Croatia

Last update: June, 2023

The Constitution of the Republic of Croatia (adopted in 1990, amended in 2001, 2010 and 2014) guarantees the freedom of scientific, cultural and artistic creativity and prescribes that the state is obliged to stimulate and help their development (Article 69). It guarantees freedom of thought and expression, freedom of the media, freedom of speech and public activities, and prohibits censorship (Article 38). The Constitution also guarantees the right to a healthy life and environment and requires government bodies and legal entities to pay attention to the protection of human health, nature and the human environment. The sea and other natural resources and items of special cultural, historic, economic or ecological significance enjoy special protection by the state (Articles 69 and 52).

In addition, in addition to comprising a number of articles concerning culture directly, the Constitution contains some provisions with indirect relevance. Above all, this refers to norms defining the competence of various governmental bodies and the scope of local autonomy (Article 2, paragraph 2).

Last update: June, 2023

Until 2022, the general laws regulating the financing of culture included the Law on Financing Public Needs in Culture (1990 amended in 1993, and 2009) and the Law on Cultural Councils (2001, amended in 2004, 2009, and 2013). However, in 2022 the new umbrella Law on Cultural Councils and Public Needs in Culture (NN 03/2023) has been adopted with the aim of adapting the laws to the current changes in the cultural field and adding functionality to the overall system of financing. The Law on the Areas of Counties, Towns and Municipalities in the Republic of Croatia (2006, amended in 2007, 2008, 2010, 2013 and 2015) established the administrative structure of the Republic of Croatia for the purposes of classifying those activities to be financed from the different budgets at particular levels.

Cultural councils are consultative bodies but the Minister has the discretion to accept or reject their proposals and make the final decision on financing of particular projects or programmes.

With regard to compulsory public tendering, cultural institutions have to follow the general rules about public procurement.

Last update: June, 2023

The legislation has acknowledged the special status of freelance artists in comparison with other workers. They have the right to retirement and disability insurance and to health insurance. Contributions are paid from the state budget (see also chapter 4.3). The Croatian Freelance Artists Association (HZSU) encourages and promotes creative work and public activity in culture and the arts, and it represents freelance artists' common interests, so as to help them achieve their goals and to protect their rights. A freelance artist becomes a member of the Association on the basis of his or her creative work and so can apply to have his or her contributions paid from the National Budget, as long as he or she meets the criteria laid down in the Regulations about the procedures and conditions for the recognition of the rights of artists to have their retirement, disability and medical insurance paid out of the national budget of the Republic of Croatia. Applications by the artists are considered by the Expert Commission, and decisions are subsequently confirmed by the Minister of Culture. When the Expert Commission has made a favourable decision, the Croatian Association of Freelance Artists registers the freelance artist with the Croatian Institute for Retirement Insurance and the Croatian Institute for Health Insurance according to an artist's place of residence. There are 29 arts associations which appoint their members to the expert commissions (list available at: http://hr.hzsu.hr/Struktura-WEB-a/Glavna-navigacija/Umjetnicke-udruge).

In 2022 a lot of discussion revolved around the need for the change of the coefficient for the payment of mandatory contributions of freelance artists. In 2009, the coefficient for freelance artists was reduced from 1.2 to 0.8 as one of anti-recession measures and the introduction of a special tax on salaries, pensions and other receipts. The government promised that after the abolition of the said tax, the base for the payment of contributions by independent artists will again be recalculated according to coefficient 1.2. However, this has not occurred for 13 years and it is very visible on the level of the received retirement of the freelance artists. The Croatian Freelance Association lobbied that the coefficient should not only be returned but be raised to 1.8, which is the coefficient level of equivalent employees in cultural institutions. The Ministry of Culture and Media noted that this issue will be discussed within the overall change of the legislature in the field through the new Law on the Artistic Activities that is planned for 2023.

According to the data provided by the Ministry and the Croatian Freelance Artists' Association (HZSU), through the implementation of the measure approx. 1 200-1 300 freelance artists are supported on a yearly basis. The fund for this measure is approx. 35milion HRK (approx.4.6 million EUR).

