Shipping household goods into the Republic of Croatia—customs procedure

Find out what are the terms of shipping personal property items from European Union member states and third countries and obtain exemption from payment of customs duties and value-added tax

1. Moving to the Republic of Croatia from an EU Member State

Movement of goods between other EU Member States and the Republic of Croatia is considered shipping within the EU, which means no customs procedures and customs controls apply; that is, no customs formalities apply to the personal property items you are transferring into the Republic of Croatia when you are moving from one of the EU Member States.
It should be noted that, when you are transferring a motor vehicle from another Member State, you should file a tax declaration for calculation and payment of the motor vehicles tax (special tax on motor vehicles) even though the vehicle is being declared for release into free circulation.
 

2. Moving to the Republic of Croatia from a non-EU Member State

Personal property of natural persons moving to Croatia from third countries (non-EU Member States) are exempt from payment of customs duties and value-added tax (VAT) if they meet the following conditions:

• The beneficiary of the exemption has spent a minimum of 12 months in a row in a third country before moving;
• They are importing personal property which they owned and used in their household in a third country for a minimum of 6 months before the day of the move;
• Their personal property in intended to be used for the same purpose in their new habitual place of temporary stay or place of permanent residence.

 
          2.1 Things you need to do before moving to the Republic of Croatia 

You need to obtain a Certificate of temporary residence abroad issued by the competent diplomatic mission or consular office of the Republic of Croatia abroad (hereinafter referred to as: DM/CO) or other appropriate document which proves the period of your uninterrupted temporary residence in a third country (e.g. a document of a third-country employment bureau, employer’s certificate of the period of employment in a third country, registration and deregistration of temporary residence in a third country, employment contract in a third country, etc.).

 
          2.2 Types of household goods

Household goods include: furniture, household appliances, various electrical appliances, works of art, hobby tools, smaller agricultural tools and devices (various saws, walking tractors, lawnmowers), personal vehicles (cars), trailers, mobile homes, vessels, pets, riding animals, and also reasonable quantities of consumables bought as stock (e.g. as one-month stock of food)). The goods have to be intended for use in a household of for leisure and may not be used for performance of professional business activities.
To prove that they own and use the household goods, the beneficiary of the exemption has to provide invoices or other authentic documents. To prove that they use their vehicle, they need to provide its registration certificate.

          2.3 Import of household goods before physically moving

Natural persons who intend to move to the Republic of Croatia can also be exempt from paying customs duties and value-added tax (VAT), but they have to move within 6 months from the day of release of the household goods into free circulation (customs procedure). In that case, a statement of intent to relocate within six months should be provided. To settle a potential customs debt, a guarantee issued by an authorised forwarding agent or a cash deposit (in the amount of the customs duty and VAT which would otherwise be calculated and collected) have to be provided.
For further information about the customs procedure and the application of exemption when moving to the RC, please visit Returnees and immigrants page.

3. Transfer and import of motor vehicles

Whether you are moving to the Republic of Croatia from an EU Member State (transfer) or a non-EU Member State (import), you are obliged to pay a special tax on motor vehicles and the end-of-life vehicle management fee if your vehicle is subject to that fee.  
For further information about the submission of a tax declaration for the calculation and payment of special tax on motor vehicles and the documentation you need to submit together with the tax declaration, approximate calculation of the special tax on motor vehicles in the estimate calculator and the information whether you are subject to the payment of the end-of-life vehicle management fee, please visit the link for the payment procedure for the special tax on motor vehicles. If you require any additional clarifications, please contact the competent customs office directly.
We recommend that you contact the State Office for Metrology by sending an e-mail to pisarnica@dzm.hr before you move and request information about the vehicle approval procedure, also called vehicle homologation, which needs to be performed before the first registration of any vehicle in the Republic of Croatia.