Your first Croatian passport after the decision: the steps in order

A positive decision (rješenje) from the Croatian Ministry of the Interior (MUP) is the most important moment in the whole procedure, but the passport does not arrive by itself. Between the decision and your first Croatian passport (putovnica) there are several steps: formal delivery of the decision, entry in the citizenship register, the domovnica (certificate of citizenship), the OIB number, and only then the passport application at a consular office. This article goes through them in order and, for each step, states what the law and the official pages say. Where official sources give no clear answer, we say so openly and point you to the consulate.

1. Delivery of the decision: when you actually become a citizen

If you applied in Serbia, the decision is not sent by post. The MUP's guidance states that the diplomatic mission or consular office will send the applicant a written invitation to come and collect the decision. It is delivered at the same office where the application was filed, and on collection you sign a delivery receipt (dostavnica) showing the exact date.

That date matters. Under Article 24a(2) of the Croatian Citizenship Act, citizenship by naturalisation is acquired on the day the decision is delivered. Not the day the decision was issued, but the day you collected it. Naturalisation (prirođenje) includes the grounds most often used by applicants from Serbia: emigrants and their descendants, and members of the Croatian people.

It is different for those who acquired citizenship by descent: under Article 24a(1) they are considered Croatian citizens from birth, so in their case the procedure is an entry in the register, not admission to citizenship.

2. The solemn oath

Article 24b of the Act provides that a person acquiring Croatian citizenship by naturalisation takes a solemn oath (svečana prisega). The wording is set by law; in translation: “I swear on my honour that, as a Croatian citizen, I will abide by the Constitution and the law and respect the legal order, culture and customs of the Republic of Croatia.”

The manner and procedure for taking the oath are laid down in a separate ordinance of the Minister of the Interior. How the oath is actually taken when the decision is collected at a consulate in Serbia is something to ask the consular office that sent you the invitation.

3. Entry in the citizenship register and the domovnica

A register of Croatian citizenship is kept by the civil registry office (matični ured) under Article 27 of the Act. People who acquire citizenship but have no registered residence in Croatia are entered in the central register, kept by the competent body in the City of Zagreb. That is the situation of most readers from Serbia.

The gov.hr portal states that a domovnica can be collected at any civil registry office in Croatia “after admission to Croatian citizenship and completed entry in the register of citizens”. In other words, you cannot get a domovnica on the day you collect the decision if the entry has not yet been made. Official sources do not say how long the entry takes, so check the timing with the consulate or a registry office.

What a domovnica is, where to request it and what you need for it is explained on our page What is a domovnica.

4. OIB

The OIB (osobni identifikacijski broj) is the Croatian personal identification number. According to the Croatian Tax Administration, Croatian citizens are assigned an OIB when their birth is entered in the register of births or when their citizenship is entered in the register of citizens. For a new citizen this means the OIB is, as a rule, created together with the entry, without a separate application.

The OIB also goes into the passport: Article 26 of the Act on Travel Documents of Croatian Citizens provides that the passport form has a field for the OIB, and under Article 26a it is also stored on the passport chip. Before your passport appointment, check whether an OIB has been assigned to you. If not, the Tax Administration lists the documents to be submitted by citizens who live abroad and have no OIB. More in our article OIB: what it is and how to get one.

5. Applying for the passport at a consular office

A Croatian citizen staying abroad may apply at the Croatian embassy or consulate responsible for the area where they live. In Serbia these are the Consular Section of the Croatian Embassy in Belgrade (Kneza Miloša 82, 1st floor) and the Consulate General in Subotica (Maksima Gorkog 6). Check which office covers your address before booking.

In Belgrade, applicants are received by prior appointment only, and appointments are booked on the Croatian Consular Portal (konzularniportal.mvep.hr). At the Consulate General in Subotica, according to its official page, appointments are booked by phone on +381 24 656 900, on working days between 12:00 and 13:00. The Consular Portal is the official portal of the Croatian Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs; our website is not that portal and you cannot book an appointment through us. The booking procedure is described in how to book a consulate appointment.

Personal attendance and biometrics

The passport application is made in person. When it is received, a photograph, two fingerprints and a handwritten signature are taken (Article 37 of the Travel Documents Act). For a child, the application is made by a parent or legal representative. A child under 12 does not have to be present and gives no fingerprints or signature, while children aged 12 and over must attend.

What to submit for a first passport

The Consular Portal's passport page lists the following enclosures:

a domovnica and a birth certificate (rodni list), if it is a first passport;
the existing passport or, if it is unavailable, an ID card or other valid identity document (for a first passport you have no Croatian passport yet, so bring the valid photo ID you do have);
a biometric photograph, 3.5 × 4.5 cm on smooth paper, which you bring ready-made;
proof of your current address in the country of residence;
the consular fee, with a note that payment in cash is not possible;
for minors, additionally a birth certificate.

The Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs' page adds several important details. With a first application you enclose proof of Croatian citizenship (the examples given are a domovnica, a registry office certificate of entry in the register of citizens, or the decision on admission to citizenship) and an extract from the register of births not older than 6 months. A foreign extract must be issued in accordance with international treaties and conventions. So in the official text the 6-month limit applies to the birth extract, not to the domovnica. The same page also lists “credible proof of residence” among the enclosures.

Note the difference: for a first passport the Consular Portal mentions only the domovnica and birth certificate, while the Ministry also names a registry office certificate or the decision as proof of citizenship. