Croatia Digital Nomad Visa Requirements

On January 1st of 2021, Croatia introduced a digital nomad visa for all location independent professionals willing to spend up to 12 months in this beautiful country. The Adriatic destination wants to attract foreigners to come to work and contribute to the country’s economy. Are you interested in spending some time in the Balkan paradise as a digital nomad? If so, we got you covered with everything you need to know.

The main requirements of a Croatian digital nomad visa are:

• Qualify as a digital nomad
• Have sufficient financial means
• Have valid health insurance 
• Have a clear criminal background
• Have an address in Croatia

The Croatian digital nomad visa is a temporary residence that is granted for up to one year. Digital nomads can’t extend this visa but they can apply for it several times. By getting a Croatian temporary residence, you will be able to stay in the country, perhaps indefinitely, and travel in the EU without visa restrictions! Sounds like a good deal, right? Read more about the Croatian digital nomad visa and its requirements in this article. 

Croatia Digital Nomad Visa: Main Requirements 

1. Are you a digital nomad?

Firstly, in order to get a digital nomad visa you must qualify as a digital nomad. The Croatian government sees a digital nomad as a third-country national who performs their job through communication technology and receives foreign income. You must be employed outside of Croatia and be able to do your job online in order to qualify. You cannot work for Croatian companies or generate income from the local market. 

2. Do you have enough money?

The second main requirement of the Croatian digital nomad visa is to have adequate funds to support yourself.  Candidates will need to show proof of income, as well as bank account savings. Currently, the amount required on a monthly basis is a minimum of 16,907.50 Croatian kuna (HRK) which is about $2,700 USD. If you intend to stay for 12 months, you need to prove that you have at least HRK 202,890.00 (32,000 USD) in the bank.

3. Do you have health insurance?

The next thing you need to line up is health insurance coverage that is valid in Croatia. It also must be valid throughout your whole stay in the country, meaning one must have an insurance plan for a year in order to get a digital nomad visa for Croatia.

4. Do you have a clean criminal background?

Another requirement Croatia wants you to fulfill is to have no criminal history. Your home country’s government must provide this document for you, but you will need to request it first.

5. Do you have an address in Croatia?

Lastly, the Croatian government wants to see that you have a place to stay within the country. You can of course try to line up an accommodation before you arrive in the country. You can also simply book a hotel or Airbnb for the short term and start an apartment search after your arrival. 

These are all the main requirements Croatia demands at the time of the writing of this article. In our opinion, these are relatively easy to meet. Most digital nomads should be capable of receiving a visa for Croatia. 

What documents are needed for the Croatian digital nomad visa?

Here is a list of documents needed to complete the Croatia digital nomad visa application:

• Proof you are a digital nomad: employment contract, contracts with clients, company ownership confirmation or confirmation of self-employment
• Proof of funds: a bank account statement or proof of regular inflow of funds
• Copy of your passport
• Proof of current travel health insurance coverage 
• A background check supplied by the government of your home country
• A Croatian address: confirmation of your short term rental

*All documents must be in English with copies translated in Croatian.

Croatia for Digital Nomads

Croatia, with its blue waters and medieval sights, is often on the bucket list of many digital nomads and remote workers. Up until now, visitors were only able to stay for three months. 

But times have changed. According to eVistor, about 4,000 foreigners registered in Croatia as digital nomads. Most of them are from Bosnia, Germany, Slovenia and the USA. Following behind are citizens of Serbia and Italy. 

So can Croatia be the perfect destination for digital nomads? Yes, indeed! It has all the elements location independent professionals are looking for:

• Affordable cost of living
• Seaside lifestyle
• Great food and wine
• Cultural heritage
• A welcoming society
• Locals with high proficiency in the English language 
• Good infrastructure
• Beneficial location 

Croatia’s digital nomad visa program is showing strong potential to become yet another remote hub, despite it still being in its first year. The Croatian tourist board is also aware of the potential of digital nomads in the coming years. They are planning various activities to position the country as an attractive destination for remote workers. 

They emphasize the country’s excellent transportation infrastructure, geographical position, geopolitical advantage of being in the EU and English proficiency.  Moreover, living standards in Croatia are in accordance with European standards, which include affordable health care for all. 

The country is especially focused on attracting digital nomads from the USA, Canada, Great Britain and Ireland. Their competition is quite low since Croatia is still among the very few countries that have introduced digital nomad visas. 

Croatian Digital Nomad Visa: What you need to know

The Croatian government is not the first in Europe to implement a digital nomad visa. Actually, they are second after Estonia. But for Mediterranean seaside lovers, Croatia is a welcome alternative to the Nordic Baltic region. 

As we previously stated, A Croatian digital nomad visa is a residence permit that allows you to stay as a short-term resident for a maximum of 12 months. However, unlike most residence permits, one cannot obtain an extension for it. One can however submit another application for a digital nomad visa in 6 months after the first one expires.

The benefit of a Croatian digital nomad visa is that temporary residence can also be granted to immediate family members. 

How to apply for the Croatian digital nomad visa?

Digital nomads can submit an application for a Croatian nomad visa online. It will then be forwarded to the police administration that oversees the area of your intended residence.

Rules for the digital nomad application

Depending on which of the three categories below you fall under, these are the rules for applying.  

1. If you need a visa to enter Croatia:

You can submit the application to a Croatian embassy or consulate abroad. You can find a list of them on the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs website. Typically, this is done in your home country.

2. If you don’t need a visa to enter Croatia:

You can submit it either at the Croatian embassy, a consulate abroad or at the Croatian police station for the area of your place of residence. Click here for a list of those stations.

3. Whether you need a visa or not to enter Croatia, an application for the digital nomad visa can be made online. 

Digital nomads who don’t need a visa to travel to Croatia will get the benefit of staying for up to 15 months if they apply within Croatia. 90 days can be counted as a tourist, plus 12 months on the digital nomad residence permit.

After your visa has been approved

Once your temporary residence is approved, you need to proceed depending on whether a visa is required or not. 

If you need a visa to enter Croatia:

• An applicant should contact the Croatian embassy or consulate abroad again to obtain a visa to enter Croatia or a biometric residence permit. 

You can also fill in the visa application form online. All other information on visas (application, required documentation, etc.) can be found on the website of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs.

If you don’t need a visa to enter Croatia:

• You can freely enter the country and pass through customs with just a passport.

After your arrival in Croatia

Don’t forget to register your residence within 30 days of being granted a temporary residence permit or visa, and within three days of arriving in Croatia, otherwise your temporary residence can be revoked. It must be done at the police station (MUP) governs over your place of residence.

Apply for a biometric residence permit

Everyone must obtain a biometric residence card after approval of residence once you have arrived and successfully registered yourself in the country.  This again must be done at the local police station (MUP). An applicant must attach photos and provide biometric data.

Costs of Croatian digital nomad visa

Finally, you probably want to know how much all this costs? When initially applying at the Croatian embassy abroad, you will pay:

• Temporary stay granting – HRK 420 (€55 – $65)
• Visa – HRK 460 (€61- $72) This can be waived if you are able to apply for the biometric residence card at an embassy or consulate.
• Biometric residence card – HRK 310 (€41 – $48)

At the police station in Croatia:

• Temporary stay granting – HRK 350 (€46 – $54)
• Biometric residence card – HRK 310 (€41 – $48)

Want to become a digital nomad and move to Croatia? 

If you want to become a digital nomad and work remotely from Croatia, but don’t have a suitable job, apply for one with us! Here at Support Adventure (an MSP staffing company), we hire talented people from around the world to allow them to work from anywhere. We mostly have open positions for helpdesk IT support and occasionally admin assistance. So if you have experience or even interest in IT,  don’t wait. Apply for a remote job with us on our IT support jobs page!