Starting a Business in Croatia : Guide
Formal registration of companies has many immediate benefits for the companies and for business owners and employees. Legal entities can outlive their founders. Resources are pooled as several shareholders join forces to start a company. Formally registered companies have access to services and institutions from courts to banks as well as to new markets. And their employees can benefit from protections provided by the law. An additional benefit comes with limited liability companies. These limit the financial liability of company owners to their investments, so personal assets of the owners are not put at risk. Where governments make registration easy, more entrepreneurs start businesses in the formal sector, creating more good jobs and generating more revenue for the government.
Below is a detailed summary of the bureaucratic and legal hurdles faced by entrepreneurs wishing to incorporate and register a new firm in Croatia. It examines the procedures, time and cost involved in launching a commercial or industrial firm with up to 50 employees and start-up capital of 10 times the economy's per-capita gross national income.
| No. | Procedure | Time to Complete | Associated Costs |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Check availability of the company's name | 1 day | 10 HRK |
| 2 | Notarize memorandum of association and register company with the Commercial Court electronically | 4 days | 3150 HRK (notary) + 220 HRK (application fee) + 160 HRK (drafting the acceptance of appointment statement) + 46,60 HRK per signature + HRK 400 (court fees) + HRK 900 (publication fees) |
| 3 | Order official seal and apply for statistical registration number | 1 day | HRK 150 + HRK 55 |
| 4 | Open a bank account | 1 day | HRK 175 |
| * 5 | Register with tax authority (porezna uprava) for VAT and employee income tax withdrawals | 1 day (simultaneous with previous procedure) | no charge |
| * 6 | Register with Croatian Pension Insurance Fund (Hrvatski zavod za mirovinsko osiguranjem, HZMO) or FINA | 1 day (simultaneous with previous procedure) | no charge |
