Property templates and checklistsCroatia

Buying

• TemplatePurchase offer template
• TemplatePreliminary sale agreement template
• ChecklistBuyer's due diligence checklist

How buying works

1. 1

   Check that you may buy

   EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Swiss nationals buy like Croatians. Agricultural land, and protected nature areas for EU nationals, follow special laws.

2. 2

   Other foreigners: get consent

   Most other foreigners need the consent of the Minister of Justice. It depends on reciprocity.

3. 3

   Preliminary contract (predugovor)

   An estate agent usually brokers the price, often after a written offer. Many then sign a written predugovor. The buyer pays earnest money (kapara), usually 10%.

4. 4

   Sign the sale contract

   The sale contract (kupoprodajni ugovor) must be in writing. A notary does not have to draft it. The government guide advises a lawyer to draft it.

5. 5

   Registration consent (tabularna isprava)

   The seller signs it (clausula intabulandi), often as a separate deed. A notary (javni bilježnik) certifies the signature or solemnises the contract.

6. 6

   Pay 3% transfer tax

   The notary sends the contract to the Tax Administration. It charges the buyer 3% real estate transfer tax by decision.

7. 7

   Register ownership

   The buyer becomes owner only when the land register (zemljišna knjiga) at the municipal court records the transfer.

Renting

• TemplateResidential lease agreement template
• TemplateMove-in inventory report template
• TemplateLease termination letter template

How renting works

Law and form

Residential Lease Act (Zakon o najmu stanova), Obligations Act for gaps. Written lease, one tenant or both spouses.

Rent and deposit

Private rents are freely agreed. The Act has no deposit rule, so the parties agree the deposit.

Fixed-term lease

Renews for the same term unless a party gives written notice at least 30 days before it ends.

Tenant's notice, open-ended lease

At least 3 months.

Landlord's notice

Only on grounds in the Act, mostly breach after a written warning. The tenant then has 3 months to vacate.

Landlord's duties

Send the lease to the local authority and the Tax Administration. Give the tenant a copy of the energy certificate.

Tax on empty homes

Since 1 January 2025: an annual municipal tax on a home neither lived in permanently nor let at least 10 months a year.

Pending reform (draft, July 2026)

Ministry of Physical Planning draft: every new lease made or solemnised before a notary. Not adopted.