Your guide to moving to Croatia. Visas, residency and citizenship.
A booming destination with a rapidly growing number of visitors and immigrants. Being the sunniest country in Europe makes it an attractive tourist destination, but the ancient cities full of character and beautiful coastlines with clear blue waters give the country all the ingredients to grow into a popular place to live.
Not just the weather is sunny, Croatians are known for their cheerful character and because most young people speak English, communication isn’t as challenging as in other places. Protected nature parks, national parks and nature reserves make up about 11% of the country and the oldest city in Europe, which is over 8000 years old, can be found in Croatia.
Business in Croatia is formal but will become more informal as relationships develop. Croatians appreciate directness, but are diplomatic at the same time. Small talk at the beginning of a meeting is custom and skipping the chat is considered rude.
Croatia joined the European Union in 2013 and is currently in its transitional period. Immigrants from most EEA countries can live and work in Croatia without obtaining a work permit now, with the exception of Austria, Malta, the Netherlands, Slovenia and the United Kingdom. From June 2018 people from these countries won’t need a work permit anymore.
Expats from other countries do need a work permit and residence card and an employment offer is needed to apply. The residency card generally allows you to stay in the country for two years and once you have one, you can apply for a work permit. It takes about six weeks to process the residency application and getting a work permit can be arranged within 30 days.
To find out if you need a tourist visa to visit Croatia, please use the VisaHQ tool below.
Youth Mobility Visa:
- If you are an Canadian or New Zealand citizen between the ages of 18-30, you may be eligible under the Working and Holiday Visa programme.
Family Visas:
- If your spouse is a citizen or permanent resident of Croatia, you are eligible for temporary residency for 5 years. If your spouse is a citizen, you can apply for permanent residency and subsequently citizenship after being resident in Croatia for a period of 5 years. Please note that your status of spouse needs to be legally recognised in this country.
Here are some of the ways to get citizenship in Croatia:
- If you were born in Croatia, you are most likely a Croat citizen.
- If one or both of your parents were citizens of Croatia when you were born, you are probably also a citizen of Croatia. Your parents need/ed to register you as a Croatian citizen before you turned the age of 18.
- If your spouse is a citizen or permanent resident of Croatia, you are eligible for temporary residency for 5 years. If your spouse is a citizen, you can apply for permanent residency and subsequently citizenship after being resident in Croatia for a period of 5 years. Please note that your status of spouse needs to be legally recognised in this country.