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Rights of permanent and long-term residents in Croatia

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A street in Labin, Istria
A street in Labin, Istria

UPDATED: 3.10.2023.

In Croatia, third-country citizens can apply for and gain a long-term stay called dugotrajno boravište or permanent residence called stalni boravak after a certain time.

Third-country citizens qualify to apply for a long-term stay or permanent residence if they have temporary residence, asylum, or subsidiary protection for a continuous period of 5 years or 4 years if married to a Croatian citizen.

EU/EEA citizens also qualify to apply for a permanent stay in Croatia after 5 years of continuous stay in Croatia.

Permanent residents have additional rights and privileges that temporary residents do not have.

In this post, we cover:

The facts are these…

Rights of permanent and long-term residents in Croatia

Peace of mind on granting permanent residence in Croatia

Once you are granted permanent residence, you never have to apply for residence again. You will need to renew your permit every 5 or 10 years, depending on your citizenship, but you will never again have to submit to the application process.

This comes with tremendous peace of mind that is impossible when you have temporary residence, especially as a non-EU/EEA citizen. You are essentially secure to live in Croatia as long as you’d like.

Rights of third-country citizens with long-term or permanent stay in Croatia

Third-country citizens with a granted long-term stay in Croatia called dugotrajno boravište or permanent residence called stalni boravak have certain fundamental rights in Croatia.

[Read: How third-country citizens can apply for permanent residency in Croatia]

Article 159 of Zakon o strancima (Law on foreigners) says they have the right to:

  • Work (rad)
  • Self-employment (samozapošljavanje)
  • Professional development (stručno usavršavanje)
  • Education (obrazovanje)
  • Student scholarship but not state scholarships (studentske stipendije)
  • Social welfare (socijalna skrb)
  • Child allowance (doplatak za djecu)
  • Tax relief (porezne olakšice)
  • Access to the market of goods and services (pristup tržištu roba i usluga)
  • Freedom of association and membership, and membership in organizations that represent workers or employers, or organizations whose members perform special occupations, including fees provided by these organizations

These rights are realized according to the regulations of the Republic of Croatia that regulate certain areas.

When discussing rights and obligations defined by the laws regulating mandatory health insurance and maternity and parental benefits, third-country citizens with long-term stay and permanent residence have the same rights.

[Read: How to sign up for state health insurance in Croatia]

Now we will explain all the above-mentioned rights in more detail…

#1 Right to work

According to the Ustav Republike Hrvatske (Constitution of the Republic of Croatia), everyone has the right and freedom to work. Everyone can choose a vocation and employment and access every job and duty under equal conditions.

Ustav is a general legal act with the highest legal force in Croatia. It is available here.

Foreigners with permanent residence in Croatia can work under an author’s or service contract as freelancers, which is typically a privilege only afforded to Croatian and EU/EEA citizens. View all types of Croatian employment contracts here.

[Read: How to hire or work as a freelancer in Croatia]

Work in Croatia without a work permit

To work in Croatia, third-country citizens without a long-term or permanent residence must get a Croatian work permit.

Learn more about work permits:

However, they can work in Croatia WITHOUT a work permit or work registration certificate. Once they get a job in Croatia, their employer must employ them under the same rights as any Croatian or EU/EEA citizen.

[Read: How to find a job in Croatia]

#2 Right to self-employment

Third-country citizens with permanent residence can employ themself in Croatia by opening their businesses. This is possible if they meet the requirements for opening a specific type of business.

[Read: Types of business in Croatia]

There are 5 types of businesses in Croatia:

  • D.o.o. (limited liability company) – view a guide here
  • J.d.o.o. (simple limited liability company) – view a guide here
  • Obrt (trade business) – view a guide here
  • OPG (family farm) – view a guide here
  • Udruga (non-profit organization) – view a guide here

When opening a business, you can apply for a subsidy from a private company or government institution.

[Read: Government grants and loans for entrepreneurs in Croatia]

#3 Right to professional development

Professional development (vocational training and education) is any post-formal education and training to perform a regulated profession. It can include one or more programs supplemented by appropriate vocational training, traineeships, or professional practices.

