Information for boaters
Arrival and stay of foreign yachts and boats designed for sport and pleasure in the Republic of Croatia
1. Travel documents
1.1. Arrival by sea/land
The master of the vessel entering the Republic of Croatia by sea shall pay the stipulated fees for the safety of navigation and protection of the sea against pollution, pay the tourist tax, and report the stay of foreign nationals on board (if they are actually staying on board) in accordance with special regulations. It is important to make a distinction between arrivals from the countries of the Schengen system and from other countries.
Persons on board a vessel designed for sports and pleasure arriving from or departing to a port situated in a Schengen Member State shall not be subject to border checks and may enter a port which is not a border crossing point.
A vessel coming from a third country must only enter a port with an open border crossing point for international transport of passengers in maritime traffic. In exceptional circumstances, a vessel designed for sports and pleasure coming from a third country may enter a port which is not a border crossing point. The above exception is limited to exceptional circumstances, including force majeure, for example, extreme weather conditions, medical emergencies, engine malfunction or other technical issues, and involvement in SAR operations.
If it is a case of re-registration, it can be carried out and paid via the link enautika.pomorstvo.hr. The fee depends on the length of the vessel and the power of the engine, and is paid for a calendar year regardless of the period of navigation in the internal sea waters and the territorial sea of the Republic of Croatia.
1.2. Fees for the safety of navigation and protection of the sea against pollution
The fee is paid for the calendar year, regardless of the duration of the navigation in the Republic of Croatia.
After registering the yacht or boat, boaters are issued a Certificate of Fee Payment, confirming that the fees have been settled.
The fee depends on the length of the craft and the total power of the propulsion units.
Amount of fee for other vessels the length of which exceeds 12 meters:
Amount of fee for other vessels the length of which is 12 meters or less:
* The total power of propulsion units (Ptot) is the total power of propulsion units expressed in kilowatts (kW).. ** Length (L) indicates the length of the craft expressed in metres.
After calculating the fee using the formula for HRK, the result needs to be converted into EUR (1 EUR = 7.53450 HRK).
1.3. Tourist tax
The owner or user of the vessel shall pay the tourist tax for themselves and all persons who spend the night on the vessel in a lump sum or per night. A vessel in this sense shall mean any vessel longer than 7 m with built-in sleeping berths, which is used for rest, leisure, or cruising, and which is not a nautical tourism craft. When paid as a lump sum, the tourist tax shall be paid by boaters before the vessel leaves, using the tourist tax collection portal https://nautika.evisitor.hr, namely when they stay on a vessel and spend the night in nautical tourism ports or on a mooring in the nautical part of the port that is open to public traffic. After paying the tourist tax, a payment confirmation will be sent to the e-mail address, confirming that the tourist tax has been paid in a lump sum or per night. The invoice/receipt for the paid tourist tax must always be on hand on the vessel, and the master of the vessel must present it at the request of an authorised person. The amount of the lump sum tourist tax for boaters depends on the length of the vessel and the period for which the boaters pay the tourist tax. You can check the amount of the tourist tax at: https://nautika.evisitor.hr/cjenik/
1.4. Authorisation held by the user of the vessel
A vessel owned by a natural person or natural persons sailing in the Republic of Croatia may be occupied during navigation by the owner of the vessel, members of their immediate family, and persons authorised in writing by the owner of the vessel. The owner’s signature on the written authorisation must be certified by a domestic or foreign competent authority.
For vessels owned by legal entities, only persons authorised to use the vessel on the basis of a written authorisation may be present on the vessel during navigation in the Republic of Croatia. The text of the authorisation must clearly state the name and surname of the responsible person in the legal entity that signed and stamped the authorisation, the period of use of the vessel to which the authorisation applies, the name and surname of the person who is responsible for operating the vessel if the vessel does not have a permanently employed crew, and the names of all persons who will be staying on the vessel during the period of validity of the authorisation.
2. Documents on the vessel
For inspection purposes, the following original documents must be present on the vessel sailing in the Republic of Croatia:
• proof of payment of all fees
• proof that the vessel is seaworthy
• proof that the person in command of the vessel is capable of operating the vessel in accordance with the national regulations of the country whose flag the vessel flies, i.e. in accordance with the regulations of the Republic of Croatia
• proof of insurance against liability for damage to third parties
• proof of ownership or authorisation to use the vessel.
3. Certificates for operating boats and yachts
To operate boats and command yachts, a person must be qualified in accordance with the regulations of the country whose flag the boat or yacht flies, and if no qualification for operating a boat is prescribed in the home country, then Croatian regulations shall apply. A person who operates a boat or commands a yacht falling under Croatian jurisdiction, depending on the category of the boat and/or yacht, must possess a Skipper’s Licence of Competency or a Certificate of Competency for Yacht Master or a document/permit for operating boats and yachts issued by competent authorities of foreign countries and recognised by the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure. The list of recognised foreign documents/permits is published on the Ministry website:
http://www.mppi.hr/UserDocsImages/27.04.2018-TABLICA%20(2)MoU.pdf
4. Departure of the vessel from the Republic of Croatia
Prior to departure from the Republic of Croatia, the master of the vessel must do the following:
• pass the border control if liable to do so
• certify the list of crew and passengers at the Harbourmaster’s office or branch office.
