“Expat in Croatia” (and how this group has helped us)
After hearing my tale of woe about the Italian visa denial, and the research I was doing to potentially apply in Croatia, my friend, Leah suggested I reach out to a group called Expat in Croatia. Upon doing a quick Instagram search, I realized that I was already following them due to their beautiful images and travel tips that I’ve seen in the past. Who are these people and what do they offer?
From their website:
"Expat in Croatia is the #1 English-language resource in Croatia for immigration, citizenship, business, culture, real estate, language, healthcare and everything else one needs to be a part of the Croatian community.
We serve foreign nationals, Croatian citizens, and diaspora on how to live and work in Croatia through free step-by-step guides and services. Our services include consulting, on-the-ground relocation assistance, and introductions to our vetted network of professionals including accountants, translators, lawyers, and real estate agents.
So Mike and I scheduled a 30-minute consultation with Cam and she came prepared with answers to all of our questions, plus information on immigration rules that we did not even know to ask about. She also introduced us to a lawyer from their vetted network. After a consultation with Josip, we hired him to represent us in the visa process… We are done representing ourselves! Fast forward to today, less that a month before our departure from the states, and we are 99% sure that we have everything we need to hand over to Josip so that once we arrive in Croatia (after 67 days in Italy), he will then apply for Digital Nomad Visas on our behalf. Otherwise, we would have to go to a local police station, paperwork in hand (assuming we have everything we need), and apply there, with zero ability to speak Croatian.
We will be applying separately for visas, instead of together (which is possible because we are married). Why? Because in order to obtain visas as one, one of us would first apply, then upon approval, request to add a spouse. However, during that approval process time, our 90 days will certainly run out, which would force the other to leave for 90 days. While the applicant is being reviewed for a visa, the 90 days are on hold (and this means that you may not leave Croatian during this time either). So many rules, to so many rules. But we are now ready for our trip and Josip is ready to file for us separately. Here is what we are required to provide along with the applications:
Proof of Travel Health Insurance
FBI Background Check, apostilled at federal level*
Proof of Purpose - Proof that you either are able to work 100% remote (This refers to a work contract or other document proving that you perform work through “communication technology” for a foreign employer or your own company registered outside of Croatia), or proof that you own your own businesses, in which case it would have to be a Certificate of Existence and Registration, signed by the Secretary of State, and ALSO apostilled at state level*
Proof of Accomodation - Everyone in Croatia must have an address that is registered with the police. You may use a temporary address for the purposes of the application. This can be the address of the hostel, hotel, or accommodation if you have a confirmed reservation for your accommodation.
Once approved, you must have a notarized long-term rental contract, a landlord statement (if you are not paying rent), or an excerpt from the land registry proving your ownership of a property.
Proof of Sufficient funds to support yourself for a year (bank statements of monthly deposits or payslips). The financial means amount for digital nomads is 2.870,00 euros per month.
Passport photo 30x35mm
Copy of a valid passport
If married - copies of your marriage certificate, also apostilled at state level*
*An apostille is a form of authentication that seeks to simplify the process of legalizing and authenticating public documents so that they can be recognized internationally in foreign countries that are members of the 1961 Hague Convention Treaty (so the USA and Croatia are included). It’s like a form of official government notarization. Based on the the origin of the document, that is how you determine if you need to send your federal documents (like an FBI background check) to Federal Apostle in Washington DC, or state level (something like a marriage certificate). Let me know if you are interested in more information on where to do this, how long it takes, etc!
Our journey begins in Split for several months until we travel to Zagreb for Christmas and then we will decide where next. I can’t wait to introduce Mike to Croatia. It’s truly a gem and I cannot wait to explore more and photograph it’s wonder over the next year.