December 1, 2020 - The latest news for flights to Croatia as FlyDubai cancels Zagreb this winter. However, the airline could possibly make a comeback to Croatia in the spring. 

Croatian Aviation reports that although Emirates' partner company, FlyDubai, had announced regular flights to Zagreb from December this winter, which will no longer happen.

As we announced earlier, FlyDubai will not return to Zagreb Airport so soon. The company previously announced flights in early October, which it then canceled by mid-December. Although we announced then that the company will probably not operate on the line between Dubai and Zagreb this year, this has now been confirmed. FlyDubai withdrew all flights on the said route until the beginning of February 2021, and in fact, it is only a question of when those flights will also be canceled.

After Emirates completely gave up on the Dubai - Zagreb line for 2021, it would be logical for FlyDubai to take over this line in the 2021 summer flight schedule. According to the announcements, this should happen, but only from April, with four flights a week throughout the summer flight schedule. Of course, this will depend on passenger demand and the epidemiological situation, so predicting the return of this airline (especially the number of weekly operations) at this time is not wise.

FlyDubai is a state-owned company and works closely with Emirates, operating to less attractive destinations.

FlyDubai will not be able to offer one very important element in relation to its partner Emirates, which with the B777-300ER aircraft offered space for almost 18 tons of cargo or approximately 125 cubic meters of cargo space, depending on the configuration and capacity of the passenger cabin.

Given the announcements that the B737MAX aircraft will soon be re-licensed to operate regular commercial flights, it is to be expected that once FlyDubai returns to Zagreb on a route from Dubai, it will use this type of aircraft, which in terms of comfort and passenger cabin design has significantly better characteristics compared to B737-800.

Additionally, after the news that Korean Air withdrew from Zagreb Airport, FlyDubai will have the opportunity to take on some passengers from the South Korean market, which will certainly be important in the next summer season. It is certain that both Turkish Airlines and Qatar Airways will try to create dominance in our traditional, and most important markets with their pricing policy.

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Zagreb, Nov 30, 2020 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic has tested positive for coronavirus, government spokesman Marko Milic said on Monday evening.

Following recommendations by epidemiologists, the prime minister did another test for coronavirus on Monday and his result is positive, the spokesman said.

Plenkovic was earlier ordered to self-isolate because his wife had tested positive for the novel virus, and now he will have to spend 10 days in isolation.

"The prime minister feels well. He performs his duties from home and will continue to follow instructions from doctors and epidemiologists,"  Milic said.

The news comes as Croatia has announced changes to the rules on those entering the country, with travellers coming from a non-green EU zone now required to have a negative PCR test or face self-isolation. 

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November 30, 2020 - Croatia announces new border rules for travelers coming into the country. 

THIS IS A DEVELOPING STORY THAT IS BEING UPDATED AS WE RECEIVE CONFIRMATION 

Index.hr reports that at today's government session, Interior Minister Davor Bozinovic announced new measures at the borders.

"A new decision has been made on border crossings, and it is tied to European regions. Passengers coming from EU green areas do not need a PCR test or any other condition to enter Croatia. All others need a negative PCR test that is not older than 48 hours or they can be tested on arrival in Croatia and await their test result in self-isolation. 

But at the moment, the only green region in the EU is the island of Fasta in Finland," Bozinovic said.

The new rule also applies to Croatian citizens. 

The new set of rules combines two criteria for entering Croatia: the citizenship of the traveler, and where they've been prior to arriving in Croatia. So, anyone coming from the ECDC-defined "Green Area", no matter what their passport is, are allowed to enter freely. However, those arriving at the Croatian borders from elsewhere in the EU will need to present the negative PCR test, not older than 48 hours (or self-isolate in Croatia until they get tested). EU citizens + Schengen + visa/residence permit holders in the EU countries are allowed to enter Croatia from any third country if they have a negative PCR test (or self-isolate in Croatia until they get tested here). Travelers arriving from the countries on the EU safe list are allowed to enter Croatia freely without a test if they can prove they haven't spent any time in other countries, rather just transited through them. 