Last update: June, 2023

The tax status of legal and physical persons in the cultural system is defined by the general and special tax laws as well as numerous rules and regulations that prescribe the procedures and manner of taxation. The application of tax regulations is also linked to specific laws in the field of culture and cultural and artistic activities (e.g. the Law on Museums, the Law on Theatres, the Law on Associations, the Law on Institutions, Foundations).The Law on the Rights of Freelance Artists and Encouraging Cultural Creativity determines the rights of freelance artists, establishment and operation of artistic organisations and measures to encourage cultural and artistic creativity (see chapter 2.3 and 4.1.3.).

Freelance artists have the right to receive specific tax benefits. Donations of less than 20 000 HRK a year are not taxed (approximately 2 740 EUR). Compensation for per diems and travel expenses is not considered part of income for tax purposes. In 2020, a reduced tax rate of 13 percent was introduced for services and related authors’ rights of writers, composers and artists (the tax rate until 2020 was 25 percent).

Value Added Tax prescribes a number of exemptions from the VAT system. Institutions that perform cultural activities, legal entities with public authority, or artistic organisations exercise such exemptions if they perform their activities in accordance with special regulations. In addition to the exemptions related to cultural services, exemptions are also envisaged for related deliveries of goods. The regular VAT rate in Croatia is 25%. The VAT tax rate on books (and since changes in the Law on VAT in 2020 including e-books), cinema tickets, and daily newspapers that have valid media statutes are taxed at 5% while those that do not have statute obligations it is 13%. With 2022 Tax law changes concert tickets, tickets for cultural and sport events are also taxed at 5%. For cinema tickets, the taxation differs in connection to who provides the service: if a cinema ticket is sold by a cinema, the rate of 5% is applied, if it is by an institution or legal entity in culture that has a right to exemption of VAT then a rate of 0% is applied. If another type of institution is showing films, then the regular rate of VAT is applied to tickets. A similar situation refers to concert tickets where another rate of VAT is applied as noted above.

Non-profit legal entities in Croatia, including ones in the cultural sector that do not perform any economic activity are not obliged to pay profit tax nor are they obliged to fiscalisation, which is a considerable advantage in comparison to those taxpayers who are obliged to pay profit tax.

Donations made for cultural purposes to associations and other legal entities engaged in cultural activities are not taxed. Donations of up to 2% of the donor's total annual income are recognised as such by law, while donations exceeding this sum must have a certificate issued by the Ministry of Culture and Media. Thus, although legal incentives exist to encourage private support for culture, it can still be considered marginal compared to the funding provided by the public sector.

Last update: June, 2023

There is no specific legislation regulating labour relations for the cultural field. There is also no systematic monitoring of trends regarding cultural employment. The Central Bureau of Statistics of the Republic of Croatia produces annual reports based on a very narrow definition of culture (see chapter 4.2.3) and contributes to the Eurostat cultural statistics according to their rules and regulations.

There is a unified system of salaries for those working in the public sector, including those employed in state-established cultural institutions and those working in the city or municipal cultural institutions. The Union of workers employed in the cultural sector (HSDK) includes workers in cultural institutions, the Ministry of Culture and Media, etc., and includes freelance artists as well. The rights of the cultural workers working in cultural institutions are covered through the Basic Collective Agreement for public service workers, Branch Collective Agreement for Workers in Cultural Institutions Paid from the Budget as well as through the Agreement on the Salary Calculation Base. The Croatian Union of Workers in Culture (HSDK) represents workers from cultural institutions and freelance artists in collective agreement negotiations with the Government. The Branch Collective Agreement for employees working in the cultural institutions paid from the state budget was signed in 2018 between the Government and HSDK.

There is a need to clarify the different position and rights of those who are employed in institutions vis-à-vis self-employed or freelance artists and cultural workers. It can be expected that this issue will be put on the agenda in the future by the old and new sector-specific professional associations (see 4.1.3). The relatively new Union of Screenwriters (SPID) was established in 2015 and immediately opened the topic of authors’ rights as labour rights. Another initiative relating to creative workers is the establishment of the Association of Independent Professionals in October 2014 that is based around authors involved in co-working practices, freelancing and similar. In addition, new stakeholders have emerged during 2019-2020 that explicitly target issues of unionisation, social and economic rights of artists and other cultural workers while putting pressure on legislators in this field (e.g. Platform ZA KRUH (For bread), Kulturnjaci initiative, Dosta je rezova!). The most recent initiative is coming from the Union of Journalists, who in 2022 have started discussions about unionisation of self-employed and freelancers in audiovisual and media sector.

Last update: June, 2023

The new Law on Authors Rights and Related Rights has been adopted in October 2021 (NN 111/2021) and in the formal sense the Law harmonizes national regulations with Directive 2019/790 on copyright and related rights in the Digital Single Market and with Directive 2019/789 on the exercise of copyright and related rights applicable to certain online transmissions of broadcasting organisations and retransmissions of television and radio programmes.

The Croatian model follows the droit d'auteur tradition. Both in theoretical deliberations and in legal texts, it follows the continental European tradition on the protection of moral rights which has been incorporated in the texts of the Law 2003 and in 2021. The new 2021 Law introduces a number of changes so as to achieve more effective protection of creators of creative, cultural and media content on the Internet, while exceptions and limitations of copyright and related rights are adapted to the digital and cross-border environment. Measures are introduced to facilitate licensing for the use of works protected by copyright and related rights in order to ensure wider access to contents. Cross-border distribution of television and radio programs is also facilitated, while the use of author's works and related rights in digital and online teaching, scientific research, and by institutions for the protection of cultural heritage is facilitated. The law also ensures a more favourable position of cultural, creative and media industries in relation to internet platforms in terms of fairer distribution of income from the use of copyrighted works and other protected content on these platforms.

According to Croatian legislation, authors and performers have exclusive rights for public performance while the owners of secondary rights (i.e. phonogram producers) have the right of remuneration for secondary use.

Associations registered as collective rights management associations are the:

• Croatian Composers' Society, Collecting Society (ZAMP-HDS);
• Croatian Performers' Rights Collecting Society (HUZIP);
• Protection, Collection and Distribution of Phonogram Producers' Rights Society (ZAPRAF);
• Croatian Film Directors Guild (DHFR);
• Society for Protection of Publishers Rights (ZANA);
• Croatian Association of Writers (DHK);
• Society for Protection of Journalists' Authors' Rights (DZNAP); and
• Croatian Association for Protection of Artistic Works "ARS CROATICA".

Regarding individual rights’ management – the Croatian Authors' Agency Centre for Intellectual Ownership Ltd. (HAA) is a legal successor of the Croatian Authors' Agency that had been in charge of authors' rights and their legal successors for over 55 years, representing them and promoting the importance of copyright.

The State Intellectual Property Office of the Republic of Croatia (SIPO/DZIV) is the State administration body with responsibilities in the field of protection of intellectual property rights. The Office carries out procedures for granting industrial property rights (patents, trademarks, industrial designs, etc) and performs the accompanying professional and legislative activity, which also include copyright and related rights.

Many issues still remain unresolved regarding the audiovisual works from the Yugoslav period, and this has especially been a pertinent issue in regards to protection of audiovisual heritage. Additionally, many issues connected to rights of screenwriters need to be dealt with that will be addressed by the Screenwriters’ Guild, which was established in 2016.

The Croatian Composers' Society, Collecting Society (ZAMP-HDS), has signed contracts with YouTube (for remunerating authors from advertisements shown before or after clips of their music) with Google for licensing music of Croatian authors in Google Media Player Service, Deezer, Spotify, Netflix, Apple Music and TikTok.

Last update: June, 2023

Personal Data is protected according to the Constitution of the Republic of Croatia, Article 37 (Official Gazette, No. 85/10): “Everyone shall be guaranteed the safety and secrecy of personal data. Without consent from the person concerned, personal data may be collected, processed and used only under conditions specified by law. Protection of data and supervision of the work of information systems in the Republic shall be regulated by law.”

The Law on the Protection of Personal Data was in force from 2003 (NN 103/2003) with amendments in 2006, 2008, 2011 and 2012 (NN 118/06, NN 41/08, NN 130/11, NN 106/12) until 2018.In line with the transposition of the Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation-GDPR), the new Law on the Implementation of the General Data Protection Regulation (Official Gazette, No. 44/2018) was enacted on 25th May 2018 to ensure full implementation of the GDPR in Croatia.

