Croatian transition from kuna to euro: Guide for business owners in Croatia

PUBLISHED: 11/09/2022

Croatia is introducing the euro as the official currency on January 1, 2023. Hrvatska kuna (Croatian kuna) goes into the history books and will no longer be used. Croatia will be the 20th member of the euro area.

Croatian companies must adjust to the new currency by implementing the necessary system changes and using the euro in business reports and books. This transformation may take a while but should pay off in the long run – using the euro is expected to make the Croatian economy more resistant and secure in times of crisis.

In this article, we bring essential information about the introduction of the euro in Croatia for business owners, companies, and employees. To soak up crucial information for Croatian residents, hop over to our previous post which is available here.

In this article, we cover:

• What business owners should know
• Adjustment of business software
• Adjustment of business reports
• How can businesses procure euro
• What Croatian employees should know
• How companies can prepare

The facts are these…

What Croatian business owners must know about introducing the euro as official currency in Croatia

What Croatian business owners must know about introducing the euro

The transition from kuna to euro will bring some major changes for Croatian entrepreneurs, so they must properly prepare on time.

The introduction of the euro will affect all Croatian businesses including:

• Trade businesses (obrt) – View guide here
• Flat-rate trade businesses (paušalni obrt) – View guide here
• Limited liability companies (d.o.o.) – View guide here
• Simple limited liability companies (j.d.o.o.) – View guide here
• Family farms (OPG) – View guide here
• Licensed tourist agencies – View guide here
• Accomodation renters – View guide here
• Non-profit organizations (udruga) – View guide here

Croatian business owners must prepare to:

• Dual reporting of prices in euro and kuna
• Currency exchange
• Financial reporting and taxation in accordance with the new provisions

Businesses (especially the retail sector) must be supplied with euros on time, since they must start with euro cash transactions from January 1, 2023. In addition to banks, the retail sector plays a crucial role in collecting and withdrawing kuna during the dual circulation period.

During the dual circulation, business entities that do cash transactions (traders and service providers) may suffer significant pressure – consumers will be able to pay in euro and kuna, while businesses will be obliged to return euros whenever possible. They are allowed to accept up to 50 kuna coins in one transaction and the appropriate number of kuna banknotes at the time of collection.

If businesses cannot return the rest of the money to the buyer in euros, they can return it in kuna or a combination of euros and kuna. This especially applies to shops and service providers in rural areas with limited access to banks.

The recalculation of prices and other monetary values from kuna to euro must be done according to the fixed conversion rate.

1 euro = 7,53450 kuna

Croatian companies can join the initiative called Etički kodeks (Ethical codex). This codex ensures that the prices are correctly calculated. Companies that correctly calculate the prices will get a recognizable logo. They can point it out at their selling points and during promotional activities so that residents know the calculation is correct.

Dual reporting of prices is mandatory for the majority of businesses, but some are exempt from it. You can learn more about the phase of dual reporting in our first article about the transition from kuna to euro which is available here.

Note: If you use separate business accounts for kuna and euro within the same bank, you can close one or more accounts free of charge. You can also transfer funds to only one account within the same bank. This free offer is available within 60 days from January 1, 2023. Using a single account will save you some money since you will not pay administration fees for multiple accounts.

Adjustment of business software to the euro

The transition to the euro will mostly affect the accounting and information systems that support business entities’ financial and accounting processes. The software must be updated and adjusted to the use of the euro.

This change primarily affects:

• Software for issuing invoices
• Cash registers
• Vending machines
• Payroll software
• Inventory control software
• Financial data processing software

Business owners bear all the costs of the system adjustments to euros. All systems must be tested and fixed on time.

Adjustment of business reports and books

In addition to the software adaptation, entrepreneurs must also adapt their business books and reports to the euro. Here are the most essential rules.

First of all, entrepreneurs must express all prices and monetary values in their financial business plans for 2023 in euros.

All business reports for 2022 and earlier years can be shown in kuna. However, business reports for 2023 must be shown in euros. Transitional records and reports can be also shown in kuna. For example, a VAT form for December 2022 submitted in January 2023 can be shown in kuna.

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

Tax forms and other forms related to the obligations towards the state for previous years submitted in 2023 must be shown in kuna. The declaration of the profit and income tax for 2022 submitted in 2023 must be shown in kuna. However, profit tax taxpayers whose taxation period starts in 2022 and ends in 2023 must show the profit tax application in euros.

The data in business reports for 2023 that contain comparative data from 2022 must be converted from kuna to euro according to the fixed conversion rate.

