Applying for Croatian Citizenship

ON THE PROCESS OF ACQUIRING CROATIAN CITIZENSHIP IN AUSTRALIA

Application for Acquiring Croatian Citizenship

Foreign nationals (persons who do not have Croatian citizenship) can submit an application for Croatian citizenship and acquire it by naturalisation if they meet the requirements laid down by the Croatian Citizenship Act.
The application for acquiring Croatian citizenship by naturalisation must be submitted in person at a diplomatic mission or consular post of the Republic of Croatia in Australia according to the residence (ACT in Croatian Embassy in Canberra; VIC, SA and TAS in Croatian Consulate Melbourne; NSW, QLD and NT in Croatian Consulate in Sydney; WA in Croatian Consulate in Perth).
The procedure for acquiring Croatian citizenship is carried out by the Ministry of the Interior at its headquarters.
Foreign nationals become Croatian citizens on the day of the delivery of a positive decision. Upon the delivery of a positive decision, the applicant is entered into the Register of Citizens, on a citizenship ceremony at the competent diplomatic mission or consular post of the Republic of Croatia in Australia, signing the documents by applicant.

What documents are required to acquire citizenship as an adult?

1) Proof of current citizenship (Valid Australian passport or passport of another country);
2) Biography/motivation letter in Croatian;
3) Birth certificate sealed with an Apostille Stamp not older than 6 months and translated
into Croatian;
4) Marriage certificate (if applicable) not older than 6 months and sealed with an Apostille Stamp not older than 6 months and translated into Croatian;
5) Criminal record check not older than 6 months, issued by the relevant authority of the country of citizenship and/or country of permanent residence, sealed with an Apostille Stamp not older than 6 months and translated into Croatian. Also necessary is the criminal record check from the country of birth, if the applicant was not born in Australia, not older than 6 months, and depending on the origin of the document fully legalized, apostilled or with no additional verification with translation into Croatian language unless the document has been issued in Croatian language. Please check online or with the Embassy/Consulate the status of documents from your country of birth.
6) The Domovnica (citizenship document) or Croatian passport or osobna iskaznica (Croatian national identity card) of a parent(s) must be provided if they are Croatian citizen(s);
7) If the application is also being submitted for underage children, the extract from child’s birth register (Birth certificate with Apostille stamp, not older than 6 months and translated into Croatian) must also be enclosed, along with proof of citizenship (passport) and the written consent of the other parent (there are exceptions when the application may be submitted by only one parent).
8) Depending on the grounds for acquiring Croatian citizenship, other documents will also need to be submitted:

- Those belonging to the Croatian people must provide documents which prove their previous declaration of nationality in legal transactions - e.g. an original or a certified copy of employment records, military records, certificates, student enrolment and grade books, extract from the birth register, extract from the marriage register etc. Other proof of belonging to the Croatian people can include providing evidence of protecting the rights and promoting the interests of the Croatian people, as well as evidence of active participation in Croatian cultural, science and sports organisations abroad. Those whose parents belong to the Croatian people may enclose proof of their parents’ declaration of nationality with the application.

- Emigrants - documents proving their emigration from the territory of the Republic of Croatia. Descendants of emigrants should also provide proof that they are related to the emigrant. If the emigrants or their ancestors emigrated from the territory of former countries to which the territory of present-day Republic of Croatia belonged at the time of their emigration, they will also need to prove the time of their emigration (before 08/10/1991) and their belonging to the Croatian people.

9) Fill up the form - All application forms are available at the premises of appropriate Embassy or Consulate General or online at: https://mup.gov.hr > Građani > Moji dokumenti > Državljanstvo > Dokumenti i linkovi
10) A consular fee is charged at a diplomatic mission or consular post of the Republic of Croatia.

