Croatia

Tax residency

Under the General Tax Act (Opći porezni zakon), an individual is treated as a Croatian tax resident where they have established a domicile (prebivalište) or habitual residence (uobičajeno boravište) in Croatia under the statutory conditions.

Thus, Croatia applies a statutory 183-day framework to both domicile and habitual residence, but these are distinct concepts. For domicile, actual residence in the dwelling is not required. For habitual residence, the relevant criterion is the individual’s actual stay in the country.

• Domicile (prebivalište): domicile is established where an individual has a dwelling in Croatia in their ownership or possession for an uninterrupted period of at least 183 days in one or two calendar years. Actual physical residence in the dwelling is not required. Where an individual has a dwelling in Croatia and abroad, specific statutory rules determine the relevant domicile, including consideration of where the family lives. For a single person, the relevant place may arise where they predominantly reside or from which they predominantly depart for work or other activities. Note, If, in such a case, the other state does not consider the individual to be its tax resident, the individual is deemed to have their domicile in Croatia.
• Habitual residence (uobičajeno boravište): habitual residence is established where an individual has an actual stay in Croatia of at least 183 days in one or two calendar years. Short-term interruptions of up to one year are not treated as breaking the relevant period for purposes of determining habitual residence.

Day counting

• Domicile (prebivalište): Croatian law does not prescribe a detailed methodology for determining the first and last day of the 183-day period. For tracking purposes, a conservative approach is to count both the first day on which the dwelling becomes available to the individual and the last day on which it remains available.
• Habitual residence (uobičajeno boravište): Croatian law does not prescribe a separate rule stating that the day of entry and the day of exit must each be counted as full days. For tracking purposes, a conservative approach is to count both the entry day and the exit day as days of presence.

Tax consequences

The Croatian tax year is a calendar year. Croatian tax residents are generally taxed on worldwide income, while non-residents are generally taxed on Croatian-source income.

Migration / EU residence

EU/EEA and Swiss citizens may stay in Croatia for up to three months without registering temporary residence; those intending to stay for more than three months must register temporary residence under the applicable Croatian rules. Third-country nationals may enter Croatia for short stays of up to 90 days in any 180-day period, subject to applicable visa requirements; stays exceeding 90 days generally require an applicable long-stay visa or residence authorisation. Holding a residence permit or registering temporary residence does not, by itself, determine Croatian tax residency.

Orientation references

• Croatian General Tax Act (Opći porezni zakon), Article 43 (domicile / habitual residence)
• Croatian Ministry of the Interior / government guidance on EEA, Swiss and third-country residence