A DIGITAL NOMAD is a third-country national who is works remotely as an employee or owner of a company, which is not registered in the Republic of Croatia. The special Digital Nomad Visa, issued for up to a year, is not available to remote IT workers who are employed by or provide services for Croatian-registered employers.

(Note: EU citizens do not need this visa. You can see the requirements for EU and Swiss nationals here)

The Visa is granted for a maximum of a year, but may be issued for less than that time. It cannot be extended after the year has elapsed. However, after six months, the digital nomad can apply for a new Digital Nomad Visa.

You can find all you need to know about the Digital Nomad Visa and its benefits on the dedicated page ‘Croatia, Your New Office, on the Croatian National Tourist Board website.

Close family members of a digital nomad who has been granted temporary stay in the Republic of Croatia may join him or her in the Republic of Croatia (see temporary stay for the purpose of family reunification).

APPLYING FOR TEMPORARY RESIDENCE

The application is submitted to the competent authority depending on whether a third-country national is or isn’t required to hold a visa to enter the Republic of Croatia (see Information on the visa system).

IF YOU ARE REQUIRED TO HOLD A VISA TO ENTER THE REPUBLIC OF CROATIA:
you can submit your application abroad at the embassy or consulate of the Republic of Croatia (see list of diplomatic missions/consular posts).

We advise you to contact the competent embassy or consulate in advance for more information on potential restrictions in the work of diplomatic missions/consular posts due to the epidemiological measures in place as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

IF YOU ARE NOT REQUIRED TO HOLD A VISA TO ENTER THE REPUBLIC OF CROATIA:
you can submit your application at the embassy or consulate of the Republic of Croatia or at the competent police administration/police station according to your temporary residence address (see the list of police administrations/police stations or you can contact the competent police administration/police station for further information on submitting your application in compliance with the epidemiological measures in force due to the COVID-19 epidemic). 

APPLICATION AND DOCUMENTATION

Copies of documents should be submitted in the Croatian or English language.

1. Fill in Form 1a and enclose the following:

2. copy of a valid travel document (period of validity of a travel document must be three months longer than the period of validity of intended stay)

3. proof of health insurance (travel or private health insurance must cover the territory of the Republic of Croatia)

4. proof of purpose (contract of employment or other document proving that the person performs work through communication technology for a foreign employer or his own company which is not registered in the Republic of Croatia), that can be:

• statement from the employer or third-country national (as proof that the person performs work through communication technology), and          
• contract of employment or service contract with a foreign employer, or
• copy of the registration of his own company and proof that he performs the said tasks through his own company          

5. proof of means of subsistence during his stay in the Republic of Croatia,
You can submit a bank statement or proof of regular income. Pursuant to the Regulation on the manner of calculating and the amount of means of subsistence for third-country nationals in the Republic of Croatia (Official Gazette no. 14/21), which entered into force on 13 February 2021, third-country nationals who are regulating their temporary stay as digital nomads are required to have the amount corresponding to at least 2.5 average monthly net salaries paid for the previous year, in accordance with the official data published by the Croatian Bureau of Statistics. This amount is increased by 10% of the average monthly net salary for each additional family member or life partner or informal life partner. Currently, the amount required on a monthly basis is a minimum of HRK 16,142.50. More precisely, if you intend to stay in the Republic of Croatia for 12 months, you need to prove that you have a minimum of HRK 193,710.00 available.

6. proof that he/she has not been convicted of criminal offences from his/her home country or a country in which he/she resided for more than one year immediately before arriving in the Republic of Croatia (see Information on the legalization of documents). 

7. provide address in the Republic of Croatia
When submitting your application and filling in your form, you will be required to provide your address of stay or of intended stay in the Republic of Croatia. This is important for determining the police administration/police station which is locally competent for processing your application. If this is the first time you are applying and you do not have an address in the Republic of Croatia, you can provide a temporary address as the address of your intended stay (hostel/hotel if you have a reservation/confirmed reservation of accommodation).