Third-country nationals arriving from elsewhere, not the EU, can enter Croatia if they present a negative PCR test (or self-isolate in Croatia until they get tested here) AND are coming to Croatia as sailors, or for personal/family reasons or business. 

Entry without a negative PCR test for EU citizens is allowed, for example, for seafarers and workers in the transport sector, transport providers, diplomats, staff of international organizations, persons traveling for urgent reasons, passengers in transit with the obligation to leave the country within 12 hours and patients traveling for necessary health reasons. 

Border health workers, pupils, students, and interns who travel every day do not have to have a negative PCR test, provided that they do not stay inside or outside Croatia for more than 12 hours.

Odluka o Privremenoj Zabran... by Antonija Petkovic

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ZAGREB, November 30, 2020 - The government has not found a solution for all businesses that have been strongly affected by the coronacrisis, the Voice of Entrepreneurs (UGP) association said on Monday after a meeting with government officials, adding that compensatory measures need to include all affected activities.

Government representatives met with employers and representatives of the hospitality sector today to present compensatory measures designed to help offset the consequences of the latest lockdown imposed due to the deteriorated epidemiological situation in the country.

UGP underlined that it had much higher expectations from the meeting.

"We welcome some measures that were presented by ministers like the new COVID loans by HAMAG-BICRO. One of the recommendations is to compensate fixed costs but only for those activities that have been shut. We believe that all activities with a large fall in turnover need to be compensated regardless of whether they are formally shut," UPG said in a press release.

Citing the event industry, temporary providers of transport services, travel agencies and other activities that depend on activities that have been shut down, UPG wondered if they would be left to cave in.

One of UPG's proposals is a temporary reduction of VAT for the affected activities. The association believes that VAT should urgently be reduced to 13% in order to boost consumption and that a move like that would facilitate business for all affected activities, including hospitality and other service industries. Almost all EU countries have done just that, the association notes.

UPG president Hrvoje Bujas thinks that short-term measures are insufficient and that there is no plan for long-term reforms.

"We are unhappy. We presented clear and substantiated proposals that are in Croatia's interest, please listen to us," Bujas added.

ZAGREB, November 30, 2020 - Croatia's hospitality sector has the highest VAT in Europe, and Croatia is one of the few countries that has not reduced its VAT during the corona crisis, so the hospitality sector has appealed to the prime minister to help reduce VAT, the head of the national association of bar and restaurant owners, Marin Medak, said on Monday.

"We talked about everything, but Finance Minister Zdravko Maric would not hear of reducing VAT. So we are appealing to the prime minister and government to help us because without it we have no reason to continue working in this crisis, even if we are allowed to reopen at the end of December or in January," Medak said after a meeting at the Ministry of Labour and Pension System between government representatives and representatives of the hospitality sector to discuss the government's latest measures in the new mild lockdown.

The government is set to present the latest measures on Monday. Minister Maric said that the measures related to keeping jobs, relaunching and accelerating the issuance of COVID loans through the SMEs agency Hamag-Bicro and exempting some costs of doing business in December.

Commenting on what the ministers presented and which measures were accepted as compensation for shutting down their businesses, Medak underlined that the measures came too late and that the national COVID response team had failed.

"Everything they are offering us now will not be sufficient, hence we appeal to the prime minister and government to clearly tell us if there is any hope for the future because we no longer have any and we have no idea what will happen in these circumstances. As far as we could see, the ministers themselves do not know what costs we have nor how much the proposed measures will cost the economy. If they were to reduce VAT, which is about HRK 300 million a year, and if that is a problem, then where is the HRK 1.3 billion for COVID loans going to come from, or the HRK 470 million for the monthly allowance of HRK 4,000  to keep jobs," said Medak.

