November the 14th, 2022 - A new Croatian pension model is on the horizon, which will likely make the payouts retirees receive each month higher in the long run.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, a new Croatian pension model will come into force on January the 1st next year, as will Croatian entry into Schengen and the Eurozone. The news is that what are known as family pensions are set to increase by 10 percent, and for the first time, widows and widowers will be able to keep their personal pension and inherit part of their deceased spouse's pension, which wasn't even possible until now.

The new Croatian pension model will cover more than 155,000 pensioners, and the average increase will be around 510 kuna, which while small in the eyes of some, isn't entirely insignificant to those receiving a criminally low amount each month. In order to be entitled to this type of pension, you must be 65 years old. In addition, at the time of your partner's death, you should be able to meet all of the other conditions for exercising the right to a family pension, according to a report from HRT.

"For example, if someone was 50 years old at the time of their spouse's death or they were taking care of their children, that means they were fulfilling their parental duties. And, on top of that - that the sum of their personal pension and part of their family pension doesn't exceed 80 of the current value of the pension, which currently stands at 6,212 kuna," said Melita Cicak, the director of the Pension System Administration in the Ministry of Labour.

What is the actual procedure?

Considering the differences, each user will be able to get information from the Pension Insurance Institute (HZMO) about which Croatian pension model is the most profitable for them.

"Users who use only their family pension, and haven't been granted the right to a personal pension, will need to submit a request for the realisation of the right to a personal pension or family pension before requesting the payment of part of the family pension," said Maja Cakarun, head of the Public Relations Office of the HZMO.

The new law enters into force on January the 1st, 2023, and its implementation will require around one billion and 400 million kuna.

For more, make sure to keep up with our dedicated news section.

June 27, 2022 - You see them on the street, you see them on your bills, and you hear them on the phone. Who is who among the Croatian public services and institutions? We'll tell you more in this short guide.

If moving to Croatia is one of your short-term projects, or even if you're already in the process of adaptation, you may have heard of or been in contact with one of these institutions. These Croatian public services and institutions will be part of your daily life here, and it is true that sometimes it can be a bit confusing trying to distinguish them from each other.

In this short guide, we've listed some of the Croatian public services and institutions that you will be in contact with most often, and we hope that this will help you when you don't know where to go for a certain task, or when it's time to do your accounts at home.

MUP

If you're working on getting your residency or citizenship in Croatia, you have most likely gone to a local MUP office. It's also likely that they've called you on the phone or have written you an email or two. MUP is the Ministry of the Interior, and it provides services to both locals and foreigners alike. At MUP, you will also carry out procedures to obtain your passport, your driver's license, your Croatian identification card, and more.

HZZO 

HZZO is the Croatian Health Insurance Fund, it's part of the Ministry of the Health and it includes everything that is related to public health insurance services in the country. As you well know, public health insurance is mandatory if you reside in Croatia. If you wish to enroll in the Croatian public health system, you must go to the HZZO offices in your city of residence. There you can also find out everything related to your health coverage, sign up with a family doctor, and more.

HZZ

HZZ is the Croatian Employment Office, and it serves to report your current employment status, whether you've found a job or if you don't currently have one. At the Employment Office, you can also find job openings that match your skills. 

HZMO

The Croatian Pension Insurance Institute (HZMO) is a public institution that is dedicated to the implementation of mandatory pension insurance based on generational solidarity (1st pillar of the pension insurance) and the child benefit entitlement procedure.

Porezna uprava

Porezna uprava is the Croatian Tax Administration, and it's a unique and independent administrative organisation within the Finance Ministry whose basic task is the application and supervision of tax regulations and laws on the collection of contributions. Most of your bills will be issued by Porezna uprava. They'll also issue you with tax rebates.

FINA

FINA, the Financial Agency, is a leading Croatian company in the field of financial and electronic service provision. Although state-owned, Fina operates exclusively on a market basis and cooperates with banks, the Croatian National Bank, numerous business systems, and other similar entities. A multitude of payments can be paid at their offices.

Hrvatska Pošta

Hrvatska Pošta is the Croatian Post Office, and it has locations in every city and town across the country. In addition to being the place where you can send letters and packages throughout the country and even abroad, it's also the place where you can pay for your phone, electricity, water, health insurance, and more.

HEP

A state-owned company, HEP is the Croatian Electricity Company and it is the only energy entity authorised to provide a public electricity supply in the Republic of Croatia. It also performs the activities of electricity production and heat production for central heating systems, in addition to the management, maintenance, construction, and development of the electricity distribution network.

HAC 

Hrvatske autoceste or Croatian Motorways Ltd is a Croatian state-owned limited liability company tasked with the management, construction, and maintenance of motorways in Croatia.

HRT

Croatian Radio and Television (HRT) performs the activity of providing public broadcasting services. On their radio and television channels, they dedicate themselves to the dissemination of news, information, culture and other related content. Even if you don't watch their channels or listen to their radio stations, a bill of 80 kuna from HRT will always arrive at your home.