It should be noted that as a Member State of the Council of Europe, the Republic of Croatia has accepted provisions of Convention 108 (Convention for the Protection of Individuals with regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data). On the 14th of April 2005 the Croatian Parliament ratified Convention 108 (Convention for the Protection of Individuals with regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data and Additional Protocol to the Convention for the Protection of Individuals with regard to automatic Processing of Personal Data regarding supervisory authorities and trans-border data flows) (Official Gazette, No. 04/05). The Croatian Personal Data Protection Agency (AZOP) is an independent public supervisory authority in the Republic of Croatia established in 2004 by the Law on Personal Data Protection, and has responsibility for monitoring the application of the GDPR and the Law on the Implementation of the GDPR, in order to protect the fundamental rights and freedoms of natural persons in relation to processing and to facilitate the free flow of personal data within the EU.

Last update: June, 2023

The Croatian Constitution determines the use of language in the public sphere. According to the Law on Croatian Radio-Television (2010, amended 2012, 2017, 2022), the HRT (Croatian Radio-Television) fosters the use of the Croatian language and Latin alphabet in radio and television programmes and promotes creativity in the dialects of the Croatian language. Similar provisions bind all other radio and television activities. The use of the Croatian language is not obligatory when addressing the members of national minorities, according to the Constitutional Law on Rights of National Minorities (2002, amended 2010 and 2011).

The Law on the Use of Language and Script of National Minorities in the Republic of Croatia and the Law on Education in the Language and Script of National Minorities were enacted in 2000.

The Law on Electronic Media established the Fund for the Promotion of Pluralism and Diversity of Electronic Media that is implemented by the Agency for Electronic Media (AEM). The Fund supports programmes that are also oriented to safeguarding of the Croatian language (up to 30%) but also supports programmes dedicated to safeguarding languages of national minorities and/or are produced entirely in the language of persons belonging to a national minority (up to 30%), as stipulated in the Rulebook of the Fund.

Last update: June, 2023

General laws and regulations that influence culture and cultural policy are numerous and include the Institutions’ Law, Associations’ Law, Tax and Custom Regulations, Law on Foundations and Funds, Anti-trust Laws, Law on the Implementation of the State Budget, Law on Fiscalisation in Cash Transactions, etc. They also include laws that regulate the organisation and work of public administration bodies and units of local administration and self-government, which are very pertinent in regards to decentralisation of culture. Collective agreements in the state and public sector also have to be taken into account as well as the sectoral specific agreements and other related regulations. It has to be noted that there is a tendency of frequent change in regulations and inadequate implementation of said regulations.

Last update: June, 2023

Since acquiring independence in 1990, new laws in the field of culture were passed and many have gone through several stages of revision and amendment.

Cultural institutions are registered legal and physical entities that may be private or public. The most important and the largest cultural institutions have been set up as public institutions.

There is no unified law on culture. The most important specific laws and regulations that completely or predominantly relate to culture and media are:

• Law on Managing Cultural Institutions (NN 96/01; NN 98/19);
• Law on Culture Councils and the Financing of Public Needs in Culture (NN 83/22);
• Law on the Rights of Freelance Artists and Encouraging Cultural Creativity (NN 43/96 and 44/96);
• Law on Copyright and Related Rights (NN 111/21);
• Museums Law (NN 61/18, NN 98/19); Law on Museums of Ivan Meštrović (NN 76/07); Law on Jasenovac Memorial Site (NN 15/90, NN 28/90; NN 22/01);
• Law on Archive Material and Archives (NN 61/18, NN 98/19); Law on Croatian Memorial-Documentation Centre of the Homeland War (NN 178/04);
• Law on Theatres (NN 23/23);
• Law on Audiovisual Activities (NN 61/18);
• Law on the Protection and Preservation of Cultural Assets (NN 69/99, NN 151/03; NN 157/03 Amendm., NN 87/09, NN 88/10, NN 61/11, NN 25/12, NN 136/12, NN 157/13,NN 152/14, NN 44/17, NN 90/18, NN 32/20, NN 62/20, NN 117/21);
• Law on Library Activity and Libraries (NN 17/19, NN 98/19);
• Law on Croatian Radio-Television (NN 137/10, NN 76/12, NN 46/17, NN 73/17 - Corrigendum, NN 94/18 –Decision of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Croatia);
• Law on Croatian News Agency (NN 96/01);
• Law on Media (NN 59/04, NN 84/11; NN 81/13);
• Law on Electronic Media (NN 111/21);
• Law on Kultura nova Foundation (NN 90/11).

