Frequently asked questions and answers

Here you can find answers to frequently asked questions about the tax refund

Which requirements do I need to fulfil in order to exercise the right to obtain a tax refund when purchasing an apartment or a family house?

In order to exercise the right to obtain a tax refund for the acquisition of first residential real estate you need to:

be a citizen of the Republic of Croatia
conclude a sale/purchase contract after January 1, 2025
be under the age of 45 at the moment of submitting the request
register residence at the address of the real estate for which you seek a refund and reside there (together with your immediate family members listed in the request)
have a confirmation which proves that you have paid real estate transfer tax or an invoice which states VAT, issued after January 1, 2025

Which requirements do I need to fulfil in order to exercise the right to obtain a tax refund when building a family house?

In order to exercise the right to obtain a tax refund when building a family house you need to:

be a citizen of the Republic of Croatia
be under the age of 45 at the moment of submitting the request
register residence at the address of the family house for which you seek a refund and reside there (together with your immediate family members listed in the request)

In order to exercise the right to obtain a tax refund, the permit of occupancy needs to become valid after January 1, 2025 and you need to have a construction contract for the family house based on which an invoice, or a payment statement, has been issued, certified by a supervising engineer, and based on which value added tax has been paid. You also need to have paid invoices for the design and supervision based on which value added tax has been paid.

When is it not possible to exercise the right to obtain a tax refund?

The refund refers to the acquisition of first real estate, hence, it is not possible to obtain a refund if you or an immediate member of your family have, or had, ownership, co-ownership or joint ownership, in Croatia or abroad, of real estate intended for housing which is considered appropriate.

Appropriate real estate is real estate which is equipped with infrastructure (water, sewer, electricity), which entails 35 m² of usable surface area for a single person and 10 m² for every additional immediate family member.

If you have, or had, ownership or co-ownership of real estate which is not considered appropriate, and in order to obtain a tax refund, you have to sell the real estate within 24 months from the date of purchasing the appropriate, first real estate for housing.

You also cannot obtain a refund if you have already obtained state subsidies for the acquisition of real estate.

Can I obtain a refund if I had real estate which I had purchased with a subsidised housing loan from APN?

Considering the fact that you have already obtained direct state subsidy for the acquisition of real estate which facilitated the purchase and reduced costs, you cannot obtain another state subsidy for the acquisition of residential real estate.

I have received a decision on determining the payment of real estate transfer tax from Tax Administration. Do I have to pay the tax if I fulfil the requirements for a tax refund?

The current measure refers to tax refund, not tax exemption. Upon receiving the Decision from Tax Administration, you need to pay the determined real estate transfer tax. After that, you can submit the request for a tax refund if you fulfil all the requirements. The request should also include proof that you have paid tax.

How can I submit the request for a tax refund?

You will be able to submit the request to the Agency for Transactions and Mediation in Immovable Properties (APN) when the Ordinance on subsidies for the acquisition of first residential real estate comes into force. All the information necessary will be available on our webpage and on the webpage of APN after the adoption of the Ordinance.

I pay real estate transfer tax in instalments. Can I submit the request for a tax refund before all instalments have been paid?

In order to be able to submit the request, the real estate transfer tax has to be paid in its entirety. The period for submitting the request is two years since the conclusion of the sale/purchase contract, so it is possible to pay tax in instalments during that period.

When can I submit the request for a tax refund?

You can submit the request to APN using a prescribed form, with the corresponding statement and documentation. Additional information on submitting the request can be found here. The request can be submitted within 24 months since the conclusion of the sale/purchase contract.

I concluded a sale/purchase contract for real estate in 2024. Am I entitled to a tax refund?

The law stipulates that the refund is applicable to sale/purchase contracts concluded after January 1, 2025, so you are not entitled to a tax refund if you concluded the contract prior to that date.

What is usable surface area of real estate?

Usable surface area of residential real estate is determined based on the HRN ISO 9836:2011 norm and the coefficients for usable value of surface areas indicated in the Ordinance on property valuation methods.

