As Morski writes on the 5th of February, 2019, as the Ministry of Regional Development and EU Funds has stated, 39 contracts for Croatian island development will be signed on Wednesday, totaling an enormous 17,430,000.00 kuna, which is less than 450,000 kuna per individual project on average.

The Ministry argues that the goal of their Croatian island development program is to create the necessary preconditions for sustainable economic and social development by enhancing the quality of life on the islands by promoting the development of matters which are specific to Croatia's many inhabited islands.

The beneficiaries of the program are both local and regional self-government units which, within their respective administrative boundaries, include Croatia's inhabited islands and their associated periodically inhabited and uninhabited islands and islets, as well as the Pelješac peninsula.

The contracts that the ministry will conclude with local and regional self-government units in accordance with the decision for 2019 will fund 51 small capital projects in the area of ​​the islands and the Pelješac peninsula, for which the state budget provided a handsome 22.8 million kuna.

The Minister of Regional Development and EU Funds, Gabrijela Žalac, will sign contracts with the following units:

Municipality of Bol - Reconstruction of public utility building - Municipality building

Cres - Construction of the SU2 road in the area of ​​Melin - first phase

Dobrinj Municipality - Reconstruction of part of the administrative building of the Dobrinj Municipality - building 2

Hvar - Paving over the rock of an existing concrete public area on the bank of the waterfront (riva)

Municipality of Jelsa - Construction of a bridge on a unclassified road in the centre of Vrboska

Municipality of Kali - Construction of the coastal promenade of Kali - Rt. Artina (phase IV)

Komiža - Repairing the Zanchi house

Kukljica Municipality - Arranging and decorating a public building for the expansion of a kindergarten in Kukljica

Mali Lošinj - Reconstruction of the area near Studenac

Municipality of Murter-Kornati - Construction of a kindergarten and a nursery school in Murter

Municipality of Nerežišća - Completion of works on the construction of communal infrastructure of the Balun-Vrpovje business zone in Nerežišća

City of Novalja - Repairing the Samorašnji put (street) in Novalja

Okrug District - Construction of a kindergarten building in Okrug Gornji

Omišalj Municipality - Construction of a precipitation drainage system in the Rosulje settlement in Njivice

Pag - Repairing and redoing of pedestrian-cycling paths

Pakoštane Municipality - Concrete roads on Vrgadi island - III. phase

Pašman Municipality - Repairing of the breakwater in the Mrljane settlement

Municipality of Postira -  Redoing of the local park in Postira - II. phase

Municipality of Povljana - Carry out a project for the reduction of losses on the water supply system of the Povljana Municipality

Municipality of Preko - Reconstruction of the Lastavica kindergarten in Preko

Primorje-Gorski Kotar County - Medical rehabilitation park in Veli Lošinj

Pučišća Municipality - Doing up of the square in Gornji Humac - III. phase

Rab - A water supply and drainage system within the Mišnjak business zone

Municipality of Sali - Construction of the Orbulica Children's Hospital - Sali

Municipality of Selca - Construction of a playground in Selca

Split-Dalmatia County - The continuation of works on the upgrading of the Pučišć sculpting school

Stari Grad - Arranging the roof space of the city library and the reading rooms of Stari Grad

Municipality of Sućuraj - Unclassified road in the area of ​​Sućuraj Municipality

Supetar town - The transformation of the ground floor of the building in the street ''P. Jakšić 17'' in Supetar for the needs of DV "Mrvica"

Municipality of Sutivan - Asphalting of the street ''Put svetog Roka''

City of Šibenik - Continued repairing of the network of unclassified roads on the island of Žirje

City of Šibenik - Construction of an open-air sports park on the island of Zlarin

Municipality of Šolta - Construction of a coastal promenade with public lighting in Stomorska

Municipality of Tisno - Redoing of the park in front of the school in Betina - a sports court

City of Trogir - Modernisation of public lighting on Drvenik Mali, Drvenik Veli and Čiovo

City of Vis - Reconstruction of buildings in the Vis business zone, including energy renewal

City of Vodice - Doing up of the children's playground in Prvić Luka

Municipality of Vrbnik - Doing up of the sv. Ivan square

City of Zadar - Designing of cycling routes with all of the necessary infrastructure on Molat

Make sure to stay up to date with Croatian island development and much more by following our dedicated politics and lifestyle pages.

As we reported recently, the enfeebled Croatian flag carrier, Croatia Airlines, will undergo privatisation, with the Minister of Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure, Oleg Butković, having confirmed that the process is ongoing.

