Minimum wage salaries in Croatia: Guide for 2023

UPDATED: 15.3.2023.

Like many countries, Croatia has a minimum wage, which is defined as a monthly salary amount. While the net salary amount is defined at the national level, the total amount with benefits can vary slightly depending on where the company is registered. This is because there are local taxes that are figured into the salary, which are different from city to city.

The minimum wage salary is broken down in several ways. First, there is bruto and neto. Bruto is the total amount of salary, including all taxes, health insurance premiums, pension, and your take-home pay. Neto is the net salary that you’ll receive on your bank account each month.

The bruto salary is the amount that will vary by jurisdiction. We’ve included an approximate average below. You can calculate the bruto for your jurisdiction by location using this calculator.

Additionally, there are two levels of minimum wage. One is for workers and the other is for directors, members of management, liquidators, and association managers.

In this article, we cover:

• Average monthly wage in Croatia
  • Bruto salary
  • Neto salary
• Minimum wages in Croatia
  • Workers
  • Directors, members of management, liquidators, and association managers
  • Students
• Wage requirements for self-employed third-country nationals
• Wage requirements for foreign part-time employees
• Wage requirements for OPG (family farm) employees

The facts are these…

Minimum wage salaries in Croatia

Average monthly wage in Croatia

The average monthly wage (average monthly net and gross earnings of persons in paid employment) in Croatia is defined by the official state administration body responsible for statistics. In Croatia, this body is called Državni zavod za statistiku (Croatian Bureau of Statistics).

This amount is used to determine a variety of thresholds related to salaries for foreigners as well as benefits related to healthcare.

Average monthly bruto salary

• 2022: 10.400,00 kuna (~1.381,14 euros)
• 2021: 9.599,00 kuna (~1,274.77 euros)
• 2020: 9.216,00 kuna (~1,223.90 euros)

Average monthly neto salary

• 2022: 7.653 kuna (~1.016,33 euros)
• 2021: 7.129,00 kuna (~946.74 euros)
• 2020: 6.763,00 kuna (~898.14 euros)

Minimum wages in Croatia

Minimum wage for workers

• 2023
  • Bruto salary: 700,00 euros (5.274,15 kuna)
  • Neto salary: 560,00 euros (4.219,32 kuna)
•  2022
  • Bruto salary: 4.687,50 kuna (~622.51 euros)
  • Neto salary: ~3.750,00 kuna (~498,01 euros)
• 2021
  • Bruto salary: 4.250,00 kuna (~564.41 euros)
  • Neto salary: ~3.400,00 kuna (~451.53 euros)
• 2020
  • Bruto salary: 4.062,51 kuna (~539,51 euros)
  • Neto salary: ~3.250,01 kuna (~431,61 euros)
• 2019
  • Bruto salary: 3.750,00 kuna (~498,01 euros)
  • Neto salary: ~3.000,00 kuna (~398,41 euros)

Minimum wage for directors, members of management, liquidators, and association managers

• 2023
  • Bruto salary: 888,67 euros (6.695,65 kuna)
  • Neto salary: ~668,44 euros (5.036,39 kuna)
•  2022
  • Bruto salary: 6.199.05 kuna (~820,74 euros)
  • Neto salary: ~4.959,24 kuna (~658,60 euros)
• 2021
  • Bruto salary: 5.967,65 kuna (~792,52 euros)
  • Neto salary: ~4.554,89 kuna (~604,90 euros)
• 2020
  • Bruto salary: 5.682,30 kuna (~754,62 euros)
  • Neto salary: ~4.334,00 kuna (~575,56 euros)
• 2019
  • Bruto salary: 5.491,20 kuna (~729,24 euros)
  • Neto salary: ~4.287,33 kuna (~569,37 euros)

Minimum fee for student work

• 2023: 4,38 euros (33 kuna) per hour
• 2022: 29,30 kuna per hour (~3,89 euros)

Wage requirements for work permits for self-employed third-country nationals

When a third-country citizen wishes to get a work and residence permit based on a Croatian company they own, there are specific requirements they must meet. One of those requirements relates to salary, which is defined by the Law on Foreigners.

Those requirements are:

• Their bruto salary is equal to at least 1,5 of the average bruto paid salary in Croatia in the previous year
• When more than one third-country national performs key tasks for the same employer, a work permit will be issued if their bruto salary is equal to at least 1,5 of the average bruto paid salary in Croatia in the previous year

Third-country nationals who are self-employed in companies (d.o.o., j.d.o.o.) or trade businesses (obrt) where they are founders or they own at least 51% of the ownership can get a work permit if:

• There are at least 3 Croatian nationals indefinitely/permanently (neodređeno) and full-time employed in the company. Their bruto salary must be equal to at least an average bruto paid salary in Croatia in the previous year.
• For d.o.o. and j.d.o.o.: Their monthly bruto salary is equal to at least 1,5 of the average monthly bruto paid salary in Croatia according to the latest official published data of the Croatian Bureau of Statistics.
• For obrt: They must prove that the amount earned by income from self-employment is equal to at least 1,5 of the average monthly neto paid salary in Croatia according to the latest official published data of the Croatian Bureau of Statistics.

[Read: Differences between obrt, d.o.o. and j.d.o.o. companies]

View our guide on how to get residency by opening a Croatian business here.

Wage requirements for foreign part-time employees

If a Croatian company employs foreign nationals only part-time, there is no minimum on the number of hours they must work. However, there is a minimum monthly salary that they must receive.

Their salary must be equal to at least 50% of the average monthly neto salary in the previous year. This amount changes every year according to the amount of average monthly salaries.

Wage requirements for employees of OPG (family farm)

Members of the OPG who are employed in the OPG must be paid at least minimum wage in Croatia or the amount determined by the work contract. Members who are not employed have to pay for contributions (doprinosi).

Article 23 of the OPG law says:

(2) Radom na OPG-u članovi OPG-a i radnici mogu ostvarivati prava i obveze iz radnog odnosa ako ta prava ne ostvaruju po drugoj osnovi.

Which translates to:

(2) By working on a family farm, family members and workers can exercise their rights and obligations from employment if they do not exercise these rights on another basis.

[Read: How to open and close OPG (family farm) in Croatia]

Conclusion

If you are working or looking for a job in Croatia, make sure you know what the minimum salary is before signing a contract. If you are planning to open a business, knowing the minimum salaries will help prepare you for the costs of doing business. As you can see from above, the costs added to the net salary of an individual are significant.

This is predominantly because the health insurance premium is scaled to salary instead of being a flat rate. If you are unemployed and paying for health insurance out of your own pocket, the monthly premium is a flat rate.

View our other business posts

• 5 things to know before starting a company in Croatia
• Another 5 things to know before starting a company in Croatia
• Differences between obrt, d.o.o. and j.d.o.o. companies
• Guide on how to apply for a work permit
• How to open and close a limited liability company
• How to open and close a simple limited liability company
• How to open and close an obrt