#4 Right to education

Education is available to everyone under equal conditions, following their abilities. Compulsory education is free of charge for children between 6 and 15 years of age with residency (prebivalište or boravište) in Croatia, regardless of their citizenship. This also applies to students with disabilities up to the age of 21.

EU/EEA and third-country citizens who are permanent Croatian residents whose children go to a public kindergarten, only have to pay part of the costs, and the city or the municipality pays the rest. If they don’t have permanent residence, they must pay the total price the kindergarten charges.

[Read: How to enroll kids in kindergarten (vrtić) in Croatia]

High school education and higher (college) education are not mandatory.

Learn more about the education in Croatia here.

#5 Right to student scholarship

Student scholarships in Croatia are awarded by institutions from the governmental, non-governmental, and private sectors, including:

  • Higher education institutions
  • State and local government bodies
  • International organizations
  • Foundations
  • Non-governmental organizations
  • Private companies

[Read: How to open and close a non-profit organization (udruga) in Croatia]

Third-country citizens with permanent residency have the right to student scholarships (but not those awarded by the state). Specific scholarships are available only to Croatian and EU/EEA citizens with permanent residence in Croatia.

A database of scholarship applications available in Croatia is available here.

#6 Right to social welfare

According to the Zakon o socijalnoj skrbi (Social Welfare Act), everyone is obliged to take care of their life needs and those of the people they are obliged to support by law or another legal basis. This applies to Croatian citizens with residency (prebivalište) and foreign citizens with a permanent stay in Croatia.

Those who cannot be sustained through their work, rights arising from work or insurance, receipt of property, other sources, by people obliged to support them based on regulations governing family relations or in any other way, have the right to social welfare under the conditions prescribed by this act.

The Social Welfare Act is available here.

#7 Right to child allowance

Child allowance is a subsidy the Croatian state gives to parents or people authorized by law to support the maintenance and upbringing of their children.

Third-country citizens with permanent residence in Croatia have the right to receive a child allowance if they hold permanent residence in Croatia for at least 3 years.

[Read: Family services and child benefits in Croatia]

#8 Right to tax relief

In Croatia, third-country citizens with granted permanent residence can receive tax relief for their dependent family members, including:

  • Spouses – view a guide here
  • Life partners – view a guide here
  • Common-law partners
  • Informal life partners
  • Parents
  • Stepmothers and stepfathers supported by their adult stepchildren
  • Biological children until their first employment
  • Adopted children until their first employment – view a guide here
  • Foster children until their first employment
  • Adults for whom you’re a guardian

If the above-mentioned family member resides outside of Croatia, they must prove they have the right to tax relief by presenting documents issued by competent foreign authorities not older than 6 months.

[Read: All types of marital unions and partnerships in Croatia (along with their rights and privileges)]

Rights of EU/EEA citizens and their family members with permanent residence in Croatia

EU/EEA citizens and their family members who have been granted permanent residence in Croatia have the same rights as Croatian citizens. This is applicable regardless of whether their family member is a citizen of an EU/EEA member state or a third-country.

[Read: How EU/EEA citizens can apply for permanent residency in Croatia]

EU/EEA citizens and their family members are not required to apply for a Croatian work permit. If they want to work here, they can work without it. After they find a job, they can be employed under the same rights as Croatian citizens.

[Read: How to find a job in Croatia]

After the permanent stay in Croatia is granted, EU/EEA citizens and their families are obliged to apply for Croatian health insurance if they have not already done so.

[Read: How EU/EEA citizens and Croats can sign up for Croatian state health insurance]

Resident rights when buying real estate property in Croatia

Your Croatian residency status is important if you want to get a mortgage in Croatia. Croatian banks will rarely consider a mortgage to a foreigner with temporary residence. They want to be sure that you can pay them back.

However, the story is entirely different if you have permanent residence in Croatia. In this case, you qualify for a mortgage from some Croatian banks.

View our guide on Croatia’s biggest banks and a comparison of fees and services here.

[Read: Croatia’s banks that offer mortgages and who they will consider for a loan]

Before purchasing a real estate property, third-country citizens must receive permission to buy the property from the Croatian Ministry of Justice. The Ministry will check whether your country has a reciprocity agreement with Croatia or not.