Accordingly, usable surface area of residential real estate is net usable value of surface area of the condominium unit (apartment), which can comprise a separate unit, auxiliary units and additional units.

For inner compartments (apartment), a coefficient 1.00 is used, while for loggia, terrace, balcony, etc., i.e. for parts which are not inner compartments, coefficients available here are used.

Therefore, usable surface area of the residential real estate is calculated based on the floor area registered in the land register as one condominium unit.

The investor sold the apartment on the condition of purchasing the garage as well, however, the garage is registered separately, it is not an additional unit of the apartment. Am I entitled to a tax refund for purchasing the garage as well?

A garage or a parking space is not a residential area, thus a tax refund for purchasing a garage or a parking space cannot be obtained.

I have purchased real estate which is larger than the floor area prescribed by law. How does the tax refund apply to me?

Although you have purchased real estate which is larger than the prescribed one, it is possible to obtain a tax refund - provided that it is not increased by 50%, with respect to the number of family members, but you will obtain a tax refund according to the floor area prescribed by law.

PRESCRIBED FLOOR AREA	MAXIMUM ACCEPTABLE SURFACE AREA OF REAL ESTATE FOR OBTAINING SUBSIDY
for 1 person up to 50 m²	75 m²
for 2 persons up to 65 m²	97,5 m²
for 3 persons up to 80 m²	120 m²
for 4 persons up to 90 m²	135 m²
for 5 persons up to 100 m²	150 m²
for 6 persons up to 110 m²	165 m²
for 7 and more persons up to 120 m²	180 m²

How do you determine floor area for family houses?

For family houses, the tax refund is carried out according to floor areas increased by 50% in comparison to floor areas of apartments, because we have taken into account additional inner compartments usually found in houses. As is the case with apartments, the maximum accepted floor area to submit the request is increased by 50%.

PRESCRIBED FLOOR AREA	MAXIMUM ACCEPTABLE SURFACE AREA OF REAL ESTATE FOR OBTAINING SUBSIDY
For 1 person up to 75 m²	112,5 m²
For 2 persons up to 97,5 m²	146,25 m²
For 3 persons up to 120 m²	180 m²
For 4 persons up to 135 m²	202,5 m²
For 5 persons up to 150 m²	225 m²
For 6 persons up to 165 m²	247,5 m²
For 7 and more persons up to 180 m²	270 m²

What is average local apartment price?

Considering the fact that real estate prices differ across Croatia, the Institute of Economics, Zagreb conducted a study which determines average prices for 2024 for all local self-government units in Croatia. You can see the prices here.

I have purchased real estate with a price per square meter higher than the average price. Am I entitled to obtain a tax refund?

You can submit the request for obtaining a tax refund if the real estate price per square meter is not higher than the average local real estate price by more than 50%.
The refund will be calculated by the Ministry according to the average local price if you have paid a higher price, but, if you have achieved a price which is lower than the determined one, the refund will be calculated according to the price achieved.

Informative calculation can be made here.

I have purchased a business apartment. Am I entitled to a tax refund?

Business apartments are built in mixed business-residential zones (M2) where, according to regulations which determine the physical planning, some separate units must have residential purposes, while some must have business purposes.

Therefore, business apartments are regulated as business premises, not residential real estate, so they should be used for business purposes, as stated in spatial plans - thus you are not entitled to obtaining a tax refund.

I am a beneficiary of incentive measures for the purchase of real estate from a local self-government unit. Am I also entitled to a tax refund?

If you live in a local self-government unit which supports young people in the acquisition of first real estate by granting a certain amount or subsidising interest rates for the purpose of improving settlement and demographic revitalisation - this is not an obstacle for exercising the right to obtain a tax refund.

Which documents do I need to send as originals or make certified copies of at the notary public’s office?

It is not necessary to send original documents, but the signature on the Request for obtaining the subsidy, i.e. the Statement, has to be certified.

It is not necessary to submit the original sale/purchase contract, concluded after January 1, 2025, for the residential real estate for which subsidy is sought; a certified copy can be submitted.

Other documents can be submitted as copies.