Can a foreign investor purchase property in Croatia as an individual?

Yes, however they will need to gain approval from the Ministry of Legal Affairs following the purchase. This process can take from 6 months to several years. This will cause a problem if you are looking to sell the property quickly as you are unable to put your name into the land books until you receive Ministry approval. You should be aware that a property cannot be sold until your name is in the land books. If you are looking to sell the property quickly however you can easily have a company setup in Croatia and purchase via the company route. Ministry approval is not required when purchasing as a company.

How much tax will I have to pay when I sell my Croatian property?

If you keep the property for more than 3 years then zero capital gains tax will apply. If you sell the property in less than 3 years then capital gains tax must be paid.

How much tax will I have to pay when I complete my Croatian property purchase?

A few weeks or several months following the purchase of a property in Croatia you will have a visit from the local tax office who will estimate the value of your property. This value may be higher or lower than the initial purchase price so its important that you take pictures of the property at the purchase stage (in case the tax office visit following a renovation project for example). Once the property price has been estimated an invoice will be sent to the owner with a requirement to pay 5% of the estimated price of the property.

Is the process of buying property in Croatia easy?

Croatia is not the easiest place in the world to purchase property. We believe however that the process is not difficult and with a good lawyer and real estate agent there is little danger (unlike other regions such as Albania and Montenegro for example). There are several good reasons to buy in Croatia with a good prospect of gains especially in the next few years with expected entry into the European Union by 2010-11. Prices are expected to increase by a minimum of 30% following EU entry. The miles of beautiful beaches and unspoilt towns and villages makes Croatia a perfect place to invest. Prices are substantially lower than Italy and Spain and the country is catered for by several budget as well as major airlines. Travel time is only 2 hours from London. We believe that if the property purchase process was more streamlined then this would tell us that we had missed the boat in terms of an investment opportunity.