Attesting Croatian Documents (FAQs)

Yes - Croatia is a member of the Apostille Convention.

Croatian documents can be legalized for use abroad with an Apostille Stamp when destined for other signatory countries without additional certification by the destination country.

When Croatian documents are required for non-apostille countries, such as United Arab Emirates - Taiwan - Malaysia - Thailand - Zambia - Qatar they need additional authentication by the embassy of the destination country.

For further information see:
Croatia Apostille Services

Submission within the European Union
Certain Croatian documents do not require Apostilles when they are presented to authorities of other European Union countries (the receiving authority should accept the original or a certified copy).

When applying for certain public documents, a multilingual standard form may be requested to accompany the original. A multilingual standard form must always be issued and signed by a Croatian authority, providing a translation aid designed to help the receiving authority to understand a public document which is in a language not accepted by the receiving EU country.
See: EU Multilingual standard forms

Croatian documents not requiring Apostilles include birth, death, marriage certificates, absence of a criminal record (a clean criminal record of a Croatian citizen), certificates of nationality and residence:
See: Regulation (EU) 2016/1191

Other Croatian documents, including academic certificates, still require Apostille certification and certified translation to be valid in other EU countries.

Civil status certificates (multilingual extracts from the civil status registers)
Croatian birth, marriage and death certificates) issued in accordance with the conventions of the International Commission on Civil and Civil Status should not require Apostille Stamps when being submitted to one of the following countries:
Austria, Belgium, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Cape Verde, Estonia, France, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Moldova, Montenegro, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey.

Apostille stamps can be obtained in Croatia for documents which include Criminal Record Certificates (stamped by the Ministry of Justice), birth, death and marriage certificates, university diplomas and documents certified by a Croatian notary.

For further information, see:
Croatia Apostille Services

Apostilles for Birth, death and marriage certificates are obtained from the Municipal court in the municipality where the event took place. Marriage certificates issued by religious institutions require previous certification by a Croatian notary.

Submission within the European Union
Croatian certificates of civil status (marriage, death and birth certificates) do not require an Apostille stamp when required for submission in another Member State of the European Union. For further information, see:
Regulation (EU) 2016/1191

Civil status certificates (multilingual extracts from the civil status registers)
Croatian birth, marriage and death certificates) issued in accordance with the conventions of the International Commission on Civil and Civil Status should not require Apostille Stamps when being submitted to one of the following countries:
Austria, Belgium, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Cape Verde, Estonia, France, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Moldova, Montenegro, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey.

Croatian Criminal Record Certificates can be obtained from the headquarters of the Ministry of Justice and Public Administration. Electronic certificates issued through the e-Citizens portal do not contain a handwritten signature or stamp of the Ministry and are not valid for authentication with an Apostille.

Certificates can also be obtained by applying to your nearest Croatian embassy.

Croatian Apostilles are normally obtained in 2 - 5 business days, depending on the location of the competent Municipal Court.

Croatian University diplomas can be authenticated with an Apostille Stamp from the Municipal Court where the university is located. Diplomas required for submission to the authorities of Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Vietnam, Taiwan and other countries that have not signed up to the Apostille Convention must be certified by the Municipal Court, by the Ministry of Justice and Administration and then by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs before being submitted to the recipient embassy for attestation.

To obtain an apostille on a Croatian Power of Attorney, it must be signed and sworn before a Croatian notary. An Apostille stamp can then be obtained from the Municipal Court.

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Apostilles are not required when submitting Croatian certificates of marital status to the authorities of another Member State of the European Union.

A multilingual standard form may be requested to accompany the original. A multilingual standard form must always be issued and signed by a Croatian authority, providing a translation aid designed to help the receiving authority understand the certificate when in a language not accepted by the receiving EU country.

EU Member States are: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden
See: Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of 27 April 2016 (EU GDPR)

Apostilles are not required when submitting Croatian Criminal Record Certificates to another Member State of the European Union when the certificate is issued to a Croatian national and when the criminal record is clean (no convictions). In other cases, the recipient Member State may require an Apostille.

EU Member States are: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden.
See: Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of 27 April 2016 (EU GDPR)

Apostilles are not required when submitting Croatian birth, death and marriage certificates to the authorities of another Member State of the European Union. A multilingual standard form may be requested to accompany the original. A multilingual standard form must always be issued and signed by a Croatian authority, providing a translation aid designed to help the receiving authority understand the certificate when in a language not accepted by the receiving EU country.

EU Member States are: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden
See: Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of 27 April 2016 (EU GDPR)

Croatian birth, marriage and death certificates (multilingual extracts from the civil status registers issued in accordance with the conventions of the International Commission on Civil and Civil Status) should not require Apostille Stamps when being submitted to countries that have acceded to the Vienna CIEC Convention. The following countries are contracting states of the Vienna Convention:
Austria, Belgium, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cape Verde, Estonia, France, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Moldova, Montenegro, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey.