Unemployed persons

Voucher

The voucher represents a financial instrument for allocating public funds for adult education

  • Vouchers can be used by all unemployed and employed persons from the age of 15 and with minimum completion of basic education which ensure that the award of vouchers provides the necessary skills for career development, employment or job retention.
  • The user selects the education program and the education provider independently
  • The cost of the education programme in the amount of the approved voucher is paid directly to the selected education service provider

Ministry of Labour, pension system, family and Social Policy continuously works to improve the alignment of education with labour market needs
• One of the key mechanisms for the harmonisation of labour market supply and demand, i.e. the synergy of the labour market and the education system, is the Croatian qualifications Framework (CROQF), which draws up educational programmes based on occupational and qualification standards leading to the necessary skills with their outcomes. It is the occupational standard, the labour market test (employers and employees) that defines the key jobs and skills needed to perform a particular occupation.

Voucher system
  • The system enables the acquisition of micro and partial qualifications.
  • Skills training programmes are required in the labour market and can directly improve employability and productivity in the labour market.
  • All educational programmes financed through vouchers must be approved in accordance with the procedure of the CROQF.
  • The approved voucher may be activated within 4 months of the date of approval of the application.
  • The system is application-supported and is implemented with minimal administration.
  • The development of the voucher system has also been recognised by the European Commission and significant financial resources have been provided within the National recovery and Resilience Plan.

Duration of the programme

Education programmes to acquire the competences required to work up to and at secondary level of education may be implemented up to a 1/3 time longer than the time required to implement the programme determined on the basis of an hourly rate and up to a maximum of 10 months.
The exception shall be full qualification programmes involving only the beneficiaries of the work + programme and which may last for a maximum period of up to 24 months. Practical teaching for the beneficiaries of the work + programme can take place through an employment relationship with the employer. The employer may be authorised to use the employment aid during practical classes.
Education programmes to acquire the competences required to work at tertiary level of education may be implemented for up to 1/3 of time longer than the time required to implement the programme determined on the basis of an hourly rate and for up to 12 months.
Learning programmes of Croatian as a foreign language shall be conducted for a period of at least 70 hours, with a period of implementation not exceeding the 1/3 time required for the implementation of the programme determined on the basis of the hourly rate.

The user of the voucher cannot be:
  • person in the regular education system (pupil),
  • person in the system of higher education and science (student, including part-time students and postgraduate students),
  • person who is a beneficiary of a pension under the general legislation governing pension insurance, except for a beneficiary of a pension who is entitled to a disability pension due to professional incapacity for work or a beneficiary of a pension who is entitled to a disability pension due to partial loss of working capacity and a beneficiary of a survivor's pension to whom that pension is not paid,
  • a foreign worker from third countries working in the territory of the Republic of Croatia on the basis of a issued residence and work permit or a work registration certificate, except for the purpose of inclusion in the learning programme of Croatian as a foreign language, and
  • person who is an employee of the state or public service and participates in or has participated in the establishment or implementation of education through the voucher system.