In the last couple of years, major changes have been made in the sectors of:

• Electronic media, copyright and related rights (new laws adopted in 2021) whose changes were related mainly to the transposition of the EU Directives to the Croatian legislature;
• Theatre law;
• General financing of public needs in culture and the functioning of cultural councils.

During 2022, small amendments to most of the laws was made due to Croatia’s entering the eurozone on 1^st of January 2023, thus the price of different fines and similar had to be converted to euros.

Table 3: International legal instruments implemented by Croatia in the cultural field^*

*Data gathered by the author of this report from the websites of UNESCO, Council of Europe and the Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Croatia.

Last update: June, 2023

Cultural property may be publicly or privately owned and may be exported only in exceptional cases. The most important obligations are care and maintenance of the property and public accessibility, with the right, under certain conditions, to receive compensation from the budget for some maintenance costs. The owners of cultural property enjoy tax and duty benefits.

The Law on the Protection of Cultural Assets, 1999 introduced the obligation of paying a "monument annuity" in case a cultural asset is used in a printed work, for promotion, or when an income or profit is made from an economic activity performed in an immovable cultural asset. This Law was amended in 2003 aiming to improve the system of collecting and distributing funds collected from monument taxes. The 2009 amendments brought changes in regulation of concessions and jurisdictions, while the subsequent changes reflect EU regulations regarding the trafficking and return of cultural goods. The amendments made in 2011 relate to the establishment of the Committee for Complaints and its jurisdiction, and 2012 amendments were related to classification categories of those eligible for monument annuity tax. Additional amendments in 2012 and 2014 relate to the regulations and jurisdictions on movement of cultural assets within the European Union. The 2018 amendments brought about the harmonisation of the Law on the Protection of Cultural Assets with the Law on Museums and the Law on Libraries as well as the changes in: the definition of the cultural assets inscribed in the List of World Heritage or in the List of Endangered World Heritage; the method of determining the boundaries for the cultural landscape and underwater archaeological sites; the provisions on public announcement of registration, change and deletion of a cultural property; separation of underground cultural assets of archaeological significance and other archaeological sites and mining facilities of interest to the Republic of Croatia from the cadastral parcels located above them; regulation of the use of the legal right of first refusal on cultural goods, simplification of the procedure for obtaining a permit to perform activities on the protection and preservation of cultural property.

In June 2018 the new Law on Archival Materials and Archives was adopted. Unlike the old Law that has been in force since 1997, the new Law allows for the transformation from a classic to a digital archive. In accordance with the obligation established by the new Law on Archival Materials and Archives, a National Plan for the Development of Archival Activities for the 2020-2025 period was adopted in 2019 (see chapter 3.2). In 2019, the new Law on Libraries and Library Activity was adopted and it replaced the former Law that was in force since 1997. The new Law regulates library activities, establishment and termination of libraries, organisation and management of libraries, types of libraries, work of the National and University Library in Zagreb and the library system of the Republic of Croatia and other issues of importance for the performance of library activities.

From 2004 until 2011, the preservation of nature was the responsibility of the Ministry of Culture and Media, after which it changed to the remit of the Ministry of Environmental and Nature Protection. Responsibility under the current government lies with the Ministry of the Economy and Sustainable Development.

Last update: June, 2023

The Law on Theatres was passed in the Croatian Parliament in spring 2006 and came into force on 1 January 2007. This Law brought some reforms to the rules and criteria for funding theatres and theatre groups, as well as managing public theatres, including four national theatres. The Law established theatre councils as the bodies responsible for monitoring the programme and business plans of theatres. The 2013 changes to the Law on Theatres introduced changes in the election procedures of the commissary of the Croatian National Theatre, and on the election and tasks of its Theatre Council. Against public and expert opinion which considers that Croatia already has too many national theatres (four), the Law provided the status of national theatre to the municipal theatre in Varaždin. Only several months after the changes which provoked heated discussions, the Law was changed again (January 2014). In 2022, the draft of the new Law on Theatres and Theatre activities was put into public discussion, and caused again debates in the professional community. The main critique was oriented towards the procedures of appointment of the theatre directors and management councils, the role of theatre councils and the status of theatre workers. The draft of the new Law passed the first reading in the Parliament in October 2022, and the final version of the Law is awaited to be adopted during the finalisation of this report at the beginning of 2023.