For more, check out our lifestyle section.

June the 10th, 2022 - 50,000 more people have been registered by the Croatian Pension Insurance Institute since last year, as a marked employment increase following the pandemic and as we head towards the summer season bumps numbers up.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Jadranka Dozan writes, under the influence of increased seasonal employment which is very common in this country at this time of year, the total number of insured persons at the Croatian Pension Insurance Institute continued to grow throughout the month of May.

According to preliminary data from the Croatian Pension Insurance Institute (HZMO), their number increased by about 23,000 last month alone; with April’s just under 1.6 million at the end of May reaching 1,622,421.

Compared to the end of last May, the number of insured persons at the Croatian Pension Insurance Institute is higher by 48.5 thousand or three percent, while compared to the pandemic-dominated May of 2020, today it is almost 99 thousand or about 6.5 percent more.

The largest number of insured persons is sectorally concentrated in two large fields or blocks - in the manufacturing industry (with almost 250 thousand employees) and trade (with slightly less than 245 thousand people), but the largest increase hasn't been recorded in those sectors.

Over the past year, the number of insured persons in activities related to tourism has unsurprisingly increased the most (the provision of accommodation and food preparation and serving); at the end of May this year, there were 17.3 thousand more insured persons in those sectors today than there were one year ago.

At the end of last month, there were 5,300 more insured persons in the trade sector, at the end of the same month last year, in professional, scientific and technical activities there were almost 4,800 more, and in the processing industry, there were 4,610 more.

The HZMO analysis shows that compared to two years ago, the number of insured persons in the hospitality industry increased by more than 25,000, and a significant increase was recorded in construction, where the number of insured persons increased by almost 12.2 thousand in that two-year period (with the fact that since last May it has increased by four thousand).

Compared to two years ago, the number of those earning in the manufacturing industry has increased by more than 9,300.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated lifestyle section.

April the 26th, 2022 - Some Croatian pensioners have received a mere 180 kuna more on their bank accounts, but it hasn't come in the form of some sort of generosity from the powers that be, and this system error means they will need to pay it back.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, back at the end of last year, during the process of the payment of pensions to Croatian pensioners, there was a "system error" within the Croatian Pension Insurance Institute, which caused 1258 Croatian pensioners to accidentally receive slightly increased pensions. The amount of wrongly redirected money amounts to 226,080.92 kuna, which means that the average pensioner affected by this error received about 180 kuna or so more on their accounts than they're entitled to.

Deputy director Ivo Bulaja spoke out about the situation for the portal Mirovina.hr/Pension.hr, and he described it as a "minor system error" involving both human and technical factors. He explained that 10 percent of the money wrongly paid out to Croatian pensioners has already been returned, and that the remaining 90 percent is currently being worked on.

''We've sent an inquiry to the Pension Insurance Institute to look into how this mistake was made and in what way Croatian pensioners will have to return the money that doesn't belong to them. Some people who received increased amounts saw for themselves that something was wrong, and they contacted the Bureau about the instructions for the return of the funds. However, it seems that the Institute is heavily insured in such cases because such system errors are even covered in the Pension Insurance Act.

"A person who receives their pension or some other income from the Pension Insurance Institute that doesn't belong to them is obliged to return it to the Institute as they've acquired it without the proper grounds. The obligation to return the funds they've received without grounds to do so exists when the pension or other form of income is paid in a larger amount than the due amount,'' reads Article 166 of the Pension Insurance Act.

In addition, the decision on the recognition of the right to a pension states that the beneficiary is obliged to report to the Institute "any change caused by personal or actual circumstances that affect the right or scope of exercise of this right'' within a period of just fifteen days.

The Croatian Pension Insurance Institute (HZMO) will determine the amount of improperly paid funds ex officio by a decision within their administrative procedure, and the beneficiaries will state in the notification the account number (payment instructions) to which the amount can be returned.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated lifestyle section.

ZAGREB, 10 Jan 2022 - The Croatian Pension Insurance Institute (HZMO) reported on Monday that there were 1,571,672 insured persons in 2021, which is 2.3% more than in 2020 and 1.7% more than in 2019.

According to HZMO figures, at the end of December 2021, there were 35,372 or 2.3% more insured persons compared to 31 December 2020 and 26,480 or 1.7% more insured persons than in the pre-pandemic 2019.

The number of insured persons is an indicator of employment.

According to the HZMO, the number of insured persons at the end of 2021 was the largest in the manufacturing industry (245,400) and the wholesale and retail sector (240,012).

In retail, there were 3,507 more insured persons compared to the end of 2020 but 684 fewer insured persons compared to December 2019. In manufacturing, at the end of 2021, there were 4,374 more employees than in 2020 and 1,012 more than at the end of 2019.

The biggest increase in the number of insured persons is visible in professional, scientific, and technical activities, with 5,595 more insured persons compared to 2020, followed by insured persons in manufacturing and in the provision of accommodation and food preparation, which saw 4,321 more insured persons.

At the end of 2021, there were 98,591 insured persons in professional, scientific, and technical activities, 5,452 more insured persons than at the end of 2019. Currently, there are 88,152 insured persons working in hospitality and tourism, which is a decrease of 5,475 persons compared to 2019, the HZMO reported.

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January the 5th, 2022 - As of today, the Croatian Pension Insurance Institute (HZMO) will have a new tool at its disposal for employers, the brand new electronic e-Control (e-Kontrola) system.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, through this new service, employers, whether legal or natural persons, will be able to electronically submit the documentation required for the control procedure of the data on which the exercise of pension insurance rights in Croatia depends, and also download the control report in electronic form.

The Croatian Pension Insurance Institute explained that their brand new e-Control system is otherwise an upgrade of the electronic business service of HZMO Lana for the establishment of all types of applications for keeping the registry of the Institute.

They also specified how the new service will be available to both existing and new users, authorised persons of taxpayers who are already registered or are registering for the first time within the electronic service e-Application Lana, without the need to come to the Croatian Pension Insurance Institute's counters in person. That alone will absolutely be favourable among the vast majority of people in Croatia who have already had more than their fair share of waiting around in lines.

According to them, this way of doing things speeds up the data control process and reduces administrative costs, all while saving people's time and the need to appear physically.

“With this new service, we're further modernising our data control processes in order to create the preconditions for a faster and cheaper business environment for contributors, legal entities and individuals.

By improving digital business and expanding our range of e-services, we're also actively contributing to the basic business goal of the Croatian Pension Insurance Institute, ie the faster realisation of the pension rights of all future retirees,'' said director Ivan Serdar.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated lifestyle section.

ZAGREB, 7 Dec, 2021 -  The Croatian Pension Insurance Agency (HZMO) on Tuesday reported that in November there were 26,000 more insured persons than in the same month in 2019, and by 37,565 more than in November 2020, which is an increase for the tenth month in a row.

According to the HZMO figures, on 30 November there were over 1.58 million insured persons, or 2.43% and 1.69% more than in November 2020 and November 2019 respectively.

The number of insured persons is an indicator of employment.

According to the HZMO, the largest number of insured persons at the end of November 2021 was recorded in the manufacturing industry (247,046) and the wholesale and retail sector (240,541).

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ZAGREB, 6 Aug 2021 - The Croatian Pension Insurance Institute (HZMO) said on Friday that the number of insured persons had increased for the sixth month in a row, with the number of insured persons standing at 1,606,533 on 31 July 2021, 3.36% or 52,203 insurees more than on the same day in 2020.

Compared with the end of July of the pre-pandemic year 2019, the number of insurees was up by 6,128.

Most insurees were registered in the manufacturing industry (246,149) and wholesale and retail trade (244,888).

Compared to June 2021, the number of insurees increased the most (+8,177) in the provision of accommodation and food preparation and serving.

Compared to the same period of 2020, the number of insurees grew the most in the provision of accommodation and food preparation and serving (+8,968), construction (6,776) and the manufacturing industry (4,985).

Compared with July 2019, the number of insurees in the construction sector in July 2021 was up by 11,763, and an increase was also reported in the ICT sector, with 5,798 insured persons more compared to 2019 and 3,734 insurees more than in 2020, the HZMO said.

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ZAGREB, 6 July, 2021 - The Croatian Pension Insurance Institute (HZMO) said on Tuesday that the number of pension insurance contributions had been on the rise for five months in a row, and the number of insurees was higher by 3.54% at the end of this June compared to June 2020.

At the end of this June, the contributions were paid by 1,596,112 insurees, or by 54,499 people more than the year before.

Broken down by sector, the highest number of pension insurees was registered in the processing industry (more than 246,000 people covered by insurance contributions).

The rise in the number of insurees has been registered in several sectors, for instance, in construction, IT, the hospitality industry and so on.

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ZAGREB, 6 July, 2021 - The Croatian Pension Insurance Institute (HZMO) said on Tuesday that the number of pension insurance contributions had been on the rise for five months in a row, and the number of insurees was higher by 3.54% at the end of this June compared to June 2020.

The government-sponsored amendments were forwarded to the parliament at the session of the Andrej Plenković cabinet on 1 July.

In May, there were 216,000 family pension beneficiaries, and most of them were surviving spouses whose average monthly pension allowance was HRK 2,096, which was below the average pension. For instance, in May, pension associations reported that the average pension paid out  for February stood at HRK 2,567.

The budget allocation for this purpose has been ensured for 2022 and 2023.

According to the government's estimates, this year, an estimated 1,100 recipients of family pensions can exercise this right to work part-time and continue receiving family pensions. In 2022, the numbers can rise to 3,200 and in 2023 to 4,100 beneficiaries.

(€1 = HRK 7.484635)

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