IMPORTANT

Please note that the originals of all documents (such as passport, birth certificate, marriage certificate, police check) must be presented.
Australian issued documents (such as birth, marriage certificate, police check) must undergo an authentication procedure with an Apostille seal: http://www.dfat.gov.au
All documents issued in English (birth certificate, marriage certificate, police check) must be translated into Croatian by a certified translator: www.naati.com.au
Name(s), surname(s), place and date of birth must all match on the documents.

Some additional questions and answers

Australian Passport - travel document that serves as proof of identity and citizenship needs to be valid. Name(s), surname(s), place and date of birth in the applicant’s passport must match the name in the applicant’s birth, marriage certificate(s), and police/criminal record check.
Resume/biography - a resume of the applicant must be written in Croatian. The resume should include his/her name, date and place of birth, address, education, current employment, parents’ names, dates and places of birth of the parents, and the parents’ emigration path (if applicable). The format of the resume is not defined; any format may be used as long as it contains the necessary information. A written statement of the applicant must be written in either Croatian or translated into Croatian with an enclosed English version (translated by a certified translator). It should explain the motivation and reasons of the applicant for applying for Croatian citizenship.
Consular fees are under review every year due to the exchange rate between EURO and the AUD and for the exact amount of the consular fee, please contact, prior to submitting your application the competent consular office according to your residence. Consular fees are non-refundable, regardless of the outcome of the application. The fees are payable upon submitting the application.
The waiting period is not strictly defined and depends on each individual case. The expected waiting time for a fully completed application is around 12-24 months, but may take longer or shorter in some cases.
Please consider that this overview does not cover all the possible cases regulated by the Croatian Citizenship Act and is intended to be informative in nature. The Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Croatia, as the competent authority, after running thorough assessment, may decide that an applicant is required to submit additional documents in order to support his/her application. If the legal prerequisites are not met, an applicant will receive a negative decision.
All decisions on citizenship applications are made by the Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Croatia. It is strongly advised to submit a fully completed application with all the necessary documents in order to avoid later corrections and updates to the application and reduce the length of the waiting period. Any changes in contact information (e.g. new address or phone number) or personal information (name change) during the process, i.e. after submitting the application and paying the fee, must be communicated to the Embassy or Consulate General so the application can be updated.

How to apply?

Submitting a citizenship application can only be done in person.

In Australia you may apply through the Embassy of the Republic of Croatia in Canberra. Consulate General of the Republic of Croatia in Melbourne, Consulate General of the Republic of Croatia in Sydney and Consulate of the Republic of Croatia in Perth.
You can make an appointment by e-mail or telephone at the appropriate office. You will need to bring all the necessary documents referenced herein to the appointment and pay the consular fee upon submitting your application.
During the processing of your application, which is done by the Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Croatia, consular officers will contact you pertaining to your application. When the Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Croatia reaches a decision on your application, you will be contacted by the consular officers and instructed on how to proceed.

Where to apply according to the Consular jurisdiction?

If you reside in the ACT:
Embassy of the Republic of Croatia in Canberra
14 Jindalee Crescent, O'Malley ACT 2606
tel. 02 6286 6988; e-mail: crocons.canberra@mvep.hr

If you reside in VIC, SA or TAS:
Consulate General of the Republic of Croatia in Melbourne
9/24 Albert Road, South Melbourne, VIC 3205
tel. 03 9699 2633; e-mail: croconmel@mvep.hr

If you reside in NSW, QLD or NT:
Consulate General of the Republic of Croatia in Sydney
4/379 Kent Street, P.O. Box Q104, Sydney NSW 2000
tel. 02 9299 8899; e-mail: crocons.sydney@mvep.hr

If you reside in WA:
Consulate of the Republic of Croatia in Perth
Unit 21, 68 St. George's Terrace, Perth WA 6831
Tel. 08 9321 6044; e-mail: perth@mvep.hr

Where to get more information?

If you would like to know more details about which requirements have to meet to obtain Croatian citizenship and who is eligible to apply, please visit the web site of the Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Croatia on the following link: https://mup.gov.hr/drzavljanstvo-325/325

Some examples of the Australian documents

Birth and Marriage Certificate