Information for authorities issuing an ECS

1 The kinds of registers that exist in the Member State, containing information relevant to successions

- Land registers

- Civil registers – records of citizens’ civil status

- Register of wills

- Registered and marked vehicle records

- Registered weapons records

- Civil aircraft register

- Register of Ships

- Register of book-entry securities

- Register of insurance and pension funds

- Unified Accounts Registry

- Court register

- Insolvency Register

2 Information contained in each of the registers of the Member State, as listed under point 1

Land registers contain information on registered land parcels and changes on those parcels; they also contain property rights and other registered property rights related to registered land parcels, as well as changes in those rights. Each land registry entry contains a real estate section (sheet A), an ownership section (sheet B), and an encumbrances section (sheet C). The national register contact information can be found at: https://oss.uredjenazemlja.hr/public-services/review-lr-bdc.

There are no regional land registers. Land registers are compiled at the national level and all land registers in Croatia are presented in a single register. The register can be accessed from another Member State and all information in the land registers is public and available. Access is restricted only if all real estate owned by a certain natural or legal person has to be searched. Judicial authorities and the competent State Attorney’s Office may access and search land register information for all cadastral municipalities by the name of the registered holder of a title to real estate or a personal identification number if this is necessary to prepare or conduct certain court or administrative proceedings.

The Ministry of Finance and its Tax Administration (Porezna uprava) may directly access and search land register information when performing tasks within the scope of their activities; other public authorities may be granted this right by a decision of the minister responsible for justice if this is necessary for them to perform tasks within their responsibility. The competent court grants the right to access and search land register information for the land registers it maintains to natural and legal persons likely to have a legal interest.

The body responsible for the register can refuse to provide information to another national authority if the above requirements are not met. Information on a registered will must be obtained through the international legal assistance mechanism.

The requesting authority from another Member State should provide the following information: the first name and surname of the deceased person, their registration number and their date of birth and place of permanent residence. The number of their identity card is sufficient in most cases. An e-mail containing the institution’s request, signature and stamp is required to provide a deceased person's information.

Information can be requested in a language understood by the Croatian authorities, but the reply to the request is in Croatian. Information is provided in print as a signed and stamped note. The requesting authority is not subject to a fee for obtaining the requested information.

Entry may be made only on the basis of official documents or private documents for which signature authenticity is certified under a special law. The name of the cadastral municipality, cadastral number or land parcel number, land registry entry and description of real estate must be underlined for the registry body to be able to identify the registered property and enter the change in the ownership of the real estate in case of succession. The legal value of information kept in the register in our Member State lies in the fact that an entry in land registers is proof of legal ownership and the only proof of ownership of real estate.

Civil registers are records of the citizens’ civil status; births, marriages and deaths are entered in these records. Civil registers are kept electronically and directly managed by registrars working in civil registry offices. The registrar in the civil registry area of the settlement where a certain fact occurred (birth, marriage, death) enters information in the civil register. A person’s death is entered in the register of deaths according to the place of death and based on an oral or written report or a decision of the competent authority. The following information is entered in the register of deaths: information on the deceased person, information on the spouse or partner of the deceased person if they were married or had a registered partner, the given names of the parents of the deceased person, the given name and place of permanent residence of the person who reported the death or the name of the institution if an institution reported the death. After an entry is made, the registrar draws up a death certificate according to the Succession Act (Zakon o nasljeđivanju) and submits it to the competent court. If the registrar who received the report of death could not obtain the information necessary to fill out the death certificate, they are only to submit an extract from the register of deaths. Neither information on the heirs of a deceased person nor information on a deceased person’s property is entered in the register of deaths.

Under the Succession Act (Narodne Novine (NN; Official Gazette of the Republic of Croatia) Nos 48/03, 163/03, 35/05, 127/13, 33/15 and 14/19), the fact that a will has been drawn up, deposited and declared is to be recorded in the Croatian Register of Wills (Hrvatski upisnik oporuka). The Croatian Register of Wills is a public register and the information in that register may not be made available to anyone before the testator’s death except for the testator or a person specifically authorised by the testator. After the testator’s death, notaries, lawyers, municipal courts (općinski sudovi), diplomatic or consular missions and the persons who drew up the will may request information recorded in the Croatian Register of Wills. After the testator’s death, persons or bodies from other Member States of the European Union conducting probate proceedings, under national regulations, that require information from the Croatian Register of Wills can request information recorded in that register.

The request must contain the first name, surname, and date of birth of the deceased person; however, additional information may also be provided to facilitate the identification of the testator. When a Member State of the European Union submits a request to search the Croatian Register of Wills, it must state in the request that probate proceedings concerning the testator have been initiated and submit a death certificate as proof of death.

The Croatian Notaries Chamber (Hrvatska javnobilježnička komora) keeps the Croatian Register of Wills and the content and manner of keeping this register is regulated by the Rules on the Croatian Register of Wills (NN Nos 135/03, 164/04, 91/19, ‘the Rules’). Under the Rules, the facts concerning drawing up, depositing and declaring a will are entered in the Croatian Register of Wills. Under the Succession Act, for the purpose of probate proceedings and upon inquiry, the Croatian Register of Wills provides information on whether a will is kept anywhere and where it has been deposited. At the testator’s request, information is submitted to the Croatian Register of Wills by municipal courts, notaries, lawyers, diplomatic or consular missions and persons who drew up the will. The fact that a will is not recorded in the Croatian Register of Wills or specially deposited anywhere does not undermine its validity. Likewise, the contents of a will are not entered in the Croatian Register of Wills nor can a will be deposited in this register; rather, only the fact that a will was drawn up and deposited with the authorised person or the competent authority is recorded in the register.

