Frequently Asked Questions

If you have an ancestor who emigrated from Croatian territory before 8 October 1991, you may be eligible under Article 11 of the Croatian Citizenship Act. This applies to children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and beyond — there is no generational limit.

Alternatively, Article 16 covers those who can demonstrate belonging to the Croatian nation through ethnicity declarations, public documents, or participation in Croatian cultural organizations abroad — even without proving a direct emigrant ancestor.

Not sure which applies to you? Our free eligibility check can help you find out in under two minutes.

No. Since the 2019 amendments to the Croatian Citizenship Act, there is no generational limit. Your Croatian ancestor can be a parent, grandparent, great-grandparent, or further back. The only requirement is an unbroken lineage supported by official civil records.

No. The Croatian language test for descent-based applicants was abolished in 2020. You do not need to speak, read, or write Croatian to obtain citizenship under Article 11 or Article 16. Certain application documents — your CV, motivational letter, and the Obrazac form — must be in Croatian, but these can be prepared with the help of a translator or by our team.

Croatia fully permits dual citizenship for those acquiring it by descent. You are not required to renounce your existing nationality — whether American, Canadian, Australian, or otherwise.

The United States does not prohibit dual citizenship, and decades of Supreme Court precedent protect your right to hold a foreign passport. Canada has explicitly permitted dual citizenship since 1977. You keep all the rights and obligations of your current citizenship while gaining Croatian (and EU) citizenship.

Most cases take roughly 15–36 months from start to finish. A typical breakdown:

• Research and document gathering: 1–4 months

• Apostille seals and certified translations: 1–3 months

• Consulate appointment wait: 1–6 months (varies by location)

• Ministry of Interior review and decision: 12–24 months

The Ministry review is the longest phase and is outside anyone's control. However, the preparation stages can be significantly shortened with professional assistance.

The complete checklist includes 15 categories of documents, but the core items are: the Obrazac application form (in Croatian), a valid passport, a CV and motivational letter in Croatian, your birth certificate with Apostille and translation, a marriage certificate if applicable, an FBI or police background check with Apostille and translation, and birth and marriage certificates for each ancestor in your lineage chain.

Croatian-issued documents do not need an Apostille and have no date limit. US-issued birth and marriage certificates must be issued within 1.5 years of your appointment. The FBI background check cannot be older than 6 months.

For the full list with detailed instructions, see our Required Documents guide.

An Apostille is an international certification that confirms a document is authentic. Under the Hague Convention, it allows documents issued in one country to be recognized in another without further legalization.

All non-Croatian civil documents — birth certificates, marriage certificates, death certificates, background checks, name change decrees — need an Apostille seal. The Apostille itself must also be translated into Croatian.

Croatian documents do not need an Apostille. They also have no date limit — a Croatian birth certificate from decades ago is perfectly valid.

Once the Ministry of Interior approves your application, you receive your Rješenje (citizenship decision). After that, you can obtain your:

• Domovnica — certificate of citizenship

• Croatian birth certificate

• OIB — personal identification number (tax number)

• Croatian ID card

• Croatian passport

Your Croatian citizenship is also automatically passed to your children, making them eligible for their own Croatian documents.

A Croatian passport is ranked 7th in the world, granting visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to 182+ countries. As an EU citizen, you also gain:

• The right to live and work in any of the 27 EU member states — no visa, no work permit

• Access to the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) for healthcare across the EU

• University education at domestic EU rates (often near-zero in Germany, Austria, the Nordics)

• The right to open bank accounts, start businesses, and invest across Europe as a local

• Exemption from the upcoming ETIAS travel authorization system (launching 2026), which will require all non-EU visitors — including Americans — to pre-register and pay a fee for every trip to Europe

These rights apply to you and to your descendants.