Upon honouring the commitments as referred to above, the master of the vessel shall leave the internal waters and the territorial sea of the Republic of Croatia by the shortest customary route.
A. Senoner, Unsplash
5. Entry and stay of nationals of member states of the European Economic Area (EEA)
1. they possess a valid travel document or identity card
2. they do not have a ban on entry and stay
3. do not pose a threat to public order, national security, or public health.
Nationals of EEA member states may enter the Republic of Croatia without a visa or residence permit and can stay in the Republic of Croatia for up to three months from the date of their entry into the Republic of Croatia if they hold a valid travel document or a valid ID.
The following persons are exempt from the obligation to register a short-term (tourist) stay:
- nationals of member states of the European Economic Area (EEA) or the Swiss Confederation
- EEA nationals who intend to stay in the Republic of Croatia for more than 3 months are obliged to register their temporary stay at the competent police administration/station according to their place of stay, no later than 8 days following the expiration of their 3-month stay (conversely, a member of their family who is not an EEA national must apply for a residence card).
6. Registration of stay of third-country nationals on a short stay in Croatia
The registration of third-country nationals who will be accommodated on the vessel shall be submitted to:
• the police administration or police station responsible for border checks in the port/harbour in which the border check is performed and where such third-country nationals enter on the vessel on which they to be accommodated
• the police administration or police station on the basis of the place of boarding of such third-country nationals.
Legal and physical persons that provide mooring services in a nautical tourism port, if the third-country national has arrived for the first time on the vessel on which they will be accommodated, shall register their stay within one day of the arrival of the third-country national, as shall every subsequent legal and natural person that provides mooring services in a nautical tourism port to the same person.
If the accommodation of a third-country national cannot be done in the described manner, then the third-country national on a short-term (tourist) stay shall register their accommodation within two days of entering Croatia, or of changing accommodation.
In this case, the short-term (tourist) stay shall be reported to the police administration or the police station responsible for the place of accommodation of the third-country national, and it can also be done in a tourist board office.
The accommodation address registration form (form 16a) is available at:
Seafarers who are on board a ship of foreign nationality and are registered as crew members on the ship are not obliged to register for a short stay.
For more information, please contact the competent police administration or police station.
7. Customs and tax status of foreign boats and yachts
Any vessel entering the EU customs territory may be subject to customs control.
It is important to determine the customs status of the vessel for the implementation of customs control measures and customs procedures. Therefore, owners and users of vessels that have the customs status of Union goods should have documents on the vessel that can prove the customs status of Union goods.
Ownership, registration in the vessel register in an EU country, and the flag which a vessel flies are not proof that the vessel has the status of Union goods.
The customs status of Union goods for a vessel can be proven by one of the following documents:
• the T2L document or
• the original receipt or
• confirmation from the tax authority or other available document about the paid VAT.
Vessels that do not have the customs status of Union goods can be placed in the temporary admission procedure and remain there in compliance with the provisions of the Union’s customs legislation throughout that procedure. Temporary admission is subject to the following conditions:
• the vessels are registered outside the customs territory of the Union in the name of legal persons established outside that area;
• they are used by a person established outside the customs area of the Union.
More information on the measures of customs control over pleasure boats and the approval of the temporary admission procedure can be found on the website of the Customs Administration
8. Safety at sea
In the Republic of Croatia, a maritime search and rescue service is organised through the National Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre Rijeka (MRCC Rijeka), which is on call 24 hours a day.
In case of an accident or incident at sea, call 195, which is the toll-free number of the Maritime Search and Rescue Service, which can be called from a landline or mobile network. You can also request help via the maritime VHF radio channel 16 or via the single European emergency call number 112, which will transfer the call to MRCC Rijeka.
Users of the multilingual free mobile smartphone app ‘Nautical Information Service (nIS)’ of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure can call the toll-free phone number 195 in case of an accident or incident at sea, with automatic delivery of the caller’s location, which significantly reduces the time of searching for the victims.
Yachts and vessels must sail at a distance greater than 50 m from the boundary of a designated beach and 150 metres from the shoreline of a natural beach.
Speedboats and vessels propelled by a jet engine (scooters, jet skis, inflatable boats and similar) may plane only at a distance greater than 300 m from the shoreline and in an area that permits planing.
In the area 150 m from the shore, all vessels must navigate with special care at a speed not exceeding 5 knots; in the area from 150 m to 300 m from the shore, all vessels must navigate with special care at a speed not exceeding 8 knots.
In order to protect their own lives and the lives of other participants in maritime transport at sea and to preserve their own and other people’s property, boaters must:
• follow regular and extraordinary weather reports
• comply with the prescribed navigation speeds in the coastal area
• regularly check the state and seaworthiness of the vessel and equipment and ensure sufficient amounts of fuel and drinking water
• not operate the vessel under the influence of alcohol and other opiates
• not navigate the vessel further from the shore than the specific vessel allows
• not overcrowd the vessel beyond the set limit for the maximum number of passengers
• use official nautical charts and publications
• use the official ‘Nautical Information Service (nIS)’ mobile app operated by the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure, which contains up-to-date information important for safe navigation available 24 hours a day. In the event of an accident at sea, immediately dial 195, the toll-free number of the National Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre Rijeka (MRCC Rijeka).