The contact information of the Croatian Notaries Chamber based in Zagreb can be found at: https://www.hjk.hr/. Under the Succession Act, a court or notaries as trustees of the court conduct probate proceedings. During the proceedings, at the heir’s request, the court/notary will request information from competent institutions or courts on the property of the deceased person which in total comprises the estate property to be distributed among the heirs according to the Succession Act.

Private and public wills, as well as notifications for probate proceedings purposes, are recorded in the Croatian Register of Wills depending on whether and where a will is kept. The fact that a will has been drawn up, deposited and declared is entered in the Croatian Register of Wills. Information on a testator, the type of will and its depositing location, revocation of a will, return of a will and declaration of a will is entered in the Croatian Register of Wills. The Croatian Notaries Chamber is a member of the European Network of the Registers of Wills Association of the Member States, which facilitates finding a will entered in a country other than the country of the probate proceedings.

After the testator’s death, persons or bodies from other Member States of the European Union conducting probate proceedings, under national regulations, that require information from the Croatian Register of Wills may request information recorded in that register. For the purpose of this provision, probate proceedings are proceedings conducted to determine who the testator’s heirs are, what comprises the testator’s estate, what rights in respect of the estate belong to the heirs, legatees and other persons, or to obtain estate property and exercise the rights of the heirs, legatees and other persons in respect of the estate, or to take appropriate actions to exercise the rights of the heirs, legatees and other persons in respect of the estate.

Information in the register is not publicly available. Information on the wills entered in the register may be requested by the testator and the person specifically authorised by the testator. After the testator’s death, notaries, lawyers, municipal courts, diplomatic or consular missions and persons who drew up the will may also request information recorded in the Croatian Register of Wills.

Under national law, the Croatian Notaries Chamber is the body responsible for keeping the Croatian Register of Wills. The contents of a will are not entered in the Croatian Register of Wills, so information about the contents is not available. To obtain information from the Croatian Register of Wills, the requesting authority must provide the first name and surname of the deceased person, their date of birth and date of death, a document proving that the death occurred, proof that the authority is competent to conduct the probate proceedings in the Member State. A death certificate must be submitted. The requesting authority should provide proof that it is competent to conduct the probate proceedings in the Member State. The request is made in the official language of Croatia.

Information may be provided in a language officially in use in Croatia. A fee must be paid. A registration fee must be paid subject to reciprocity (a registration fee to access information in the Croatian Register of Wills must be paid by a foreign authority if a Croatian body or notary must pay a registration fee when requesting information from the register of wills of that Member State).

The fee in the amount of EUR 2.65 is to be paid to the following giro account:

IBAN: HR5223600001500056128

to the Croatian Notaries Chamber, Radnička cesta 34, Zagreb, Croatia, for the purpose of – ‘Upisnina za Hrvatski upisnik oporuka (HUO)’ (Registration fee for the Croatian Register of Wills).

In addition, a testator must also pay a registration fee to enter their last will (when submitting a request to enter their will) in the amount of EUR 13.27.

The European Certificate of Succession translated into Croatian contains a description of the real estate, i.e. the parcel number and a description of the real estate with the land parcel according to the information entered in the Croatian land registers. Required information: parcel number, description of the real estate with the land parcel according to the information entered in the Croatian land register, as well as the first name, surname, address and personal identification number of the heir.

Under Croatian national law, entry in land registers is proof of legal ownership. Croatia does not have a register of all European Certificates of Succession issued in Croatia. Municipal courts keep a list of certificates issued and persons issued with certified copies of a European Certificate of Succession, but only for the area within their territorial jurisdiction. Immediately upon issue, a notary submits the European Certificate of Succession to the municipal court in the area of their seat to enter it in the list of European Certificates of Succession.

The registered and marked vehicle records in the Information System of the Ministry of Internal Affairs contain information about the testing centre where a vehicle is registered, the registration number, the registration certificate, insurance, and the owner, holder and lessee, as well as technical information on the vehicle and any entries of restrictions on vehicle use. Since 1 January 2018, under the Road Safety Act (Zakon o sigurnosti prometa na cestama) (NN No 108/17) and the Rules on Vehicle Registration and Marking (Pravilnik o registraciji i označavanju vozila) (NN No 130/17), vehicle registration and other related tasks, which were previously performed by police administrations or police stations, have been performed by vehicle testing centres.

Vehicle testing centres' contact information can be found at: https://cvh.hr/naslovnica/. Information in the registered and marked vehicle records is not publicly available. Only the person in whose name a vehicle is registered may obtain information from the registered and marked vehicle records.

The right of other persons to obtain information from the registered and marked vehicle records is determined in accordance with regulations on personal data protection. The body keeping the register is authorised under national law to provide information to another national authority in certain circumstances. The ministry responsible for internal affairs provides information on vehicles and vehicle owners, or vehicle holders under a lease agreement, to national contact points in other Member States of the European Union for the purpose of investigating traffic offences related to road safety and combating terrorism and cross-border crime.

The registered weapons records contain information about the weapon owner (first name and surname, date and place of birth, place of permanent residence, personal identification number), weapon register (register number and registration date), information on the weapon (type, make and model, calibre and factory number), and information about weapon documents (document serial number, date of issue and date of validity).

Only a person in whose name a weapon is registered may obtain information from the registered weapons records. Information in the registered weapons records is not publicly available. The right of other persons to obtain information from the registered weapons records is determined in accordance with regulations on personal data protection. Information from the registered weapons records is provided for the purpose of investigating misdemeanours and criminal offences or conducting administrative proceedings. If there is no legal basis to provide this information, the body responsible for the register may refuse to provide the information to another national authority.

The aircraft register contains the following information: a) ordinal number in the register, b) aircraft registration number, c) manufacturer’s name and aircraft manufacturer number, d) ICAO description of aircraft type, e) aircraft serial number, f) aircraft year of manufacture (notes: for aircraft consisting of a wing and a trike (motorised kite) information under c), e) and f) for the wing and the trike is entered separately), g) information on aircraft operator, h) date of aircraft registration and deletion, i) maximum take-off mass (MTOM), j) information on previous registration (aircraft country, registration number, date of previous deregistration), k) information on the owner, co-owner or joint owner (hereinafter: ‘owner’) (information about aircraft owner includes the following: - first name and surname, place of permanent residence, nationality, personal identification number (hereinafter: ‘PIN’) of a natural person; - first name, surname, place of permanent or temporary residence of a natural person who is a tradesperson, PIN, abbreviated trade name and trade seat, or business name or name, seat, nationality, PIN of a legal person; - restrictions on the free operation and use of an aircraft or a co-ownership share imposed on the owner personally (for example, the owner’s minority, extension of parental rights or guardianship, declaration of insolvency), l) rights in rem (lien) encumbering the aircraft or its intangible share, pre-emption rights, restrictions on use, indication of entities to which an entry refers, date of receipt of the request, the amount where relevant for registration; notes may be entered as regards making an entry, prohibitions of encumbrances, alienation or restrictions on the use of an aircraft or a co-ownership share. Information about the holder of rights is entered by specifying their first name and surname, place of permanent or temporary residence and PIN for natural persons, or the business name or name, seat and PIN for legal persons. The date of each entry of information, entry of change or deletion of information as well as notes on entries made may also be entered.

The national register contact information is as follows:

HRVATSKA AGENCIJA ZA CIVILNO ZRAKOPLOVSTVO, Ulica grada Vukovara 284, 10000 Zagreb, register@ccaa.hr, http://www.ccaa.hr/.

There are no regional registers. Certain information is publicly available on the Croatian Civil Aviation Agency’s website in the category http://www.ccaa.hr/hr/popis-registriranih-zrakoplova-94674 (ordinal number in the register, aircraft registration number, aircraft manufacturer’s name and aircraft manufacturer number, aircraft serial number, owner's name if it is a legal person, and if the owner is a natural person, only a note stating ‘natural person’).

Other information from the Croatian civil aircraft register is available: a) by direct access b) by obtaining an extract for all information entered for an aircraft or only some information. The register is a public book. Anyone may request to access the register and the document database and obtain extracts from the register's main book.

The body keeping the register is authorised under national law to provide information to another national authority (an extract for all information entered for an aircraft). No provision in national law authorises the Croatian Civil Aviation Agency as the body responsible for the register to refuse to provide information to another national authority. This would have to be decided on a case-by-case basis.

The information to be provided by the requesting authority in another Member State so that a search can be made in the requested register depends on the nature of the search and the type of information required. If the request concerns ownership or an operator, information must include the first name and surname of a natural person or the name of a legal person. If the request concerns a particular aircraft, also depending on the type of search, the information should include the aircraft serial number, while the aircraft manufacturer and the aircraft manufacturer number, aircraft registration number or any other technical detail can usually help identify the aircraft in question. Proof would include the first name and surname and PIN (personal identification number assigned by the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Croatia to a natural or legal person who is a Croatian national and carries out any legal or administrative transactions in Croatia, including an entry in the register). Although there is no statutory requirement to do so, any entity requesting information from the Croatian civil aircraft register states the purpose of this request, despite the fact that the Air Traffic Act (Zakon o zračnom prometu) (NN Nos 69/09, 84/11, 54/13, 127/13, 92/14) (hereinafter: Air Traffic Act) provides that the register is a public book.

Anyone may request to access the register and the document database and obtain an extract from the register's main book. There is a special procedure to obtain documents from the Croatian Civil Aviation Agency archive requiring the applicant to demonstrate legal interest in obtaining these documents/copies. The request can be submitted electronically with an authenticated electronic signature or by mail. An extract from the register can be sent by electronic mail or regular mail. Information may be requested in Croatian and English. An extract from the register is issued in a structured form and signed and can be printed or sent by electronic mail in Croatian and English. If only information is requested and not an extract from the register, it is provided not as an extract but as a signed letter containing the requested information in Croatian and English.

The requesting authority is not subject to a fee for obtaining the requested information. Formal and substantive requirements for entering the change in ownership of registered property based on succession: the original or a certified copy of proof of ownership of an aircraft, a court decision or the relevant act of another body justifying the change or a private document justifying the change must be submitted using a form found under the following link: ALR-FRM-009 Application for entering data and change in data in the Croatian civil aircraft register.

Information necessary for the body responsible for the register to identify the registered property and to be able to enter the change of ownership after succession: aircraft registration number, ordinal number in the register, owner (first name and surname / company name, address, nationality, PIN). In doing so, the following form is used: ALR-FRM-009 Application for entering data and change in data in the Croatian civil aircraft register.

Under Article 4 of the Air Traffic Act, the register is deemed to present a true and complete view of the factual and legal status of an aircraft. The register enjoys public trust. Extracts from the aircraft register have the probative value of a public document. No one may argue that they were unaware of an entry in the register. A purchaser who acted in good faith with trust in the register is legally protected if they were not aware or, given the circumstances, did not have sufficient reason to suspect that what was entered was incomplete or that it differed from the status entered, as set out under the Act on Obligations and Property Relations in Air Traffic (Zakon o obveznim i stvarnopravnim odnosima u zračnom prometu) (NN Nos 63/08, 134/09 and 94/13).

