Fixed-rate period

What happens when the fixed-rate period ends?

The bank sends you an offer for a new rate for the next period. If you do nothing, it usually takes effect automatically.

This is exactly where money gets lost. The first offer tends to be worse than what the bank gives new customers, and worse than what competitors offer. It's worth comparing it rather than just signing it.

What length should you choose?

In the Czech Republic, 1, 3, 5, 7 and 10 years are commonly offered. A shorter fixed-rate period tends to be cheaper, but exposes you to a new rate sooner.

The usual choice has reversed over a few years. In the fourth quarter of 2025, the three-year fixed-rate period accounted for nearly 85% of the volume of newly agreed mortgages, whereas between 2017 and 2021 periods of five to seven years were more common. This comes from Czech National Bank data.

Within our range, the cheapest options today are the three-year from 4.99%, the five-year from 5.09% and the seven-year from 5.40%.

There is no universally correct length. It depends on whether you expect rates to fall and how much certainty you need over your repayment.

When should you start dealing with the end of the fixed-rate period?

Six months in advance. Moving a mortgage to another bank takes weeks, and you need time for the valuation, approval and the Land Registry.

The good news is that the deadline doesn't end on the day the fixed-rate period ends. Once the bank tells you the new rate, you have three months to repay the mortgage without a cost penalty. That time can be used to compare offers, even if the notice arrives late.

Can I repay during the fixed-rate period?

You can. In a number of cases for free, otherwise with a cost penalty.

It is free in four situations set out in law, which banks usually summarise in their materials as "in cases laid down by law":

• Up to 25% of the principal once a year. The condition is making the payment in the month before the anniversary of signing the contract. It is calculated from the original loan amount, not the remaining balance.
• Within three months of being notified of the new rate for the next fixed-rate period.
• When selling the property, provided at least two years have passed since the contract was signed.
• On the death, long-term illness or disability of the borrower or their partner.

In other cases, the bank may only charge what early repayment genuinely cost it: administration of no more than CZK 1,000 and the interest-rate difference against the average rate published by the Czech National Bank.

On top of that, the result may not exceed 0.25% of the amount repaid for each year or part-year remaining until the end of the fixed-rate period, nor 1% of that amount, nor the interest you would have paid until the end of the fixed-rate period. Whichever of these caps is lowest applies, not their sum. This has been the case for contracts since 1 September 2024.

In practice this means more than it looks. When the Czech National Bank's average rate is at or above your own rate, the interest-rate difference comes out at zero and the bank is left with only the administration charge. On CZK 2.5 million, the difference between one per cent and a flat CZK 1,000 fee is about CZK 24,000. So it's worth having the calculation broken down rather than accepting the first figure.

The practical rule that follows: the closer you are to the end of the fixed-rate period, the cheaper repayment becomes. A year before the end, the cap sits at a quarter of a per cent; four years before the end, it's already based on the one-per-cent limit.

Refixing or refinancing?

Refixing is agreeing a new rate with your existing bank. Nothing is rewritten, only the figure changes.

Refinancing means moving to a different bank. There is more paperwork involved, but it's the only way to find out whether your bank is giving you market terms. More on the Mortgage refinancing page.