As Suzana Varosanec/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 3rd of February, 2019, fairly soon, the Croatian Government will decide on the appointment of a required commission to deal with the finding of a strategic partner for the burdened domestic airline.

In response to Poslovni Dnevnik's question on the matter, the response from the competent ministry was that Croatia Airlines has a tender which is currently in its final phase dedicated to finding a financial advisor for the development of the company's needed recapitalisation and the finding of an equally needed strategic partner, but as the initiator of the entire process Croatia Airlines is currently undergoing, it isn't in a position to comment on the details until the end of the procedure.

By the force of a decision made by the Croatian Government back on the 4th of January 2018, Croatia Airlines was returned to the list of companies of strategic and special interest to the Republic of Croatia. On the 26th of April 2018, the Croatian Government adopted the national program of reforms for the year 2018, which suggests ensuring further development and the strengthening of competitive advantages and positions on the air transport market through a quality strategic partnership should be the main goal for Croatia Airlines.

As an indicator of the results, the expansion of the domestic airline's transport network has since been established, as has as the increase in its market share and its recapitalisation.

Back in September 2018, in order to conduct a tender, a limited two-stage procurement procedure was initiated for the "financial advisor service to develop Croatia Airlines' recapitalisation model and finding a strategic partner".

Unofficially speaking, there does appear to be some serious interest for Croatia Airlines, but we're yet to see how that will manifest.

Make sure to stay up to date by following our dedicated business page for much more.

Click here for the original article by Suzana Varosanec for Poslovni Dnevnik

We're still not sure how things stand entirely when it comes to Brexit, or whether it will happen at all. Despite the now agonising insanity of this senseless process, let's have a look at the current situation (which will probably have altered a few times before I finish this article. I wish I was being sarcastic).

After a trend of crushing defeats had become the humiliating norm for the enfeebled PM, Theresa May finally had her day (sort of) in the latest vote on various amendments to her withdrawal agreement. MPs voted against no deal - which should effectively take the catastrophic threat of the United Kingdom crashing out of the European Union without a deal in place at the end of next month off the table entirely - had it not been a non-binding amendment.

British MPs also voted against an Article 50 extension, which would have allowed for the two year window allowed for negotiations when a member state declares its intention to leave the bloc to be extended for a period which would have been agreed upon had it passed.

So, what happened in layman's terms? What happened is that the Commons continued the insanity by voting against a no deal, making it clear that the United Kingdom leaving the EU without a deal in place was not in anyone's interest, nor should it be the British Government's policy, but they also voted against extending the time needed for any further negotiations. A bit odd, you say? A bit chaotic? Yes, it is.

Instead, MPs gave Theresa May a mandate to go back to Brussels to attempt to renegotiate the troublesome Irish backstop, which acts as an insurance policy to prevent a hard border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The EU has already stated that the backstop is part of the deal and cannot be opened up again. Britain is, once again, experiencing an impasse. With the now internationally weakened United Kingdom stuck between a rock and a hard place, what does this mean for British nationals living and working in Croatia?

A look at the current scenarios:

Theresa May's withdrawal agreement is ratified by the UK and the EU:

We've already covered what will happen if Theresa May's initial withdrawal agreement ends up being passed, which, as the clock runs down to the rapidly approaching and ominous date of March the 29th, when Britain is due to leave the European Union after over forty years of membership, could still end up being ratified.

If the British PM manages to arrange new terms with the EU regarding the hated Irish backstop, however unlikely, then the withdrawal agreement has decent chances of being ratified later this month. If that happens, the fate of British citizens in Croatia will be firmly secured. Life will go on as normal until the end of December, 2020, when the implementation period ends. If you are resident in Croatia, registered with the authorities and have a biometric residence permit (privremeni/stalni boravak), you'll continue life as you do now. You'll be able to apply for permanent residence as normal after racking up five years of legal residence in Croatia and as such gain almost all of the rights Croatian nationals enjoy, after a further three years, you can also apply for citizenship if you want to. If you already have permanent residence, you're already sorted.

Under May's deal, those with permanent residence will be allowed to leave their member state of residence for five consecutive years without losing their status, which essentially means you have it for life. Read this article for more detailed information on that.

Article 50 extension:

The clock is ticking, and the dreaded Brexit day is fast approaching. A delay is becoming increasingly likely, despite having been voted against recently, it doesn't mean this won't become necessary to avoid a tragic no deal exit. If this occurs, nothing will alter for you until a new Brexit date is confirmed.