The Ministry of Culture and Media holds a register of theatres, while special rulebooks regulate festivals of national importance such as Split Summer Festival, Dubrovnik Summer Festival, Varaždin Baroque Evenings, Osor Musical Evenings, Šibenik International Children’s Festival and Zagreb International Folklore Festival. Regarding the music sector, regulations are mainly addressed within the Law on Copyright and Related Rights (see chapters 4.1.6. and 3.5.4). There is no specific legislation related to street arts or circus.

Last update: June, 2023

There is no specific legislation in the field of visual art. The Law on Crafts regulates craft activities in general, under which traditional and artistic craft activities are subsumed (Article 7).

Relevant issues can be found within the Law on Audiovisual Activities (see chapter 4.2.6) and the Law on Copyright and Related Rights (see chapter 4.1.6). The status of freelance visual and applied artists is covered within the Law on the Rights of Freelance Artists and Encouraging Cultural Creativity (see chapter 4.1.3 and chapter 4.1.5) and relevant regulations.

Last update: June, 2023

In 2019, the new Law on Libraries and Library Activity was adopted as the main legal source for librarianship. Library activities defined in this Law include acquisition, collection, classification, maintenance, setting professional technical methods, access to books and other library materials, the conduct of bibliographic information and documentation services. Libraries may be autonomous or components of other legal entities; they can be public or privately owned and are normally organised as institutions. Before being permitted to operate as a library, an institution must meet certain professional standards, including employing the required number of specialised trained staff, etc.

The Law on Media (2004, amended in 2011 and 2013) regulates the print media.

The Agreement on Fixed Book Prices was signed in 2007 between the representatives of the Ministry of Culture, Ministry of Science, Education and Sports, Ministry of the Economy, Labour and Entrepreneurship, and the Croatian Chamber of Commerce – Community of Publishers and Bookstores. The Law on Libraries includes legal deposit provisions (compulsory library copies) laying down regular, free and prompt delivery of nine copies of all print and non-print publications, i.e. book and non-book material, as well as audiovisual and electronic material. Publishers and manufacturers of audiovisual and electronic publications are entities that are bound by legal deposit legislation, i.e. legal entities and natural persons publishing or manufacturing materials for the public, whether these materials are intended for sale or free distribution. At the expense of the depositor, legal deposit copies have to be submitted to the National and University Library in Zagreb, which is responsible for the collecting and distributing of legal deposit copies. Information on online publications has to be submitted using the Online Publication Registration Form, available at the website of the Library.

Last update: June, 2023

Following the necessity of transposition of the EU legal framework, in 2021 the new Law on Electronic Media was adopted by the Parliament. The main changes were related to the transparency in media ownership, more precisely regulating of publishers' obligations, and better protect competition and regulating issues specific to video-sharing, on demand platforms and electronic publications. It also regulates commercial television and radio broadcasting and its provisions regarding content also apply to the public service broadcaster, HRT (Croatian Radio-Television), which is regulated by the Law on Croatian Radio-Television adopted in 2010, amended in 2012 and 2017.

The Agency for Electronic Media (AEM) established in accordance with the provisions of the Law on Electronic Media is managed by the Council for Electronic Media (VEM), is an independent regulatory body that awards licences to radio and television broadcasters, and it deals with registration of online portals (electronic publications) and funding for them. The Fund for the Promotion of Diversity and Pluralism of Electronic Media created by the new Law on Electronic Media obliges the HRT (Croatian Radio-Television) to contribute 3% of revenues generated from licence fees to the Fund. This support goes to the promotion of the production and broadcasting of electronic media content of public interest on local and regional levels, which is important for the right of citizens to public information, the rights of national minorities, promotion of cultural creativity, and development of education, science and art (see more chapter 2.5.3).