[Read: How to buy residential real estate in Croatia]

Reciprocity agreements define under which terms third-country citizens can buy a property in Croatia. For some of them, the agreement demands granted permanent residence in Croatia.

This applies to citizens of:

  • Australia
  • Bosnia and Herzegovina – Brčko district
  • Saudi Arabia
  • United States of America, residents of the following states:
    • Arkansas
    • Hawaii
    • Kentucky
    • Minnesota
    • Mississippi
    • New Hampshire
    • Oklahoma
    • Vermont

[Read: How to get a mortgage loan in Croatia]

Pre-condition to applying for Croatian citizenship

Granted permanent residency in Croatia is a pre-condition to applying for Croatian citizenship in some scenarios, including:

  • You have resided in Croatia continuously for 8 years (citizenship based on naturalization)
  • Child has permanent residence in Croatia, and their parent is being granted Croatian citizenship based on naturalization (citizenship based on naturalization)
  • You are a spouse of a Croatian citizen with permanent residence in Croatia (citizenship based on a marriage to a Croatian citizen)

In addition to the mentioned scenarios, you must meet other mandatory requirements for applying for Croatian citizenship.

[Read: How to apply for Croatian citizenship]

[Read: How to apply for Croatian citizenship based on naturalization if you are an EU/EEA citizen]

Validity of Croatian long-term residence permit

Third-country citizens with long-term stay or permanent residence can get a residence permit for up to 5 years. The residence permit is called dozvola boravka in Croatian.

EU/EEA citizens with a granted permanent stay in Croatia can get a residence permit for up to 10 years.

[Read: Available visas and residence permits for Croatia]

Temporary and permanent address in Croatia

People granted a long-term or permanent stay in Croatia have a right to:

  • Temporary address called boravište
  • Permanent address called prebivalište

Boravište is an address where people temporarily reside in Croatia. It is a place where they often stay but without any intention to live there permanently. Boravište can be registered for up to a year. After this period expires, prolonging it for another year is possible.

Prebivalište is an address where people live full-time or most of the time while residing in Croatia.

People with long-term or permanent residence must register boravište, prebivalište (if they have one), or their changes within 15.

[Read: Prebivalište and boravište: two addresses that must be registered with the police]

Family reunification in Croatia

Close family members of third-country citizens with granted long-term or permanent residence can join them in Croatia based on family reunification. This scenario is called privremeni boravak u svrhu spajanja obitelji in Croatian. Family members can use this as a basis to apply for temporary residence.

Close family members of third-country citizens are:

  • Spouses
  • Common-law spouses
  • Minor children and adopted children of spouses and common-law spouses, life partners, or informal life partners
  • Parents or adopters of minor children of a Croatian citizen, a third-country citizen who has been granted a long-term stay or permanent residence, asylum, or subsidiary protection

[Read: How to adopt a child and adoption by foreigners]

If you are in a polygamous marriage, temporary residence based on family reunification in Croatia can be granted to only one spouse. According to the Kazneni zakon (Criminal act), polygamous marriages are prohibited in Croatia. If you or your chosen one are already married to someone, you can not get married again. Otherwise, you may be sentenced to up to one year in prison.

View our other residency posts

Sources:
Law on Foreigners
Law on citizens of member states of the European Economic Area and their family members
Permanent residence for citizens of a member state by Your Europe
Approval of Residence in Croatia
Third Country Citizens
Registration of residence – citizens of third countries by e-Građani
Constitution of the Republic of Croatia
Conditions for acquiring the right to child allowance by Mirovinsko
Part of the personal deduction for the maintenance of immediate family members and children by Porezna Uprava
Employment of foreigners from third countries according to the new Law on Foreigners by Informator
Payments to foreigners – non-residents through work contracts and royalties by Brojevi

Please note: Information provided by Expat in Croatia is only for the purposes of guidance. It does not constitute legal or financial advice in any form. Croatian laws and bureaucratic rules often change, and each personal case is individual, so different rules may apply. For legal advice, contact us to consult with a licensed Croatian lawyer. For financial advice, contact us to consult with a licensed Croatian tax advisor or accountant.

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