EEA/EFTA style agreement:

Several countries, including Norway and Iceland, are in the European Economic Area but are not members of the EU, in fact. These two countries still abide by the four freedoms of the single market in order to obtain unrestricted access to it, one of which is the free movement of people, which means that should Britain opt for some sort of ''Norway-style agreement'' as a too-little-too-late Plan B, the free movement of citizens will remain as it is today. This means nothing will alter for you, and you don't need to do anything.

No deal Brexit:

Should the world's fifth largest economy end up crashing out of the world's largest trading bloc without a deal in place, the consequences will be dire for the country's economy. Dark days would be ahead of a Britain all alone in the world, with the threat of the worst economic situation since the recession potentially becoming a reality, all normal thinking individuals want to avoid this horrendous possibility. Such a scenario would have an extremely negative impact on the UK and the EU, and this situation will likely never become government policy. Britain is a European country and needs close ties, and a free trade deal, with the EU.

As I have written before, many EU countries have already come out to reassure British citizens living in their countries that their rights will be protected if a no deal does end up happening, with some such as Malta being extremely generous and offering Brits permanent residency (a renewable document valid for ten years) should this occur.

The European Commission has asked EU member states, including Croatia, to take a ''generous approach to British citizens who are already living on their territories''.

While such comments are a disgraceful abandonment in the eyes of many, especially after the UK respectfully unilaterally guaranteed the rights of EU citizens already living in the UK, all three million of them, the EU cannot make a similar unilateral guarantee in the event of a no deal Brexit as it is not a national body. Despite that, the good intention of the EC/EU is clear - the expectation of member states to protect British citizens who have made life choices based on the treaty rights that derived from their citizenship of the Union.

Unlike some other EU countries, Croatia is yet to speak publicly on the matter, but MUP has made clear that Croatia's intentions are entirely in line with the wishes of the European Commission when it comes to fully protecting British nationals who are living in Croatia with regulated status (biometric residence permit) on the 29th of March, 2019, should the UK crash out of the EU with no deal in place. I have been in contact with MUP and I translated their response, which we also published in another article detailing the work TCN will do with the British Embassy to keep information flowing: 

''The Republic of Croatia considers that it is of great importance to protect both the citizens of the European Union in the United Kingdom, and the citizens of the United Kingdom in the European Union. The European Commission's intention is to ensure a high degree of tolerance for UK nationals already residing in an EU member state. Such reflections and efforts are in line with the objective of the Republic of Croatia that the citizens of the United Kingdom and members of their families who have a regulated status in the Republic of Croatia are not regarded as illegal persons on the date of their [the UK's] departure from the European Union, that their residence and unimpeded access to the labour market in the Republic of Croatia is allowed. In this regard, the Republic of Croatia will take the necessary measures to regulate the stay of UK citizens who, at the time of the United Kingdom's departure from the European Union, have regulated residence in the Republic of Croatia, in accordance with the European Commission's guidelines.''

Please read this article for further information, including a statement from MUP provided to Balkan Insight which also, along those same lines, suggested that the assurances and guarantees Croatia's 600+ resident Brits need will be forthcoming once the details on issuing new documents are finalised. 

Given the fact that London has already unilaterally given rights to all EU citizens in the UK and will enshrine the rights of Croats in the UK into British law, rest assured that Croatia will respond in the spirit of reciprocity when the finer details are ironed out.

No Brexit at all

This is still a possibility, and should Article 50 be revoked and Brexit cancelled, nothing will alter and we'd remain with the good old status quo. This is unlikely, but remains possible.

What should you do if you live in Croatia to protect yourself against any outcome?

First of all, do not panic. Second of all, read the list below.

1) Make sure you are registered with the police and are in possession of a valid residence permit.

2) If you move, make sure to inform the police of your move at the local police station in your new city or town.

3) Make sure you have any documents you need, these will vary in different situations. For example, if you have purchased a house or taken out a rental contract, make sure to keep any papers that attest to that fact.

4) Convert your British driving license to a Croatian one here.

4) Make sure to stay up to date by following the British Government's Living in Croatia page for updates as and when they come. Sign up to receive an email about any updates.

5) Read this article and follow the links specified for information updates, the Brexit hotline, the Facebook page of the British Embassy, and an email contact.

Just to add, the EU recently confirmed that British nationals will NOT need a visa to travel to the EU for short trips (90 days in any 180 day period) even in the case of a no deal Brexit. If you're in possession of a valid residence permit from an EU country, you will not be subject to the rules placed on British citizens living in the UK travelling to the EU for holidays. 