The Law on Audiovisual Activities (adopted in 2007, amended in 2011) regulated the performing, organising and funding of audiovisual activities as fundamental components of contemporary culture. It established a public institution - Croatian Audiovisual Centre (HAVC) – which is responsible for the production, financing, promotion and distribution of audiovisual activities. The Law also introduced a new system for financing audiovisual activities, where funds are secured from the state budget as well as from the percentage of annual gross income gained from the performing of audiovisual activities by Croatian TV, television broadcasters at the national and regional level, as well as cable service providers and operators in fixed and mobile telecommunication networks and Internet service providers. The 2011 amendments were specifically designed to introduce financial incentives in the form of a 20% cash rebate for production costs incurred in Croatia for feature films, documentaries, animation and TV drama. These amendments marked a first step towards realisation of strategic goals outlined in the four-year National Programme for the Development of Audiovisual Activities (2010-2014), adopted by the Audiovisual Council of the Croatian Audiovisual Centre and approved by the Ministry of Culture in October 2010. In October 2012, the representatives of HAVC presented the results of the first two years of the implementation of the Strategic Programme, and outlined the positive changes in four of five strategic goals – positive changes in audiovisual legislation, increased number of films produced, increased number of viewers of Croatian films, and an increase in digitalisation of independent cinemas and audiovisual (heritage) content. The National Programme for the Development of Audiovisual Activities (2017-2021) was adopted in 2017. The new national programme on audiovisual activities is developed within the framework of the overall National Plan for the Development of Culture and Media that is currently in preparation by the Ministry of Culture and Media (see 2.1).

In 2018 the new Law on Audiovisual Activities was adopted, which introduced selected changes in procedures related to potential conflict of interest and introducing video games within the remit of the Law and HAVC as the centre. Following the Law, the changes to the Book of Regulations of the Film Production Incentive Programme for investment in audio-visual production in Croatia was put into force. The changes in the cash rebate system for foreign film productions increased the cash rebate system from 20% to 25% of production costs incurred in Croatia and an additional 5% to those that are filming in regions with below average development, that is, in Areas of Special State Concern (Područja posebne državne skrbi-PPDS). The changes also included the introduction of the support for videogames, the introduction of the obligations for HAVC regarding holding registries of producers, distributers and filming registration. The new Law on Electronic Media brought also changes for the AV community in regards to obligation for operators and media service providers on-demand (‘streamers’), to contribute to the local production (see more 3.5.3).

Croatia signed a Memorandum on the MEDIA 2007 programme (2007-2013) which was ratified in March 2008 by the Croatian Parliament. A Media Desk was set-up within the Croatian Audiovisual Centre, which is now Creative Europe Desk – MEDIA sub-programme (see chapter 3.5.3).

Croatia is a member of Eurimages since 2003, is a signatory of the European Convention on Cinematographic Co-production (2004) and is a signatory of the European Convention for the Protection of Audiovisual Heritage (2007) (see chapter 4.2.1). Since 2009 HAVC is a member of European Film Promotion (EFP), where it actively contributes to EFP initiatives and programmes; in 2013 a number of Croatian professionals participated in several EFP programmes. In September 2014 during the Venice Film Festival an agreement on co-productions was signed between representatives of audiovisual centres from Slovenia, Croatia, and the Friuli Venezia Giulia region. The RE-ACT (Regional Audiovisual Cooperation and Training) initiative aims to structure the current cooperation between these three funds on a formal level, and to develop film education and networking between these regions. Croatia is the successor country of the former SFRY and, accordingly, the bilateral co-production agreements that the former country signed with France, Germany and Canada are still in force. Croatia is also a signatory to the bilateral co-production agreement with Italy, which entered into force on April 10, 2018.

Last update: June, 2023

Relevant issues (especially related to authors’ rights, industrial design, patents, marks etc) can be found within the Law on Copyright and Related Rights (see chapter 4.1.6). The status of freelance artists (including fashion, textile, and graphic design) is covered within the Law on the Rights of Freelance Artists and Encouraging Cultural Creativity (see chapter 4.1.3 and chapter 4.1.5) and relevant regulations.

Legislation relating to architectural services and regarding urban planning is within the competence of the Ministry of Physical Planning, Construction and State Assets. Key challenges with regard to cooperation between the Ministry of Culture and Media and the Ministry of Physical Planning, Construction and State Assets refers to the need to ensure respect for cultural heritage protection provisions in the context of development projects. This was especially relevant within the process of legalisation of illegally constructed buildings and sites in the last couple of years. While it is understandable that the government decided to launch this process and finally legalised buildings constructed decades ago that never obtained all of the necessary permits, at the same time there is a concern that in this process protection of cultural heritage and in particular respect for archaeological sites and zones might be endangered. The 2020 Zagreb and Sisak-Moslavina county earthquakes again opened these issues within the debates on the Law on the Reconstruction of the City of Zagreb and Sisak-Moslavina County.