The data in the books of outgoing and incoming accounts for 2022’s accounting period must be shown in kuna. For 2023, it must be shown in euros. Businesses who calculate VAT and keep records of books of outgoing and incoming invoices after collection must correctly recalculate the data in these books. It is essential to properly define the base, VAT, and total invoice amount.

All accounting data in the business books intended for sale until December 31, 2022 must be shown in kuna and from 2023 in euro. This applies to fixed assets, small inventory, and inventory of materials, goods, products, and real estate.

The XML data scheme that must be sent for fiscalization will not change. This means that the data for 2022 must be submitted in kuna and the data for 2023 in euros. Issued invoices will be fiscalized in euros during the period of double circulation.

[Read: What is fiscalization and why does it matter to business owners]

The conversion of the closing condition in kuna for the initial accounting balance will be done on January 1, 2023 according to the fixed conversion rate. After January 1, 2023, other currencies will be converted according to the middle exchange rate of Hrvatska Narodna Banka – HNB (Croatian National Bank).

How can businesses procure euro cash in Croatia

Croatian banks must perform all conversion procedures from kuna to euro without financial compensation for processing and payment of euros.

[Read: Croatia’s biggest banks: Comparison of fees and services]

Companies can provide themselves with euros in:

• Pre-supply procedure
• Simplified pre-supply procedure
• Regular pre-supply procedure

Banks can supply companies with euros even before January 1, 2023 within the indirect pre-supply procedure. In this case, a company must conclude a contract with a bank. The indirect pre-supply with euro bills can start on September 1, 2022. For euro coins, it starts on October 1, 2022.

Banks can perform a simplified indirect pre-supply for micro businesses five days before introducing the euro. In this case, a business can get cash of up to 10.000 €. This applies to companies with less than 10 employees and annual neto income lower than 2 million euros.

Banks, FINA, and/or Hrvatska pošta will start to provide companies with euro coins within the regular procedure a month before January 1, 2023.

[Read: Hrvatska pošta – Croatian postal office]

Companies will have to pledge the appropriate collateral for received euros and the funds will be withdrawn from the account on January 1, 2023. However, this does not apply to the supply of initial packages of coins where payment is made immediately.

The crucial thing to know is that the money from the pre-supply must be separated from other euros, currencies, or other assets. This is necessary to avoid their entry into circulation before the euro introduction.

What employees should know about introducing euro

Employers must show at least the total amount of the salary on employees’ obračunska platna lista (accounting payrolls) both in euro and kuna during the dual reporting period.

The salary and contributions for December 2022 must be paid in euros in January 2023. This also applies to work contracts, author’s contracts, and related obligations of business entities to pay other taxable incomes.

[Read: Types of employment contracts in Croatia]

Residents employed in the retail sector may deal with an increased level of stress during the transition period. To reduce the chaos, companies can provide their employees with appropriate tools for internal control of price conversion, return of the remaining money, and resolving consumer complaints.

There is also online training on the features of euro banknotes and coins organized by HNB. It is called Nacionalni program obuke (National training program). This training is recommended for retail workers that operate with cash, but it is as well available to the public.

The training primarily aims to:

• Cashiers in the retail sector
• Toll collection employees
• Casino cashiers
• Graduates of retail and related schools
• Other employees operating with large amounts of banknotes and coins.

This online training is available here.

How Croatian companies should prepare for the euro in short

Here is a high-level checklist of everything Croatian companies should do to prepare:

• Information system adjustments
• Accounting and financial adjustments
• Informing and training employees
• Supply with euros until January 1, 2023
• Recalculation according to the fixed conversion rate
• Dual reporting of prices and other monetary values
• Join the Ethical codex initiative
• Proper exchange of kuna in euros when paying in cash
• Paying salaries for December 2022 in euros

[Read: Croatian transition from kuna to euro: Guide for residents of Croatia]

View our other financial posts

• Croatia’s banks that offer mortgages and who they will consider for a loan
• Croatia’s biggest banks: fees and services
• Do I need to open a bank account in Croatia?
• Government grants and loans for entrepreneurs in Croatia
• How credit works in Croatia
• How to show proof of financial means
• How to pay bills in Croatia
• How to transfer money to Croatia from abroad
• What is fiscalization and why does it matter to business owners
• What to know about cryptocurrency in Croatia including trends, access, and taxes

Sources:
Croatian government
Euro.hr
HNB – Croatia is introducing euro
HNB – National training program
Law on the introduction of the euro as the official currency in the Republic of Croatia
The Ministry of the Economy and Sustainable Development
What you need to know about introducing euro