The Schengen area is currently made up of 26 countries and Croatia applied to join back in 2015, two years after its accession to the EU. Croatia is not yet in Schengen, but hopes to enter soon. The Schengen area, named after the Schengen Agreement, will facilitate visa-free access for British citizens on short stays of less than 90 days. Again, if you are a registered resident of any of the Schengen countries, this rule will not apply to you regardless of your nationality.

Make sure to stay up to date by following our dedicated politics page, and by following the British Embassy in Zagreb with the #UKNationalsinCroatia tag.

After a decade of silence and complete inactivity, the Croatian Government is moving once again towards the temptation of a highway construction project towards Dubrovnik, a move initially started by former PM Ivo Sanader.

As Kresimir Zabec/Novac writes on the 2nd of February, 2019, after a rather unnecessarily lengthy and of course unclear title, the conclusion of the ''study documentation for the road connection of southern Dalmatia to the motorway network system of the Republic of Croatia from the Metković junction to the future Pelješac bridge and from the Doli junction to the City of Dubrovnik'' (yes you can take a breath now), which was adopted during Friday's Government session held in Dubrovnik, has actually led back to the beginning of re-activating the old plan to build a highway to Dubrovnik.

The last time constructing a highway to Dubrovnik was mentioned was way back in 2009, ten whole years ago, when a construction contract worth 3.675 billion kuna was signed in Osojnik in the presence of the controversial former Prime Minister Ivo Sanader, an amount which didn't include the VAT for the planned Doli - Dubrovnik section. Although the contracts were indeed signed, the money for this project was never secured, therefore the works never started and all in all, time went by and people simply forgot about it for the most part.

Although there are permits, projects and designs from that time that still exist and could be acceptable today, Croatian roads (Hrvatske ceste) will spend 4.06 million kuna this year to take a better look at the southern Dalmatian transport system in the area of ​​Dubrovnik-Neretva County and its link with the existing highway network, and determine the feasibility of any highway construction from the existing Metković junction to the future Pelješac bridge, and then from Doli to the City of Dubrovnik. They'll also rule whether or not it is simply better to use the highway through neighbouring Bosnia and Herzegovina.

EU co-financing

Croatia's Minister of Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure, Oleg Butković, has already jumped the gun when it comes to the talks held on Friday, stating that the Ploče - Dubrovnik motorway will be built, but the question is when. He is counting on the EU being prepared to co-finance the project in the next operational period. However, some insist that a study is needed because the road image itself has changed over the past ten years, not only in southern Croatia, but also in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The motorway was built behind Ploče and the where the future Pelješac bridge will be, in neighbouring Bosnia and Herzegovina, the construction of part of the Vc corridor from Počitelj to the border with Montenegro through Popovo polje has also begun.

Compared to ten years ago, the highway would now be changed somewhat. Back then, the route went from Ploče to the border with Bosnia and Herzegovina at Neum and then continued on the other side down south to Dubrovnik.

It was estimated that eighty kilometres of highway from Ploče to Dubrovnik could cost around 732 million euros.

Today, it is assumed that the direction would go from the current Karamatići junction to the Pelješac junction, from where traffic will go down to Pelješac bridge. That equals approximately twenty kilometres of brand new highway sections. The traffic would continue along the new Pelješac road to the Doli junction, and from there 29.6 kilometers of highway would be built leading down to Dubrovnik.

According to the old 2009 project, a total of thirty objects needed to be built, of which there were ten viaducts, nine tunnels, and eight underpasses. Back then, the price of one kilometre of construction was 16.5 million euros without VAT, equalling a total of almost half a billion euros without VAT. The price of the construction of the highway from Karamatići to Pelješac is as yet unknown, but this section is also a very demanding part of the project as the route passes through the Neretva valley, so a high level of environmental protection will be required. Owing to all of the above, estimates are that the entire highway from Ploče down to Dubrovnik could stand at a massive 800 million euros.

Make sure to stay up to date by following our dedicated lifestyle and politics pages. If it's just Dubrovnik and the extreme south of Dalmatia you're interest in, give Total Dubrovnik a follow.

Click here for the original article by Kresimir Zabec for Novac.jutarnji.hr

Croatian islanders might enjoy what many of us would assume to be a life of paradise on one of the many stunning islands dotted along the coastline, our naive view tends to hide a lot of the issues faced on a daily basis by island inhabitants. While numerous initiatives have sprouted over the last few years to try to equalise the standards on Croatia's islands to that of the mainland, things are, of course, slow. Despite that, the Croatian Government has put forward an island development plan for this year.

