APN received 2,271 subsidy requests for young people purchasing or constructing first residential real estate

By October 17, 2025, the Agency for Transactions and Mediation in Immovable Properties (APN) received a total of 2,271 tax refund requests for purchasing or constructing first residential real estate, after opening the application process on June 5, 2025, when the Ordinance on subsidies for the acquisition of first residential real estate entered into force. This is a permanent measure intended for young citizens and young families aimed at helping them solve their housing situation.

Of the overall number of received requests, 1,666 requests have been processed - 1,222 being complete requests, all approved. So far 204 requests require additional documentation, and 240 requests have been declined because they do not fulfil legal requirements or because the applicant has withdrawn the request. Out of the total number of declined requests, only 71 requests (4%) have been declined due to the real estate price, which exceeds the legally prescribed threshold of 50% above the average published price.

The most common reasons for declining a request, apart from too high a price or too many square meters, include purchase and sale contracts concluded prior to January 1, 2025, applicant who are older than the legally prescribed age, possession of other real estate or multiple requests submitted by members of the same family.

 The total worth of the so far approved subsidies is 9,742,060 euro - out of which 7,168,864 euro refers to value added tax (VAT) refund and 2,573,196 euro to real estate transfer tax (RETT) refund. The average subsidy amount is 14,571 euro for VAT and approximately 3,525 euro for RETT. Out of the 1,222 approved requests, 492 refer to new construction (VAT refund) and 730 to existing construction (RETT refund). The average subsidy per family is 7,972 euro.

Overview by counties - most requests coming from the City of Zagreb

The majority of the 1,222 approved requests is from Zagreb - 633 of them. Then there are 115 approved requests from Zagreb County, followed by 106 requests from Split-Dalmatia County and 98 from Primorje-Gorski Kotar County. There are 43 approved requests from Osijek-Baranja County, 26 from Istria County, 25 from Vukovar-Srijem County and 24 from Zadar County. In Dubrovnik-Neretva County 21 requests have been approved, in Karlovac County 20 and in Brod-Posavina County 19. Moreover, 13 requests have been approved in Bjelovar-Bilogora County and Sisak-Moslavina County each, 12 in Međimurje County, 11 in Krapina-Zagorje County and 10 in Šibenik-Knin County and Varaždin County each. Koprivnica-Križevci County records nine approved requests, Lika-Senj County and Virovitica-Podravina County six each, while in Požega-Slavonia County there are two approved requests. The subsidy requests have been submitted across Croatia; hence, subsidies have been paid to young people in all Croatian counties.

The average applicant’s age is 32 - the youngest applicant is 18 years old and coming from Zagreb, while the oldest is 44 years old, which is also the upper age limit prescribed by the amendments to the Act on State-Subsidised Housing Construction. The average number of household members is two people, while the largest household is a family of 12.

Regarding real estate floor area, the average is 67 square meters. The smallest real estate with an approved subsidy request is in the City of Zagreb and it comprises 18 m², while the largest real estate, comprising 259 m², is registered in Istria County.

The average real estate price based on the 1,222 approved requests is 2,265 euro per square meter. The highest price registered amounts to 5,013 euro per square meter and it is in Split-Dalmatia County, while the real estate with the lowest price, 186 euro per square meter, was purchased in Virovitica-Podravina County.

Useful information for applying

The Ministry has created two calculators for calculating a potential subsidy amount - one for VAT refund (for new construction), and one for RETT refund (for older construction).

The Ministry has also published average prices of real estate by square meter for all counties and cities, including cadastral municipalities for the City of Zagreb. The information is based on the study conducted by the Institute of Economics based on the sale and purchase contracts registered by Tax Administration in 2024. Average prices for each county are available here.

The law also prescribes maximum apartment and house sizes acceptable in order to obtain a refund, with a possible deviation of 50% depending on the number of household members. A table showing the prescribed sizes is available here.

Additional information on obtaining a subsidy, submitting an application and the required documentation is on the Ministry’s website, here, while a list of frequently asked questions and answers is available at APN and the Ministry’s websites.

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