The Vessel Register Service (Služba za registre plovnih objekata) is set up within the Maritime Safety Directorate (Uprava sigurnosti plovidbe) of the Ministry of the Sea, Transport and Infrastructure, and the scope of its activities includes keeping the register of maritime craft and inland waterway craft. The Register of Ships (Upisnik brodova) is set up as a single register of Croatian maritime craft and maritime craft under construction. The register is kept electronically. A system for electronic access to information in the Register of Ships is available through the public vessel search engine (Javni pretraživač plovila) on the webpage of the Ministry of the Sea, Transport and Infrastructure http://eplovilo.pomorstvo.hr/#/uvidUPodatkeUpisnikaPlovila. The public vessel search engine allows the verification of general and identifying information on vessels, information on a vessel owner and the existence of encumbrances in rem or other encumbrances on a vessel. An e-mail address is also available for any inquiries related to the Register of Ships: upisnik@pomorstvo.hr All Member States and non-member countries may send their inquiries to the above e-mail address as well as contact this body’s local units – Port Authorities (Lučke kapetanije). Port Authorities’ contact information is available at the following web address: https://mmpi.gov.hr/more-86/lucke-kapetanije-102/102.

The Central Depository & Clearing Company Inc. (Središnje klirinško depozitarno društvo d.d.) (hereinafter: ‘CDCC’) operates as a central securities depository, that is, a register of book-entry securities containing information on issuers, securities, securities accounts and securities holders; it also contains other information on book-entry securities, such as accounts, classes, types, quantities, property rights and the holders of those rights, restrictions on property rights, and the history of entries of book-entry securities, kept as electronic records.

All contact information can be found at: https://www.skdd.hr/portal/f?p=100:1. CDCC is the only company in Croatia that functions as a central depository, i.e. a register of book-entry securities, and there are no separate regional registers in Croatia. CDCC acts as a central depository company and is the only securities register in Croatia. CDCC has to keep information in the central depository as a business secret; this does not apply to information that must be made publicly available under the Capital Market Act (Zakon o tržištu kapitala) (NN Nos 65/18, 17/20, 83/21, 151/22 ).

The Croatian Financial Services Supervisory Agency (Hrvatska agencija za nadzor financijskih usluga – HANFA) may access information and documents kept in the central depository; on request and under a special law, national law or European Union legislation, access may also be granted to judicial and administrative authorities and bodies defined in Regulation (EU) No 909/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 July 2014 on improving securities settlement in the European Union and on central securities depositories and amending Directives 98/26/EC and 2014/65/EU and Regulation (EU) No 236/2012. Any person demonstrating a legitimate interest may also access information.

In cases of succession, a national authority usually requests information on whether a deceased person had an open securities account; if they did, it requests information on what securities they had, their type and quantity, and an overview of paid and unpaid funds from corporate actions. The register may refuse to provide information to another national authority if a request is not clear or complete, if a request does not contain sufficient information to identify the deceased person concerned beyond doubt or if it does not state the purpose of the request.

An authority of another Member State may not search the CDCC register. An authority of another Member State must first provide the first name and surname, personal identification number or other identification data, date of birth and place of permanent residence of the deceased person presumed to be an owner of an account or book-entry securities to CDCC, and then CDCC may provide the requested information to that authority. The requesting authority must submit proof of death to CDCC; the proof may be a death certificate or another document confirming the person’s death under the laws of the requesting state. The requesting authority must provide proof that it is requesting information in accordance with Article 66(5) of the Succession Regulation.

A signed and sealed original of the formal request for information must be sent by mail. The request and the documents must be in the Croatian language and Latin script. Documents that are not issued in Croatian must be translated into Croatian by a sworn translator unless CDCC’s employees can confidently determine the contents of the request and the documents without the translation. Information is provided in a formal letter as a notification valid without the company stamp or signature and is sent by mail. Information is provided in the Croatian language in Latin script and in the English language. Judicial and administrative authorities and bodies defined in Regulation (EU) No 909/2014 must pay a fee for requested information.

Transfers through the depository primarily concern the acquisition of securities under law, a legal transaction, a decision of a court or another competent authority, by inheritance or on another valid legal basis. A transfer of securities acquired by inheritance may be made under a final decision on succession or a lifetime maintenance agreement. CDCC may make a transfer of securities to the heir’s account based on a final decision on succession or a public document which is equivalent to a decision on succession. The decision must be final and provided in the original and it must contain the information needed to identify the investor (the testator and the heir) beyond doubt so that there is no confusion with another investor. Under Article 530 of the Capital Market Act, book-entry securities and the rights arising from such a security are acquired based on a valid legal transaction when it is entered in the book-entry securities account of the acquirer or a person holding a book-entry security on behalf of the acquirer, unless the time of acquisition is otherwise defined by a special regulation.

The register of insurance and pension funds contains information on the first name and surname of a member of a compulsory pension fund, the start and termination of the insurance, a personal account number in a compulsory pension fund, the number of units of account in a personal account, the value of assets in a personal account, payments to and from the fund, the name of the pension fund and the category of the insured person’s fund.

The national register contact information is as follows: REGOS, Gajeva 5, 10000 Zagreb, https://regos.hr/.

There are no regional registers. Access to information in the register is restricted. Bodies governed by public law may request information only to perform tasks within the scope of their activities; judicial authorities and other users may request information if they are authorised under a regulation or if the person whose information is requested has given their consent.

The body keeping the register is authorised under national law to provide information to another national authority. This refers to information on members of compulsory insurance funds, the number of units of account in a personal account, the value of assets in a personal account, payments to and from the fund, the name of the fund and the fund category.

The competent authority may refuse to provide information to a national authority not authorised to collect such information by regulation or without the consent of the person whose information is requested. An authority of another Member State must provide the first name and surname of a deceased fund member, their PIN and their registration number (master citizen number, MBG).

The requesting authority does not have to provide proof of information on the deceased person. The requesting authority does not have to provide proof that it is requesting information in accordance with Article 66(5) of the Succession Regulation.

Information may be requested and provided by mail and e-mail. Information may be requested in all official languages of the European Union. Information is provided in a formal letter certified by the responsible person. Information may be provided in Croatian. There is no fee for obtaining the requested information.

There are no requirements for changing the ownership of inherited assets in a personal account. The legal value of information kept in the register is proof of the existence and amount of assets in a personal account.

Article 6 of the Court Register Act (Zakon o sudskom registru) (NN No 1/95 … 123/23) sets out entities that have to be entered in the court register and these are: public trading companies (javna trgovačka društva), limited partnerships (komanditna društva), economic interest groupings (gospodarska interesna udruženja), joint-stock companies (dionička društva), limited liability companies (društva s ograničenom odgovornošću), European companies (Societas Europaea – SEs), European Economic Interest Groupings (EEIGs), European Cooperative Societies (SCEs), institutions (ustanove), communities of institutions (zajednice ustanova), cooperatives (zadruge), unions of cooperatives (savezi zadruga), credit unions (kreditne unije) and other persons that have to be registered under the law.

Branches of these entities are entered in the register if prescribed by law. A liquidation mass and a bankruptcy estate are entered in the register if prescribed by the above law or a special law.

The information entered in the register is set out under Article 24 of the Court Register Act. The information prescribed by law and changes in that information are entered in the register. The following information is entered for all entities subject to registration:

1) company registration number (MBS) and personal identification number (PIN), and EUID if any

2) entity’s business name, abbreviated business name and translated business name or name, abbreviated name and translated name, if any

3) seat (place) and business address in Croatia

4) business objective if a law provides that certain activities may be carried out only based on consent, permission or another act of the competent authority

5) first name and surname of the persons authorised to represent the entity, their PIN, place of permanent residence and form of representation

6) branches

7) date when a full financial statement is submitted, the financial year for which the report is submitted if the publication of these documents is prescribed

8) entries

9) legal structure

10) date of adoption of memorandum of association (statutes, articles of association, articles of incorporation, deed of establishment or another act) and date and a summary of amendments to those acts

11) duration of the entity if limited

12) status changes

13) emergence of reasons for the termination of the entity

14) liquidation

15) continuation of the entity

16) bankruptcy – decisions by a bankruptcy court

17) pre-bankruptcy settlements – a decision opening pre-bankruptcy settlement proceedings, a decision discontinuing pre-bankruptcy settlement proceedings and a decision approving the pre-bankruptcy settlement

18) dissolution of the entity, reasons for the dissolution or reasons for ordering deregistration, in particular: a) legal basis, any information on a legal successor; b) decision on the intention to initiate deregistration proceedings; c) decision discontinuing deregistration proceedings; d) decision on deregistration

19) e-mail address.

Founders and members of a company are entered in the register if prescribed by law. The following information is entered in the register for a liquidation mass or bankruptcy estate: first name and surname, PIN and place of permanent residence for domestic natural persons or place of temporary residence for foreign natural persons if any, business name or name, seat, MBS, PIN and EUID, if any, for legal persons and corresponding information for foreign legal persons.

Information on the date of submission of financial statements, personal data and places of permanent residence of natural persons and changes in this information can be downloaded electronically from the Financial Agency (Financijska agencija), civil records and registers.

The national register contact information can be found at: https://sudreg.pravosudje.hr/registar/f?p=150:1, https://sudreg.pravosudje.hr/registar/f?p=150:107:0:::NO, https://sudovi.hr/hr/o-sudovima/sudovi-republike-hrvatske.

The register is kept by commercial courts (trgovački sudovi) (hereinafter: ‘registry courts’ (registarski sudovi)). The register is kept permanently. It consists of the main book and a document database. The main book is kept electronically. Main books are connected in a single database for Croatia. A court register is a public book containing information and documents on entities which have to be entered in the register by law. Commercial courts are specialised courts dealing with register matters and keeping court registers. In Croatia, there are court registers at the commercial courts in Bjelovar, Osijek, Rijeka, Varaždin, Zagreb, Dubrovnik, Pazin, Split and Zadar. A court register is a public book containing information and documents on entities which have to be entered in the register by law. It is kept by commercial courts.

The Croatian register was modelled on the Austrian register (Firmenbuch) and was the first public book to be kept electronically in Croatia. The court register information system has been operational in all commercial courts since 17 March 1995. The system is built on the modern, robust, scalable and secure Oracle technology with a three-tier architecture which users can access simply by using a web browser.

The system is directly connected with the central PIN system, the Financial Agency’s register of annual financial statements, the e-Tvrtka (e-Business) system, eSpis (eFile) and the free legal aid system. The single database of the register is a part of the system which is a central point for storing register, record and statistical information of registry courts and documents stored electronically in the document database. Access to the single database for Croatia is available 24 hours a day.

Since 8 June 2017, the Croatian court register has been connected to the Business Register Interconnection System (BRIS). The search for companies, specifically limited liability companies, is available in all languages of the European Union through the European e-Justice Portal found at https://e-justice.europa.eu/contentPresentation.do?clang=hr&idTaxonomy=489.

Users may access a basic dataset free of charge. That dataset covers the company name, seat, type, registration number, authority with which the company is registered, Member State of registration, registration number and unique identifier (EUID). The EUID is a unique entity number that consists of a country code, national register code and the entity’s registration number. Users will also be able to request and obtain electronic copies of documents available in business registers across the European Union, but initially only those available free of charge. Since most Member States charge fees for these documents, in the future BRIS will also offer the option of online payments for information and documents.

Article 4(1) and (2) of the Court Register Act provides that the register is public. Without having to demonstrate legal interest, anyone may access information in the main book, documents on which an entry is based and the other documents and information stored in the document database (except for documents that the law states are not subject to the public-domain principle), and request an extract, a certified copy or a transcript of documents and information stored in the document database. An extract from the court register's main book and stored documents and information from the document database may be obtained electronically through the court register webpage.

