By February 16, 2026, the Agency for Transactions and Mediation in Immovable Properties (APN) received 4,328 tax refund requests for purchasing or constructing first residential real estate. A total of 22.3 million euro of subsidies has been approved. 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, 3,828 requests have been processed - 2,911 of them approved. So far 246 requests require additional documentation, and 671 requests have been declined because they do not fulfil legal requirements or because the applicant has withdrawn the request.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 192 requests (4.9%) 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, applicants 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 22,343,705 euro - out of which 16,011,696 euro refers to value added tax (VAT) refund and 6,332,009 euro to real estate transfer tax (RETT) refund. The average subsidy amount is 14,757 euro for VAT and 3,468 euro for RETT. Out of the 2,911 approved requests, 1,085 refer to VAT refund and 1,826 to RETT refund. The average subsidy per family is 7,676 euro.
Most requests coming from the City of Zagreb
The majority of the 2,911 approved requests is from Zagreb - 1,283 of them. Then there are 270 approved requests from Zagreb County, followed by 269 approved requests from Split-Dalmatia County and 220 from Primorje-Gorski Kotar County. There are 121 approved requests from Osijek-Baranja County, 83 from Zadar County, 81 from Vukovar-Srijem County, 74 from Istria County and 65 from Dubrovnik-Neretva County. Karlovac County includes 57 approved requests, Varaždin County 56, Brod-Posavina County 55, Bjelovar-Bilogora County and Koprivnica-Križevci County 43 each, and Sisak-Moslavina County 40. There are 35 approved requests in Međimurje County, 34 in Krapina-Zagorje County, 26 in Šibenik-Knin County and 21 in Virovitica-Podravina County. In Lika-Senj County 18 requests have been approved, and in Požega-Slavonia County 17.
The subsidy requests have been submitted across Croatia; hence, subsidies have been paid to young people in all Croatian counties. The leading cities are Zagreb (1,283), Split (165), Rijeka (140), Velika Gorica (92), Osijek (75), Zadar (74), Zaprešić (55), Slavonski Brod (41), Karlovac (40), Solin and Vinkovci (33).
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 71 square meters. The smallest real estate with an approved subsidy request is in 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 2,911 approved requests is 2,194 euro per square meter. The highest price registered amounts to 5,263 euro per square meter and it is in Dubrovnik-Neretva County, while the real estate with the lowest price, 103 euro per square meter, was purchased in Vukovar-Srijem County.
Additional information on obtaining a subsidy, submitting an application and the required documentation can be found on the Ministry’s and APN’s websites.
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