As Morski writes on the 27th of January, 2019, the Ministry of Regional Development and European Union Funds is continuing to invest heavily into Croatia's many islands through the island development program by encouraging local and regional self-government units to invest in the development of their own, respective island infrastructure and economy, the competent department of the aforementioned ministry stated.

The overall objective of 2019's island development program is the creating of preconditions for sustainable economic and social development by enhancing the general quality of life of the inhabitants of the islands through encouraging the development of certain things specific to islands and island life.

The program's users will be numerous units of local and regional self-government which, in their administrative boundaries, include Croatia's inhabited islands and their associated periodically inhabited and uninhabited islands and islets, as well as the Pelješac peninsula.

The coverage of the program refers to the inhabited islands of the Republic of Croatia which are located within the six units of regional self-government, ie, the six coastal counties which have islands under their jurisdiction (Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, Lika-Senj County, Zadar County, Šibenik-Knin County, Split-Dalmatia County and Dubrovnik-Neretva County).

To briefly recall, in 2018, the Croatian Government invested a massive 19,000,000.00 kuna in the same program on a total of forty different projects. More projects for the islands and their development are set to come throughout the course of this year.

Make sure to stay up to date with our dedicated politics page for more on the Croatian Government, and on both domestic and European politics.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 26th of January, 2019, the low rate of taxation and the simplistic way of ''doing the books'' has apparently led to a large increase in people setting up obrts and freelancing in Croatia. Minister Zdravko Marić announced that the Croatian Finance Ministry will "consider this segment in particular and see how it will be treated in the future".

Judging by the discussions that took place at the 2nd Tax Conference, the next round of tax changes could be concentrated primarily on obrt owners and other freelancers, with the possibility of further lowering the tax burden on wages.

Minister of Finance Zdravko Marić announced that the Croatian Finance Ministry intends to alter a few things for Croatia's numerous freelancers, but didn't really specify in what direction those changes will go and when these changes will happen. It is to be expected, however, that the Croatian Finance Ministry will prepare the changes during the course of this year, according to a report from prviplan.hr.

At the Taxation Conference, organised by the Faculty of Economics in Zagreb and Deloitte, and was attended by representatives of the scientific and business community, representatives of the Croatian Finance Ministry and the Tax Administration, Minister Marić reported on the effects of the previous changes in the Croatian tax system.

Minister Marić reported that about 150,000 taxpayers in Croatia are paying tax on their earnings.

He said there are about 35,000 j.d.o.o's, 106,000 registered self-employed businesses, including 37,000 obrt owners. When it comes to private renters who pay a flat tax, there are about 95,000.

Commenting on the rapid growth in the number of obrts paying taxes on a flat-rate basis, Minister Marić said that the Croatian Finance Ministry has made a big step forward and simplified the management of the books, but that "this segment needs to be considered and it should be seen how things will look in the future."

Marić's announcement came after the introduction made by dr.sc. Hrvoje Šimović from the Faculty of Economics in Zagreb, who said that the growth of those paying flat tax now looks good, especially because of encouraging levels of those who are self-employed.

"But in the future, obrts will prove to be the biggest problem in regard to the tax aspect. The potential for abuse will increase due to taxpayers' efforts to make sure their net income remains as much as possible,'' said Šimović.

Minister Marić emphasised that the Croatian tax system needs to be fully understood and that the essence of tax reform is to make the system simpler, more predictable and consistent, offering a better sense of understanding and security for everyone.

"We're doing the same for all taxpayers. It's not true that we're only good for those who pay a lot of tax, and that we're purposely trying to make it more difficult for those who pay less. It's precisely in the segment of small and medium-sized entrepreneurs that the biggest reform has been made in the first round of [tax] reforms. The profit tax rate has dropped from 20 to 18 percent, or 12 percent for companies with up to three million kuna of revenue. A lot has been facilitated,'' Marić noted.

He stressed that he remains a big advocate for tax cuts.

Follow our dedicated politics and business pages for much more.

Theresa May's withdrawal agreement with the European Union suffered a historic defeat recently. The British prime minister had delayed the vote which was due to take place back in December 2018 when she realised she was set to suffer the aforementioned historic defeat. Why she thought simply delaying the inevitable was a good idea is beyond me, but so is the entire notion of Brexit itself.

My political views aside, let's get to the point of this article. Point number one is that the article I wrote a while ago about what Theresa May's former withdrawal agreement means for British citizens living in Croatia is now likely void for the most part. We all love wasting our time, don't we?

The second point is that you don't need to worry about anything, well, no more than you would already anyway. You may have noticed that many EU countries have publicly declared their plans for making sure British citizens don't become Brexit's collateral damage (anymore than already, that is), and don't fall victim to the United Kingdom's bizarre desire to enact Brexit and leave the world's largest trading bloc. You're likely wondering why Croatia hasn't done so yet, at least not publicly. As Lance Corporal Jack Jones would have said: Don't panic.

Belgium, Italy, Germany, Spain and the Netherlands are just some of the EU countries to have come forward and assured Brits living and working in their countries that plans are firmly in place to make sure their lives go on undisrupted by this utter mess. That's a little too late for many after years of inexcusable limbo, but it's very welcome for many nonetheless.

But what about other countries, you might ask? What of, let's say, Romania? Romania has been eerily quiet on the matter despite having been given assurances that Romanian citizens living and working in the United Kingdom will remain protected and have their rights enshrined into UK law regardless of the Brexit outcome. The same assurances, with all due respect to Britain, have been given repeatedly to all other EU citizens legally residing in Britain. A new system has been set up which promises to be simple and as recent announcements have confirmed - totally free.

The UK has dropped its former demand for £65 for ''settled'' and ''pre-settled'' status after listening to the concerns of many, and EU citizens in the UK now have a very clear way of securing their rights before June 2021. The UK hasn't done much right since the non-binding referendum delivered a shock Leave result, but in making sure to put citizens and their acquired EU treaty rights first, it has been firm.

Everyone knows Croatia likes to drag its heels. It doesn't mean anything bad by it really, that's just what it does. That being said, it will gladly bow to whatever the EU asks of it, but in its own time. What do I mean by this? Well, to put it simply, MUP (Croatian Ministry of the Interior) has stated when asked (probably repeatedly) by Balkan Insight that there will be ''special rules'' in place for British citizens who have legal residence (biometric permit) in Croatia.

As Balkan Insight writes on the 22nd of January, 2019: ''The Interior Ministry in Croatia, which joined the EU in 2013, told BIRN that “special rules will be applied UK citizens who, on March 29, 2019, have regulated status of foreigner in the Republic of Croatia, which will allow [them] to maintain the right of residence.” But the ministry said it was “still developing in details the modalities of residence” of British citizens in Croatia after Brexit and how new documents would be issued.

The goal, it said, would be to allow British citizens and their families who have regulated status continued access, without restrictions, to the Croatian labour market. According to official data, currently 659 British citizens have regulated status in Croatia – 277 permanent residents and 382 with temporary residence.

The British embassy in Zagreb said it expected Croatia to reciprocate the commitment London made with regards the rights of citizens from the EU residing in Britain in the event of a no-deal scenario.''

So, what does this actually mean? It means that British citizens in Croatia can expect forthcoming reassurances like those which have been provided by a growing number of EU countries about their status, but the details must be finalised first. MUP knows it needs to do something. In any case, with assurances pouring in from other EU countries confirming the legal residence status of British citizens living in their countries, Croatia is sure to follow, just in its own time. Ever the lover of red tape and miraculously turning one sheet of paper into ten, it shouldn't come as a surprise that Croatia is dragging its heels. 

In any case, although the majority of what I wrote in my last article is now void (cheers, Theresa), what remains to be true is that as long as you hold a residence card and are known by the system, you don't need to worry.

You can apply for permanent residence when you've reached five years as you normally would for now, and if you're nowhere near that five year mark yet, just make sure you're properly registered and have a residence card that is valid.

Nobody wants to punish anybody for acting on their EU treaty rights, least of all Croatia after having the rights of its citizens guaranteed and set to be enshrined by London long ago, so make sure to follow us for any updates as we'll be sure to bring them as soon as we're informed of any, should the UK ever actually leave the EU at all.

Make sure to follow our dedicated politics page for more.

The proposal, according to Goran Pauk, will contribute to increasing the quality of life in Croatia's counties and increasing the withdrawal of European Union money. The Croatian Government will soon offer the proposal to Brussels.

As Marija Brnic/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 16th of January, 2019, the Croatian Government will submit a proposal for a new division of Croatia's regions to Brussels on the 24th of January this year, in which the current division into two regions will be replaced by a new ''map'' with four divisions.

The existing model was set up back in 2012, with seven coastal counties included in the Adriatic, while thirteen counties and the City of Zagreb are united as continental Croatia. From the very outset, the main weakness of this form of division was showcased by the Croatian capital, the only one with more than 100 percent of development according to the EU average, which unintentionally yet severely limited the potential of withdrawing and using European Union funds in other continental counties.

As in the meantime the number of inhabitants of Zagreb exceeded 800,000, a study was carried out, in which the Institute for development and international relations was engaged. Of the nine analysed divisions, it was determined that it would be best to distinguish Zagreb as a separate region. Adriatic Croatia remains the same, while Northern Croatia would be consist of Krapina-Zagorje, Međimurje and Koprivnica-Križevci counties. Central and Eastern Croatia would be made up of the Slavonian counties plus Bjelovar-Bilogora, Karlovac, Sisak-Moslavina, with the option of Bjelovar-Bilogora also being part of Northern Croatia.

While the Croatian Government will of course be the official body which sends the final proposal, the decisions will be made by the involved counties themselves next week, but in any case, the new divisions, like the other continental ones, will see many counties enjoy far better positions and a greater degree of regional support than the current divisions have. In the counties of Eastern Croatia, and in Sisak-Moslavina and Karlovac, the level of regional aid would increase by 25 percent with this new model when compared to the present situation.

Those in the northwest would be entitled to a 10 percent increase in regional aid while Adriatic Croatia would remain nominally at its current level, but in reality things would also increase there, too. By having Zagreb as one region, the level of compulsory national co-financing on its territory would come up to 60 percent instead of the current 30 percent.

It has been estimated that the Croatian Government's new proposal will certainly contribute to increasing the quality of life in all of Croatia's counties, as well as increase the withdrawal of cash from EU funds. Positive effects will be especially felt by Croatian entrepreneurs in the counties of continental Croatia, because they will be able to receive more support from the available funds.

Keep up with what the Croatian Government's next moves are and much more by following our dedicated politics page.

Click here for the original article by Marija Brnic for Poslovni Dnevnik

For some, the mere idea of the introduction of the euro in Croatia is enough to induce passionate debate. For others, the introduction of the single European currency is the next step to leaving the country's tumultuous past behind, and joining the ''ever closer union'' that Eurocrats in Brussels speak so highly of. While the United Kingdom managed to secure a way out of the currency's introduction much earlier, Croatia had to agree to take on the euro in order to join the bloc.

Introducing the euro in Croatia is likely to bring problems as well as solve them, but what use is the adoption of the single currency when many of Croatia's national institutions are in total disarray? Until state institutions can be brought into line, the introduction of the euro and the overhaul that involves will only work to contribute to existing issues, rather than help to solve them.

As Ana Blaskovic/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 9th of January, 2019, just over a year after the announcement of the Croatian Government's intention to introduce the euro, encouraged by positive signals from Europe, Croatia will send a letter of intent to enter the exchange rate mechanism (ERM) by the summer. The aforementioned mechanism is known as the ''waiting room" for a country's introduction of the euro as its currency. Although the letter is only the first formal step in the process of replacing the kuna with the formerly problematic single currency, its content is not merely a pleasant yet rather empty formality.

The letter will involve the Croatian Government agreeing on a series of concrete reform moves, in a relatively short period of about a year. "The ball is now in the government's court to make a list of moves that can be completed within a year, within the gauge that they're achievable, easily measurable, and are written in the letter of intent," an interlocutor close to the central bank told Poslovni Dnevnik.

Judging by the Bulgarian version of the letter that Sofia officially sent to a number of European Union addresses at the end of July, the answer to the question of what exactly Andreja Plenković's government could or should put on paper doesn't need great philosophical effort put into it. There is already a list of specific recommendations from Brussels for the Republic of Croatia.

Reforms is a word that everyone in Croatia gets sick of hearing, and this next political move involves a well-known series of infamous reforms, the implementation of which has been largely shifted to ''next year''. The euro in Croatia however, demands certain reforms be met, and sooner rather than later.

For example, there are administration reforms (including those regarding salaries), reforms to the utterly bizarre Croatian justice system, the establishing of a more just system of social benefits and rights, the strengthening of the fiscal framework, and the introduction of property taxes, a controversial idea which Plenković has moved around quite a lot on.

"The European Commission supports member states' efforts to introduce the euro, not only politically, but in also providing the necessary technical assistance and potential financial resources," said Valdis Dombrovskis, adding that Croatia is very serious in its intentions and is working intensively to meet the conditions for its eventual entry into the eurozone. One of the panelists at that conference was the Croatian National Bank's Boris Vujčić, which is also regarded by all as a firm sign of Croatia's support.

