Public services and online portals

Key authorities

• MUP (Ministarstvo unutarnjih poslova) and its police stations: declaration of stay and address (boravište), residence card, driving licence. Vehicle registration falls under the MUP and the Croatian Vehicle Centre (CVH), but is completed at a technical inspection station (see below). See HR-SEJOUR-TOUS-001.
• Porezna uprava (tax administration): OIB, tax card to give to your employer, income tax, property tax, registration of self-employed people. Portal: ePorezna. See HR-NIF-TOUS-001 and HR-IMPOTS-TOUS-001.
• HZZO (Hrvatski zavod za zdravstveno osiguranje, health insurance fund): compulsory and supplementary insurance, choice of family doctor. See HR-SANTE-TOUS-001.
• HZMO (Croatian pension insurance institute): registration and deregistration for the pension.
• HZZ (Hrvatski zavod za zapošljavanje, employment service): job offers (burzarada.hzz.hr portal) and employment aid.
• FINA (Financijska agencija): electronic credentials (ePASS, mToken, certificates), services for businesses.
• City or municipality (grad, općina): the rate of your income tax, property tax, municipal charge (komunalna naknada), nurseries and school enrolment.

Online services

• e-Građani (gov.hr): access to State registers and documents online, with a personal message box (Korisnički pretinac).
• Accepted credentials (NIAS system), by security level:
  • high: Croatian electronic identity card (eOI) and its mobile application (reserved for Croatian citizens: the Croatian version of the page says "isključivo za državljane RH", the English version "Croatian residents"), FINA certificates (FinaCertRDC), AKD's Certilia and mobile.ID;
  • substantial: tokens from several Croatian banks (Erste, Zagrebačka banka, PBZ, OTP, Raiffeisenbank, Addiko, HPB…), AKD's sms.ID, the HZZO smart card, mToken;
  • low: FINA's ePASS, Croatian Post's ePošta.
• If you have none of these credentials, you can request a free mToken (substantial level) or ePASS (low level) at a FINA office.
• Who can use the portal: an EU citizen, a third-country national or a digital nomad who has temporary or permanent residence in Croatia uses e-Građani like a Croatian citizen. Third-country nationals residing in Croatia access low-level and substantial-level services (gov.hr).
• Setting up a company online (START): the site reserves the service for adult Croatian citizens who have a residence or regular stay in Croatia and up-to-date data in the Ministry of the Interior's registers. It requires a credential of at least substantial level for an obrt, and of high level with a qualified signature certificate for a d.o.o. or a j.d.o.o.. If you are not a Croatian citizen, go through the counter (see HR-ENTREPRISE-TOUS-001).
• Digital identities from other EU countries (eIDAS): an EU citizen can log in to e-Građani with the digital identity of their own country, recognised in the European cross-border identification system: on the login page, choose your country from the list. If your country is not listed, cross-border identification is not activated for it (gov.hr). If in doubt: pomoc@e-gradjani.gov.hr.

Steps

Recommended order for an EU citizen:

1. OIB: at the Porezna uprava before your arrival if you need it early (lease, purchase, account), otherwise it is assigned to you when you declare your stay (see HR-NIF-TOUS-001).
2. Declaration of stay and address to the police: for a stay of more than 3 months, at the latest 8 days after the end of the first 3 months (see HR-SEJOUR-TOUS-001).
3. Bank account: the OIB is required.
4. Tax card (porezna kartica): apply for it at the Porezna uprava before you start working (online via ePorezna or mPorezna, or at the office of your place of residence) and have it passed to your employer. The Porezna uprava can send it to the employer itself electronically, with your agreement; otherwise, it can issue it on paper free of charge.
5. HZZO health insurance: depending on your situation (employee, pensioner with S1, voluntary insured person; see HR-SANTE-TOUS-001), then choice of family doctor.
6. e-Građani credential: token from your Croatian bank, or free mToken/ePASS at FINA.
7. Car: if you settle permanently with your car, EURES advises registering it and paying the related taxes in Croatia (deadlines and exemptions are to be checked with the national authorities). Your EU licence does not in principle need to be exchanged (see HR-PERMIS-TOUS-001). For a car already registered in another EU country, you take it to a technical inspection station, with the foreign registration documents (parts I and II) and proof of its good technical condition; you leave with the Croatian registration certificate and the plates (gov.hr, e-Citizens platform). Without proof that the special vehicle tax (PPMV) has been calculated or paid, customs says registration is impossible: the declaration is made to customs within 15 days of the vehicle's entry (see HR-PERMIS-TOUS-001).

Common pitfalls

• Believing the Croatian electronic identity card is for you. The eOI is reserved for Croatian citizens; a foreigner uses a bank token, a FINA certificate or an mToken, or their national digital identity if they are an EU citizen.
• Missing the 8-day deadline after the first 3 months to declare your stay to the police.
• Forgetting the tax card: without it, your employer cannot apply your personal allowance.
• Looking for a single counter for everything. For the basic procedures, each authority has its role: police for residence, tax office for the OIB, HZZO for health.

What changes by country of origin

• EU and EEA citizens: the steps above.
• Swiss citizens: same authorities; residence follows rules close to those for EEA citizens (see HR-SEJOUR-TOUS-001).
• British citizens (Scots included): third-country nationals since Brexit: specific residence permit first, then the same authorities.