AFTER YOU RECEIVE NOTIFICATION GRANTING TEMPORARY RESIDENCE

IF YOU ARE REQUIRED TO HOLD A VISA TO ENTER THE REPUBLIC OF CROATIA:

Once you are informed that your temporary stay was granted, you have to contact the embassy or consulate once again to obtain a visa to enter the Republic of Croatia or a biometric residence permit (please inquire beforehand about this possibility at the embassy/consulate). You can also submit your visa application online. All other information about visas is available on the website of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs.

IF YOU ARE NOT REQUIRED TO HOLD A VISA TO ENTER THE REPUBLIC OF CROATIA: 

The above conditions do not apply. You can enter the Republic of Croatia in line with the provisions of the Aliens Act.

NOTE: Third-country nationals must register their temporary residence address at a local police administration/police station within 30 days of being granted temporary stay or obtaining the visa, otherwise their temporary stay will be revoked.

UPON ARRIVAL IN THE REPUBLIC OF CROATIA – REGISTERING TEMPORARY RESIDENCE ADDRESS AND ISSUANCE OF A BIOMETRIC RESIDENCE PERMIT 

REGISTERING A TEMPORARY RESIDENCE ADDRESS
Third-country nationals are obliged to register their temporary residence address within 3 days from their entry in the Republic of Croatia at the competent police administration/police station according to the location of their stay.
You can do this by filling in Form 8a and enclosing a lease contract, a statement from the landlord, or a title deed.

ISSUANCE OF A BIOMETRIC RESIDENCE PERMIT
Whether or not they are required to have a visa to enter Croatia, third-country nationals must obtain a residence permit – biometric card (for which they must provide photos and biometric data) in person at a police administration office/police station (see more information)

COSTS 

If the application is submitted at a diplomatic mission/consular post – the costs are paid when applying

• HRK 420.00 for granting temporary stay, and
• HRK 460.00 for the visa (if you submit your visa application through the VFS visa centre, you will be charged an additional fee for the service) or
• HRK 310.00 for the biometric residence card (check with the diplomatic mission/consular post about the possibility of obtaining the card). 

If the application is submitted at a police administration office/police station – the costs are paid after the stay is granted

• HRK 350.00 for granting temporary stay, and
• HRK 70.00 for administrative fees for the issuance of the biometric residence permit and HRK 240.00 for the biometric residence card. 

IF THE APPLICATION IS SUBMITTED AT A POLICE ADMINISTRATION OFFICE/POLICE STATION – PAYMENT OF FEES ONLINE

ADMINISTRATIVE FEE FOR TEMPORARY RESIDENCE

Payment of administrative fees for the issuance of temporary residence through Internet banking (350 HRK) will be made in favour of the State Budget.
IBAN of the State Budget is: HR1210010051863000160, model: HR64, reference number: 5002-713-OIB (enter OIB of the person for whom the administrative fee is being paid, if OIB has been assigned).

For persons who do not have an assigned OIB, the reference number is: 5002-713- plus the number of a valid travel document. (IMPORTANT: a maximum of 10 numbers should be entered;, if the number code initially contains zeros (0), they are not entered. DO NOT enter letter marks, slashes, periods, commas, etc.).

For example, if the number of the travel document / identity card of a foreign citizen is AZ004586, then the reference number is: 5002-713-4586 (i.e. without the letters and zeros).

FEES FOR BIOMETRIC RESIDENCE PERMIT

a) The payment of a fee in the amount of 240 HRK for biometric residence permits via Internet banking will be made in favor of the State Budget. The IBAN of the State Budget is: HR1210010051863000160, model: HR65, reference number: 7005-485-OIB (enter the OIB of the person applying.)
For those who have not been assigned an OIB, the reference number is: 7005-485-RKP- and your case number.

b) The payment of an administrative fee in the amount of 70 HRK for the biometric residence permit through Internet banking will be made in favour of the State Budget. The IBAN of the State Budget is:  HR1210010051863000160, (as above), but the model:(payment reference number) is HR64, item reference number: 5002-713-OIB.
For those who do not have an OIB, the reference number is: 5002-713-plus the number of a valid travel document. (IMPORTANT: a maximum of 10 numbers, and if the number code initially contains zeros (0), they are not entered. DO NOT enter letter marks, slashes, periods, commas, etc.).