Tourism Law in Europe

- a business plan. The existence of professional qualifications is a special precondition for the operation of a travel agency. This prerequisite is proved through an appointed professional representative. During its existence, a travel agency is required to have security in place covering potential insolvency and to pay annual contributions to the Guarantee Fund. Security covering potential insolvency may consist either in insolvency insurance or a bank guarantee covering insolvency. Travel agencies currently prefer the option of taking out insurance 4 . A special regulation has been enacted for foreign travel agencies offering package tours in the Czech Republic. The Tourism Act also understands as a travel agency a person who has the registered office or place of business in another Member State of the EU or EEA at the time of execution of the relevant package tour contract or brokering linked travel arrangements, provided that the given person’s activities are directed towards the Czech Republic in some way, including online sales. Such a travel agency – if it does not wish to establish a branch in the Czech Republic – may operate a business in the Czech Republic on the basis of an authorisation to operate a travel agency issued by the country of establishment provided that it meets the conditions laid down by the country of establishment in case of insolvency. These foreign travel agencies need not obtain a licence (concession) for the operation of a travel agency in the Czech Republic. b) Travel services intermediary The concept of a “travel services intermediary” (in Czech: cestovní agentura, in English also travel agent) , the conditions for its establishment and its basic duties are laid own by the Tourism Act. Further regulations crucial for the operation of travel services intermediaries include the Trade Act and Government regulations specifying the contents of individual trades. The name of the relevant field of unqualified trade is: Operation of a 4 On the manner in which the Czech Republic implemented the duties laid down by the Directive with regard to security, cf. Dvořáková, K. Transposition of the Package Travel Directive in the Czech Republic in Collective Commentary about the New Package Travel Directive. ESHTE, 2020, p. 743 Available: http://intranet.eshte.pt/collectivecommentary/743/ [ retrieved on 2020-02-15].