"The most difficult thing to do is to enter the ERM II, because there are no clear criteria that a country needs to meet in order to enter the exchange rate mechanism. Once you're in the ERM, the criteria for introducing the euro is clear, although some of it is constantly changing, so you do need a bit of luck on your side in order to be able to fulfil it,'' said Latvia's governer. One thing is certain, unlike the correspondence Croatia has had with the European Commission until now (primarily concerning becoming a member of the EU), the rules for a country's adoption of the euro are much stricter.

Make sure to stay up to date for more information on the intended introduction of the euro in Croatia and much more by following our dedicated politics page.

Click here for the original article by Ana Blaskovic for Poslovni Dnevnik

The Croatian Prime Minister looks back on his government's achievements during 2018, and offers and insight into what else will be implemented in 2019, from tax reductions and help with housing costs to demographic measures.

''If, because of the continued issues between Israel and America, the Republic of Croatia is unable buy the F-16 Barak combat aircraft from the Israelis, as it has chosen to, Croatia will cancel its decision,'' said Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković in an interview with Vecernji list.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 31st of December, 2018, in his New Year's interview with Vecernji list, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković spoke about the government's 2019 announcements in the field of tax policy, economy and demography, Croatia's foreign and EU policy, and relations with neighbouring countries.

 When asked if Israel had written approval from America to allow for the sale of F-16 Barak aircraft to Croatia when they showed up at the Croatian tender for the purchase of combat aircraft, Plenković said that "Israel had taken on the obligation of needing to obtain American permission for the sale of the airplanes offered, ie, the F-16 Barak, which Croatia has chosen ".

"At this point, we have information that the US doesn't agree with the sale of Israel's airplanes [which have been] offered to Croatia and insists that all the equipment with which the Israeli aircraft has been upgraded and modified be removed from them. We expect an Israeli declaration in view of these new circumstances,'' the Croatian Prime Minister stated.

"As I said publicly three weeks ago, if we were unable to buy the airplanes we selected, the government will cancel its decision on the choice,'' he noted.

 Regarding a recent decision by the President of the Republic of Croatia to dismiss her adviser Mato Radeljić, the Croatian Prime Minister recalled the fact that there were a number of advisors who had also been dismissed, adding that he was talking about staffing issues under the authority of the Croatian president.

Commenting on Radeljić's allegations of alleged threats made to him from SOA, Plenković said that SOA had carried out internal controls and no pressure or threats of any kind had been found.

"I spoke with SOA's chief, he reported to me that SOA carried out its internal oversight of this issue, and even the slightest doubt that pressures or threats were being made to the former advisor were completely eliminated,'' he added.

 When asked about the now somewhat infamous SMS affair, the Croatian Prime Minister emphasised that this affair was particularly bad because it regarded absolutely unacceptable behavior.

''Fabrication, ie, the counterfeiting of alleged correspondence of the highest political and judicial officials, was aimed at destabilising the political scene, the institution and the legal order. We want to strengthen trust in our institutions, I expect the police, DORH and all the competent bodies to keep shedding light on this affair right up until the end,'' he said.

 Regarding the government's implemented tax reforms, the Croatian Prime Minister said that his government is continuing to reduce taxes, including VAT rates, as it committed to earlier in its program.

 "Our tax system is now simpler and fairer than it was at the beginning of this mandate, with a total tax deduction for citizens and entrepreneurs of 6.5 billion kuna,'' Plenković said, adding that tax on medicine will drop as of the 1st of January, 2019.

''We've seen that shops have already started lowering their prices, which hasn't been the case so far, and this way it [the tax reductions] will be felt by citizens,'' he added.

 Asked if he has now completely dropped the controversial idea of property tax, the Croatian Prime Minister simply said, "There will be no property tax."

Reflecting on the demographic measures implemented by his government so far, Plenković emphasised the fact that he believes that positive demographic figures are also showing that, over the first ten months of 2018, 351 children more were born than during the same period last year, and that this is a direct result of the Croatian Government's various demographic measures.

"When we keep in mind that this number has continued to decline over the last twenty years, and in 2017, 981 less children were born than there were one year earlier, this latest data provides moderate optimism," he said.

"We're subsidise housing loans for young people, thanks to which 5,200 families now have their homes. In the next two years, another 5 or 6 thousand families can expect to be helped to build or purchase a house or apartment," the Croatian Prime Minister added.

 In addition, he said, tax reforms had strong positive demographic effects on the country.

Make sure to stay up to date with our dedicated politics page for much more.