Article 4(3), (4) and (5) of the Court Register Act provides that a transcript, copy, extract or certificate must be issued within 8 days from the request date. Upon special request, a person may obtain an extract with information for a specific period or a historical extract containing all information entered from the date of the registration of incorporation to the date of issue of the extract. A registry court may not require persons requesting access to the main book and documents, or a transcript, a copy of information, an extract or a certificate to state the reason or purpose of their request. Every registry court must make it possible to exercise the right to consult information or obtain extracts from the main book that is kept electronically and to consult and obtain documents and information kept on paper or electronically in the document database, regardless of the register in which the relevant entity is entered, and in the document database if it holds such a database. Access to public information in the main book and public documents in electronic form in the document database must be allowed through the register's website without a fee. Electronic extracts must be signed by a qualified electronic signature.

Article 4a of the Court Register Act provides that the information in the main book and the document database must be made available to national authorities by electronic means. The information in the main book is available to everyone in machine-readable form on request and subject to a fee. The Croatian Government prescribes the manner and conditions and the amount of the fee referred to in paragraph 2 of that Article by a decision. In the decision referred to in paragraph 3 of that Article, the Croatian Government may also provide for fee exemptions. Access to the single database for Croatia must be available 24 hours a day. The information in the main book and the document database must be made available to national authorities by electronic means.

Information may be requested in Croatian. Information will be provided in an electronic extract, which must be signed by a qualified electronic signature. The Decree on the Court Fee Tariff (Uredba o Tarifi sudskih pristojbi) (NN No 37/23) sets out the amounts of fee obligations in proceedings before courts.

Obligations concerning fees are set out under tariff numbers of the Court Fee Tariff (Tarifa sudskih pristojbi), which is an integral part of the above Decree.

Registration in the court register

Tariff No 26

1) registration of incorporation is subject to a fee of EUR 39.82;

2) registration of incorporation of a simple limited liability company (jednostavno društvo s ograničenom odgovornošću) is subject to a fee of EUR 3.98;

3) registration of a change in information is subject to a fee of EUR 19.91;

4) registration of a change in information of a simple limited liability company is subject to a fee of EUR 3.98;

5) a submission providing information and communications in the court register to be published on the court register webpage is subject to a fee of EUR 13.27;

6) decisions delivered by the court electronically through the e-Tvrtka system are subject to a fee equal to half the amount of the fee set out under this Tariff No.

Note:

1) If more than one entry for the same entity is requested in a submission, one fee is charged for all entries.

2) No fees are charged for entries related to bankruptcy and liquidation.

3) No fees are charged for entering the e-mail address of the registered entity.

4) No fees are charged for the registration of changes in information on the business address in the company seat, personal data on the chair and members of the supervisory board, information on subsequent contributions and payments and e-mail address of the registered entity.

Branch registration

Tariff No 27

1) an application for registration of a branch of a registered entity is subject to a fee of EUR 13.27;

2) registration of a branch is subject to a fee of EUR 33.18;

3) registration of a change in information on a branch is subject to a fee of EUR 13.27.

Note: An application for registration and registration of the principal branch whose founder is a foreign person or registration of a single branch in Croatia whose founder is a foreign person is subject to the fees set out under this Tariff No.
Copy, transcript, certificate and written notice from the court register.

Tariff No 28

1) the issue of copies or transcripts from the court register per page started is subject to a fee of EUR 0.66;

2) the issue of certificates or written notifications on information from the court register is subject to a fee of EUR 1.33.

Note:

1) No fees are charged for a submission requesting an extract, copy, transcript, certificate or written notification.

2) No fees are charged for the issue of an active and/or historical extract from the court register.

The Insolvency Register is a public electronic register set up under Regulation (EU) 2015/848 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 2015 on insolvency proceedings and it aims to enhance provision of information to relevant creditors and courts on opened insolvency proceedings. The Insolvency Register has been available since 26 June 2018 in accordance with the Regulation. Information on certain aspects of insolvency proceedings is essential for creditors, such as time limits for lodging claims or challenging decisions. However, in the Insolvency Register, those time limits are not calculated on a case-by-case basis; rather, the register refers to the criteria for calculating those time limits.

The Regulation sets out the types of information to be published in the Insolvency Register, relating to pre-bankruptcy proceedings, bankruptcy proceedings, consumer bankruptcy proceedings and an extraordinary administration procedure in companies of systemic importance for Croatia. Accordingly, the following information is available:

a. the date of the opening of insolvency proceedings

b. the court opening insolvency proceedings and the case reference number

c. the type of insolvency proceedings referred to in Annex A to the Regulation

d. whether jurisdiction for opening proceedings is based on Article 3(1), (2) or (4) of the Regulation

e. if the debtor is a company or a legal person, the debtor’s name, registration number, PIN, registered office or, if different, postal address

f. if the debtor is an individual, the debtor’s name, PIN and postal address

g. the name, postal address and e-mail address of the insolvency practitioner appointed in the proceedings

h. the time limit for lodging claims or a reference to the criteria for calculating that time limit

i. the date of closing main insolvency proceedings, if any

j. the court before which and, where applicable, the time limit within which an appeal against the decision opening insolvency proceedings may be lodged, through a reference to the criteria for calculating that time limit.