He said that they did not want their workers to live off that, nor off the HRK 4,000 when until now they had paid VAT and all other allowances and fees. He added that now the entire hospitality sector had a lot of problems and many of them believed that it was better not to reopen in January after the measures were lifted because the fall in turnover would continue.

Disappointed with the meeting and the ministers' proposals, the head of the association of bar and restaurant owners from from Istria and Kvarner, Vedran Jakominic, said that they were more "shaken up than satisfied."

He described the proposed measures as a minimum and a mere PR campaign rather than an economic analysis and activity.

ZAGREB, November 30, 2020 - Health Minister Vili Beros wrote on Monday on Facebook that he had recovered from the coronavirus infection and that he was working in his office again, calling on citizens to comply with anti-coronavirus restrictions.

In the first week of the new anti-COVID measures, the minister said that no sacrifice was too great to protect health and lives.

"We are denying ourselves a lot, but I believe this will result in fewer infections and deaths," Beros wrote, expressing gratitude to health workers for their self-sacrificing work.

Beros said on November 19 that he was positive, and two days later he said that he had probably got infected at the ministry despite the fact that he had been trying to protect himself.

ZAGREB, November 30, 2020 - Croatia today marks its 20th anniversary of membership of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) which it joined on 30 November 2000 as the 140th member, the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs said on Monday.

Accession to the WTO was the foundation for the integration of Croatia's economy with the European and global market, the ministry said in a press release.

Croatia's WTO membership marked a period of further liberalisation, boosting exports and participation in world trade as a factor of development.

That was the first step towards European and regional economic integration and membership of the European Union, the ministry said.

Today the multilateral trade system is faced with many challenges and the current situation requires all WTO members to invest additional effort to find new ways to achieve a more stable trade environment based on regulations, the press release added.

Croatia is confident that the WTO can provide answers for today's key challenges and issues so that it can modernise and facilitate doing business in the 21st century, the ministry said.

Croatia is a strong and dedicated supporter of the multilateral system and sees the WTO as a necessary and valuable partner, it said.

November 30, 2020 - At today's government session, which Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic led from home in self-isolation, the fines for violating measures in Croatia were announced. They have yet to be confirmed by parliament.

Index.hr reports that Minister Beros read the proposal of new fines. Thus, a natural person can be fined HRK 500 for non-compliance with the prescribed measures, i.e. the obligation to properly wear a face mask or medical mask.

A fine of HRK 5,000 to 10,000 is prescribed for the owner of private property if they organize or allow a private gathering against the provisions of the law.

Bozinovic also announced new measures at the borders, and Maric, Aladrovic, and Coric presented new measures to help entrepreneurs.

In the beginning, Plenkovic expressed regret over the incident in Vukovar.

"As for the pandemic, the numbers are still high today. Unfortunately, 74 people have died, the most so far, due to the high numbers in recent weeks. We are still in a very serious phase of the epidemic, I call everyone to be responsible, so we have taken restrictive measures," he said.

He then said he would discuss amending the Infectious Diseases Protection Act so that fines for individuals could be defined.

"We have based our fight against coronavirus on trust between citizens and the state. We are convinced that most fellow citizens understand the circumstances, but we also think that such a tool is necessary given that certain irresponsible individuals endanger the health of others. That is why we will propose changes to the law to the parliament," said Plenkovic, who chaired the government session via a video link from self-isolation.

Furthermore, Plenkovic revealed details of new measures for entrepreneurs.

"The new package of measures to help the part of the economy whose activities have been suspended because of COVID-19 will amount to HRK 2.1 billion, and will include subsidies for salaries, fixed costs and COVID loans," said Plenkovic.

These measures, he said, are in line with the policy of preserving jobs in the private sector. He claimed that the government has so far preserved 630,000 jobs and helped 107,000 companies, paying a total of HRK 7.4 billion.

He announced the continuation of support of HRK 4,000 for workers' salaries during the suspension of operations, with the exemption from paying contributions. This is a total net amount of HRK 320 million, and when the contributions are added up, it is HRK 470 million.

The government will also cover part or all of the fixed costs during the suspension of the sectors affected by the measures, if their turnover in December falls by at least 60 percent compared to last December. According to government estimates, the measure should cost HRK 250 million. In addition, he added, in cooperation with HAMAG-BICRO, a new package of COVID loans was prepared in the total amount of HRK 1.3 billion.

"We base our support for the private sector on these three points, i.e., those affected by the anti-epidemic measures currently in force. All in all, the package will amount to HRK 2.1 billion," Plenkovic said.

"In this way, the government meets the needs of the economy, entrepreneurs and employees and strives, as before, to help citizens, the economy and entrepreneurs in the very specific year of 2020," he added.

Minister Beros read the statistics on the number infected.

"The Ministry of Health called on the Headquarters to submit amended plans for the care of people suffering from COVID-19, as well as a notification on additional care," Beros said.

“Everything we do will not yield results if the personal responsibility of each individual remains,” he said, adding that the HQ’s measures are there for a reason.

Bozinovic reiterated the latest measures taken this weekend.

"As far as supervision is concerned, inspectors and the police have made over 4,000 inspections, they have issued 605 warnings. Forty-four misdemeanor orders have been or will be submitted," Bozinovic read.

"A new decision has been made on border crossings, and it is tied to European regions. Passengers coming from EU green areas do not need a PCR test or any other condition to enter Croatia. All others need a negative PCR test that is not older than 48 hours or are tested on arrival in Croatia and in self-isolation to await the test result.

But at the moment, the only green region in the EU is the island of Fasta in Finland," Bozinovic said.

“As for third-country nationals, they can cross the border with a negative PCR test,” he said. "EU citizens coming from third countries can enter Croatia with a negative PCR test," Bozinovic added.

Entry without a negative PCR test for EU citizens is allowed, for example, for seafarers and workers in the transport sector, transport providers, diplomats, staff of international organizations, persons traveling for urgent reasons, passengers in transit with the obligation to leave the country within 12 hours and patients traveling for necessary health reasons.

Border health workers, pupils, students and interns who travel every day do not have to have a negative PCR test, provided that they do not stay inside or outside Croatia for more than 12 hours.

Beros continued on fines for violating the measures.

"The bill prescribes a new security measure of the obligation to wear a face mask or medical mask properly, a ban or restriction on holding public events and gatherings, and a ban or restriction on holding private gatherings," Beros said at the government session.

The amendment to the law points out that according to the current course of COVID-19, the need to properly wear face masks or medical masks so as to cover the mouth and nose is unequivocally indicated, which reduces the possible risk of transmission. Proper use of masks is most important when people are indoors and when social distancing is difficult to implement or maintain.

The bill stipulates that the implementation of supervision over the application of safety measures for the protection of the population from infectious diseases is also carried out by police officers, inspectors of state administration bodies responsible for civil protection, inspectors of the State Inspectorate and inspectors of other state administration bodies.

Also, a fine for misdemeanors is prescribed for legal entities in the amount of HRK 10,000 to HRK 40,000 in case of non-compliance with measures prescribed by law, i.e., if they do not respect the ban or restriction on holding public events and gatherings or disrespect the ban or restriction on private gatherings.

A fine of HRK 5,000 to 10,000 is prescribed for misdemeanors of a responsible person in a legal entity, as well as craftspeople and natural persons who perform other independent activities.

For a misdemeanor of a natural person, a fine of HRK 500 is prescribed in case of non-compliance with the prescribed measures, or the obligation to properly wear a face mask or medical mask.

A fine of HRK 5,000 to 10,000 is prescribed for the private property owner if they organize or allow a private gathering against the provisions of the law.

Also, the provision on collecting fines at the place where the misdemeanor was committed is changed in accordance with the provisions of the Misdemeanor Law. Thus, the fine may be collected at the place where the offense was committed by a person authorized to supervise the implementation of safety measures to protect the population from infectious diseases.

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