Guide to taking driving school in Croatia (autoškola)

UPDATED: 2.2.2023.

To get vozačka dozvola (driver’s license) in Croatia, you must finish driving school. The exception is if you hold a valid foreign driver’s license and intend to exchange it for a Croatian in certain cases. This process is slightly different, and you can read about it here.

If you do not hold a current foreign driver’s license, have held a foreign driver’s license in Croatia for more than 1 year, or have never held a driver’s license, then you must take autoškola (driving school).

Croatian driving school consists of 3 parts: traffic regulations and rules, first aid, and driving. Some driving schools will allow you to pay for an English translator if you are not fluent in Croatian.

In this post, we cover:

• Traffic regulations and safety
• First aid
• Vehicle management
• Driving school costs

The facts are these…

How to take Croatian driving school – autoškola

Traffic regulations and safety rules in Croatian driving schools

Prometni propisi i sigurnosna pravila (traffic regulations and safety rules) is the first part of the lessons you will attend in a driving school. To attend this class, you need:

• Manual for training and passing a driver’s exam
• Manual with exam questions and answers for tests

Both manuals are provided within the school program. They are included in the driver’s school cost. It is common to receive a digital version of the manuals through PowerPoint presentations, scripts, or similar.

The class is obligatory and lasts 30 hours, whereas one hour lasts 45 minutes. The lecturer is usually a professional who works at the driving school. After attending the class, you must pass a written exam.

First aid in Croatian driving schools

The next class you must take is called prva pomoć (first aid). The lecturer for this class is a certified doctor. It is usually held in groups consisting of 15 candidates. The class lasts 9 hours and is organized in 90-minute blocks.

The first aid test is divided into:

• Written theoretical exam
• Practical exam where you present how to give first aid to an injured person

Vehicle management in Croatian driving schools

The final class is practical, and it is called upravljanje vozilom (vehicle management). Vehicle management consists of at least 35 hours, but it is recommended to take additional hours if needed. One driving hour lasts for 45 minutes.

You may pick a desired driving instructor who works in a school and will teach you how to drive a car. Otherwise, a school will assign you a random instructor. If you’ve heard that a certain instructor is excellent at giving driving lectures, you may pick them. If they are too busy with driving lectures, you’ll have to pick another one, or the school will assign one for you.

As of 2021, vehicle management tests are video and audio recorded. Video recordings track what a candidate sees through the windshield. Audio recordings record the conversation between a candidate, instructor, and driving inspector. This enables candidates to see recordings and complain if they fail the exam. The police also have access to recordings.

Costs of Croatian driving schools

Croatian driving schools are not cheap. There are many fees for the classes plus the hourly cost of practical training.

The standard driving school costs include:

• Medical certificate – from 46,45 euros to 58,06 euros
• Traffic regulations and safety rules – approximately 107,71 euros
  • 2,35 euros per hour + PDV
  • 19,58 euros for the exam
• First aid – approximately 75,49 euros
  • 59,73 euros for lectures
  • 15,76 euros for the exam
• Vehicle management – approximately 727,96 euros
  • 15,48 euros per hour + PDV
  • 31,35 euros for the exam
  • 19,36 euros for the exam hour

[Read: PDV (Value Added Tax) in Croatia]

Here are the additional costs:

• Additional hours – 19,36 euros per hour
• Failing the exam – 89,43 euros minimum
  • 19,36 euros per hour
  • 31,35 euros for the exam

The above-mentioned vehicle management prices are valid for the B category, which usually implies cars.

Here are vehicle management prices for other categories:

• A1 – 24,06 euros per hour
• A2 – 25,39 euros per hour
• A – 25,09 euros per hour
• B+E – 37,16 euros per hour
• C1 – 33,18 euros per hour
• C – 37,03 euros per hour
• C+E – 45,86 euros per hour
• D – 64,37 euros per hour

[Read: Vehicle and driver’s license categories in Croatia]

If you are not fluent in Croatian, you will need to hire a court translator to translate the lectures and exams for you. That will be an additional cost.

If you want to learn the Croatian language, view our guide on the biggest Croatian language schools here. If you want to learn the language online, view our guide on online Croatian language courses here.

After you take driving school, you can apply for a driver’s license. We have a separate guide on how to qualify and get a driver’s license in Croatia which is available here.

View our other driving posts

• Electric vehicle charging stations in Croatia
• Guide on driving in Croatia
• How to buy a car in Croatia
• How to exchange a foreign driver’s license for a Croatian
• How to get a driver’s license in Croatia
• How to import your car and belongings to Croatia
• How to register a vehicle and get an annual inspection in Croatia
• Vehicle and driver’s license categories in Croatia

Source:
Vozački ispiti by HAK
Odluka o visini naknade za polaganje vozačkog ispita by Narodne Novine