you store the data digitally, also maintain a current, clear printout in chronological order.
How long must you retain a guest register?
Keep the guest register for 6 years from the last entry. Set up regular archiving and limit access to people who actually need the information. Because the register contains personal data, store it securely and restrict access.
How to maintain it in practice
Start dealing with the registration right from the first reservations
Do not wait for an inspection or a foreign-national report. Most problems arise when the register is completed only after several stays.
Unify where you're getting your data from
The cleanest thing is to have one clear procedure for how guest data is collected and where it is stored. This will reduce errors and manual tracing.
Check the data for completeness
A reservation is not enough. Before arrival, check that you have all data required for the guest register and any foreign-national report.
Connect records with normal operations
A guest register should not be an isolated side table. It makes sense when it connects to reservations, communication with guests and other administration.
The most common mistakes
- confusing a guest register with the register for the municipal stay fee
- completing information retrospectively from emails and messages
- missing travel-document information or incorrect stay dates
- relying solely on a digital record without a paper version ready for inspection
This article provides practical information. Before setting up your process, check the current wording of Act No. 326/1999 Coll. and the requirements of the Czech Police.