Editorial standards

Why we publish these standards

We write about taxes, trade licences, insurance and the obligations of the self-employed (OSVČ) — topics where a mistake in a text can cost a reader real money, or lead them to file late or pick the wrong type of licence. This page describes exactly how content is created here, who stands behind it, and how we verify it. We want you to be able to form your own judgement about how much you can trust our texts — and to know who to contact when something doesn't add up.

Related page: About the project describes who we are and why the website was created; here we focus on the editorial process itself.

How content is created — step by step

1. Topic selection. We choose topics based on what people actually deal with when starting and running a trade licence business — from the first notification to switching to the flat-rate tax. We draw on frequent reader questions, changes in legislation, and gaps or outdated parts in our existing content.
2. Gathering sources. Before the first sentence is written, we collect the underlying materials: the wording of the law, official methodologies and forms, and the rates and deadlines valid for the given year. For figures (fees, advance payments, limits) we always look up the current version, never an archived one.
3. Writing the text. Some texts are written by the editorial team from start to finish. For larger or more structured pieces (e.g. overview tables, the trade licence catalogue, explanations of individual sections of the law) we also use an AI tool as an assistant, which prepares a first draft based on the sources and materials we provide — more on this below in the AI section.
4. Checking against sources. Every claim involving a figure, a deadline or a reference to a specific section of law is compared against the source document (the law itself, an official authority's methodology, or an institution's official website). A text that doesn't match the official source is not published until the discrepancy is resolved.
5. Editorial review. Before publication, a text is reviewed for clarity and structure — whether it answers the question the reader came to the page with, whether it doesn't contradict other pages on the site, and whether it clearly separates settled facts from matters that are still being debated.
6. Publication and dates. For every published text we track the publication date and the date of the last update. You'll find the last-updated date directly next to the heading of the article or trade licence page.

How we verify facts

For YMYL topics (Your Money or Your Life — topics that directly affect a reader's money, rights or obligations), a stricter rule applies: no figure and no deadline is written from memory or estimated. Specifically:

• Rates, advance payments, limits and fees are checked against the source valid for the current year — typically the Financial Administration, the Czech Social Security Administration (ČSSZ), health insurance companies, or the Trade Licensing Act itself.
• References to specific sections of law are checked against the current, consolidated wording of the Act, not against an older text that may have since been amended.
• If a figure for a given year is still going through the legislative process (e.g. an amendment being debated in the Chamber of Deputies), we say so explicitly and recommend the reader verify the current state with the relevant authority before deciding.
• Key articles containing figures are reviewed at least once a year, typically around the turn of the year, when most rates and limits change at once. When the law changes sooner, we update the article sooner.

Which sources we rely on

Primarily official and institutional sources:

• Act No. 455/1991 Coll., on trade licensing business (the Trade Licensing Act), and related legislation (in particular the Income Tax Act and the Act on Social Security Contributions).
• The Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic — methodologies for trade licence business.
• The Financial Administration of the Czech Republic — tax rates, filing deadlines, flat-rate tax guidance.
• The Czech Social Security Administration (ČSSZ) — self-employed social security contributions, advances, overviews.
• Health insurance companies — self-employed health insurance advances.
• The Ministry of the Interior of the Czech Republic — for topics concerning foreigners' residence and business activity.
• The Trade Licensing Register (RŽP) — the data source behind the trade office catalogue.

For substantial figures, deadlines and legal citations we link, where possible, directly in the text to the specific source; some articles also list their sources in a dedicated section beneath the main text.

AI and transparency

Some content on the website is created with the help of an AI language model as a tool for preparing a first draft — typically for larger or more structured texts, where the AI works exclusively with the materials and sources the editorial team prepares in advance. This is not content that the AI invents or fills in from its own "knowledge" without verification.

Texts created this way are always reviewed and edited by a human editor before publication — facts are checked against the sources described above, and the text is edited for clarity and consistency with the rest of the site. This applies both to individual articles and to larger, more structured parts of the site — such as the trade licence catalogue or the trade office directory — which are built from verified underlying data using templates and AI assistance, and go through the same editorial review before publication.

We never use AI to invent figures, legal citations or sources that don't exist — and any text under such suspicion is stopped and rewritten before publication.

Corrections and feedback

Even so, we may miss something, or the law may change in the meantime. If you come across an error, an outdated figure or something unclear, write to us at redakce@zivnostenskylist.cz or via the contact form. Please state which page it concerns and what specifically is wrong — ideally with a link to a current source. We check the suggestion against the law and official sources and amend the text as needed; for more significant changes we also update the visible last-updated date.

What we don't do

• We don't publish paid content without a clear label indicating it is an advertisement or a partnership.
• We don't copy text from other websites — content is written from primary sources (the law, authorities), not rewritten from other people's articles.
• We don't present assumptions as facts. Where we are uncertain, or an interpretation is still settling, we say so openly.
• We don't replace individual legal, tax or accounting advice — for a specific situation we always recommend consulting a professional or contacting the relevant authority directly.

Authorship and responsibility

The zivnostenskylist.cz editorial team, operated by the ROOTIO z.s. association, is responsible for the content of the website. Where a specific author is credited on an article, you'll find them in a byline at the end of the text along with a short bio. You can read more about who is behind the project on the About the project page.