Article 2 of the Rules on the Insolvency Register (Pravilnik o Registru nesolventnosti) (NN No 1/19) provides that the register is an electronic database set up under Regulation (EU) 2015/848 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 2015 on insolvency proceedings (hereinafter: ‘the Regulation’) to publish information on insolvency proceedings and containing information on:

1) opened consumer bankruptcy proceedings in which a decision opening the proceedings was issued after 1 January 2016; 2) opened pre-bankruptcy and bankruptcy proceedings in which a decision opening the proceedings was issued after 1 September 2015;

3) opened extraordinary administration procedures for companies of systemic importance for Croatia (hereinafter: ‘extraordinary administration procedure’) in which a decision to open the procedure was issued after 7 April 2017. Information in the register may be downloaded electronically from the information system on which bankruptcy cases are kept (e-File).

Article 3(1) of the Rules on the Insolvency Register provides that the following information must be entered in the register for all consumer bankruptcy proceedings:

1) the consumer’s first name and surname

2) the consumer’s personal identification number (PIN)

3) the place of permanent residence

4) the name, registration number, seat and business address if the decision opening consumer bankruptcy proceedings is issued for a consumer referred to in Article 4(3) of the Consumer Bankruptcy Act (Zakon o stečaju potrošača)

5) the name of the court opening consumer bankruptcy proceedings, the case number and the date of the decision opening consumer bankruptcy proceedings

6) the type of insolvency proceedings referred to in Annex A to the Regulation

7) the indication of whether jurisdiction for opening proceedings is based on Article 3(1), (2) or (4) of the Regulation

8) information on the trustee

9) the time limit for lodging claims

10) the date of a decision closing consumer bankruptcy proceedings and the date on which the decision became final

11) the name of the court before which and the time limit within which a decision opening consumer bankruptcy proceedings may be challenged

12) the conduct review period

13) the date of a decision on the exemption or denial of exemption from the remaining liabilities and the date on which the decision became final

14) the date of a decision on the revocation of the consumer’s exemption from the remaining liabilities and the date on which the decision became final.

Article 3(2) of the Rules on the Insolvency Register provides that the following information must be entered in the register for all pre-bankruptcy and bankruptcy proceedings:

1) the business name or name, registration number, personal identification number (PIN), seat and business address for a legal person

2) the name and surname, registration number, personal identification number (PIN), seat and business address and the address of permanent residence of a debtor who is an individual

3) the information referred to in paragraph 1, subparagraphs 5 to 14 of that Article.

The following information must be entered in the register for every extraordinary administration procedure:

1) the business name, personal identification number (PIN), seat and business address of a debtor

2) the business names, personal identification numbers (PIN), seats and business addresses of affiliated companies and subsidiaries

3) the information referred to in paragraph 1, subparagraphs 5 to 9, of that Article

4) the date of a decision discontinuing an extraordinary administration procedure or a decision on the approval or rejection of a settlement and the date on which the decision became final

5) the name of the court before which and the time limit within which a decision discontinuing an extraordinary administration procedure or a decision on the approval or rejection of a settlement may be challenged.

The national register contact information: https://nesolventnost.pravosudje.hr. For technical assistance with the Insolvency Register, contact helpdesk@pravosudje.hr.

All register information is the responsibility of courts conducting the proceedings. In the second phase of the Insolvency Register Interconnection (IRI) for Europe project, national insolvency registers will be interconnected through the European e-Justice Portal. Information may be provided in Croatian.

Registration is not required to access the Insolvency Register and access to information is not subject to a fee. The Ministry of Justice and Public Administration does not charge a court fee for issuing a certificate from the Insolvency Register.

3 The availability of information on bank accounts

Information on accounts kept by banks and other financial institutions is contained in the Unified Accounts Registry (Jedinstveni registar računa) regulated by the Execution of Enforcement Against Monetary Funds Act (Zakon o provedbi ovrhe na novčanim sredstvima) (NN Nos 68/18, 02/20, 46/20 and 47/20). The Unified Accounts Registry is an electronic database containing information on: all accounts and term deposits, housing savings deposits and deposits in credit unions. In addition to monetary funds information, the Unified Accounts Registry also contains information on: safe deposit boxes of all natural and legal persons; beneficial owners of legal persons that are account holders, of term deposits and of safe deposit boxes, as defined by the law regulating the prevention of money laundering and the financing of terrorism; natural persons authorised to use funds in accounts, term deposits, housing savings deposits and deposits in credit unions; and natural persons who are users of safe deposit boxes.

Information on the competent authority keeping the register: the Unified Accounts Registry is kept by the Financial Agency, which is the legal person that takes actions in enforcement proceedings and security proceedings and carries out enforcement against monetary funds under the Enforcement Act (Ovršni zakon) (NN Nos 112/2012, 25/2013, 93/2014, 73/2017) and the Execution of Enforcement Against Monetary Funds Act.

The contact information is: Financijska agencija, 10000 Zagreb, Ulica grada Vukovara 70, PIN: 85821130368, e-mail address: jrr@fina.hr. Information: toll-free telephone number: 0800 0080, e-mail address: info@fina.hr.

Probate proceedings in Croatia are conducted by courts and notaries as trustees of the court; at their written request, the Financial Agency provides them with proprietary (confidential) information on the accounts of a consumer (a deceased person) and any other monetary funds which a certain person has in a bank or another financial institution – a building society or a credit union.

The competent courts and notaries must submit a properly filled-out Request for information from the Unified Accounts Registry to the Financial Agency (notaries must also submit a decision of the competent court entrusting them with the conduct of probate proceedings). The Financial Agency provides information or an overview of information on the consumer’s accounts to the competent courts (without charge) and, subject to a fee, to notaries entrusted with the conduct of probate proceedings according to the current pricelist of the Financial Agency. The pricelist is adopted by the Financial Agency’s Management Board in agreement with the Minister for Finance. The current pricelist is available on the Financial Agency’s official website.

Regulation (EU) 2020/1783 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 November 2020 on cooperation between the courts of the Member States in the taking of evidence in civil or commercial matters (taking of evidence) (recast) (hereinafter: ‘Taking of Evidence Regulation’) provides that a request for the taking of evidence must be transmitted by the court before which the proceedings are commenced or contemplated (‘requesting court’) directly to the competent court of another Member State (‘requested court’). Thus, if probate proceedings are commenced or contemplated in an EU Member State, the competent court in that state must submit a request for information on the testator’s accounts to the court in Croatia. The Financial Agency will comply with the written request of the Croatian court and provide information to that court, without charge.

No reasons are prescribed for the Financial Agency refusing to comply with the request of a competent court or a notary for information on accounts for the purpose of probate proceedings; however, the Financial Agency will return a submitted request if it cannot comply with the request because it does not contain information to identify beyond doubt the person whose information is requested or if the information is incomplete or incorrect.

If probate proceedings are ongoing in an EU Member State, the competent court in that state must submit a request for information on the testator’s accounts to the court in Croatia. A request for proprietary information (in a form or another written format, in an e-mail or a letter) must contain the following: the first name and surname of the person in the probate proceedings (the deceased person), personal identification number (PIN), information requested, and the delivery method (by mail, by fax, electronically).

The competent courts and notaries entrusted with the conduct of probate proceedings must submit a properly filled-out Request for information from the Unified Accounts Registry, and notaries must also submit a decision of the competent court entrusting them with the conduct of probate proceedings.

The competent authority of another Member State does not have to attach a European Certificate of Succession to obtain information on the account(s) of the deceased person in Croatia. If the competent authority of another Member State requests information on the accounts of the deceased person in Croatia, the Taking of Evidence Regulation (Article 3(1)) is applicable. Article 3(1) of the Taking of Evidence Regulation provides that a request for the taking of evidence must be transmitted by the court before which the proceedings are commenced or contemplated (‘requesting court’) directly to the competent court of another Member State (‘requested court’).

If information is requested by a person from another Member State, the competent court of that state must submit the request for information on the testator’s accounts to the court in Croatia in a form or another written format, in an e-mail or a letter. If a person requesting information and the information provider are from Croatia, information from the Unified Accounts Registry may be requested by mail, by fax or electronically. Information from the Unified Accounts Registry is provided to the person requesting information in person at a counter in the nearest office of the Financial Agency, or it is sent by mail, by fax or electronically, depending on what the person specified in the request for information.

Information may be requested in Croatian and English. Information is provided in the official language of Croatia, i.e. the Croatian language, and in Latin script.

The Financial Agency does not charge a fee for information it provides to the competent authority conducting probate proceedings.

4 The availability of a register of intellectual property rights

Public registers of industrial property in Croatia are kept and maintained electronically by the State Intellectual Property Office (Državni zavod za intelektualno vlasništvo) according to regulations on the protection of industrial property in Croatia (hereinafter: ‘e-Registers’). Information in e-Registers of industrial property includes information on applications and industrial property rights granted in the territory of Croatia based on the national system and the international systems of trademark and industrial design protection (known as the Madrid System and the Hague System) but does not include information on applications and rights granted on the basis of single systems for the entire territory of the European Union (European Union trademarks and registered designs – EUTM and RCD) available in the corresponding registers of the European Union Intellectual Property Office.

e-Registers may be accessed without prior registration and may be used free of charge. Since certain information must first be officially published, this information is available in e-Registers only after its publication. Information is updated according to the schedule of the publication of the official gazette, every two weeks.

Information in e-Registers refers to the following industrial property rights: patents, utility models, supplementary protection certificates for medicinal products and plant protection products, topographies of semiconductor products, trademarks, and industrial design. Geographical indications and designations of origin registered with the Office (for which protection is not prescribed by special regulations) – for the other indications, refer to the following webpage of the Ministry of Agriculture https://poljoprivreda.gov.hr/istaknute-teme/hrana-111/oznake-kvalitete/zoi-zozp-zts-poljoprivrednih-i-prehrambenih-proizvoda/228.

There is no copyright register, as this right is not acquired by registration; rather, this right belongs to an author by the very fact of creating copyrighted work.

The website of the State Intellectual Property Office is found at: www.dziv.hr, and registers may be accessed via the link: https://www.dziv.hr/hr/e-usluge/e-registri/.

For professional information services, contact: info@dziv.hr.

5 Other registers with information relevant to successions

In addition to information on bank accounts and money deposits in banks and other financial institutions, on request and for the purpose of probate proceedings, the Financial Agency (Fina – Financijska agencija, 10000 Zagreb, Ulica grada Vukovara 70, PIN: 85821130368, e-mail address: jrr@fina.hr, information: toll-free telephone number: 0800 0080, e-mail address: info@fina.hr) may also provide the competent authority with information on any unpaid debts that have been subject to enforcement against the testator’s accounts and monetary funds in the Financial Agency where the heir both receives inherited property and assumes unpaid debts.

6 The availability of information on closed wills and wills not subject to registration

Under Croatian laws, a will may be drawn up that does not have to be registered. A will may be kept by a court, a notary, a diplomatic or consular mission, a lawyer or a natural or legal person. A will received for safekeeping is placed in a separate envelope and sealed and a certificate is issued proving that the will is received for safekeeping. The contents of a will may not be revealed before probate proceedings.

The court conducting probate proceedings must request without delay all information from the Croatian Register of Wills on any wills of the deceased person; it must also ask the person or body entrusted with the safekeeping of the will to send the will to that court.

If the court receiving the will finds that the person who left the will has died or has been declared dead, it will open the will without breaking the seal, read it and make a record. The will is opened and read in the presence of two people that may include the heirs. The will may be declared in the presence of the heirs, legatees or other persons exercising a right in respect of the estate and requesting a transcript of the will. The municipal court which received the will is to open and read the will even if another municipal court or a foreign body is responsible for probate proceedings.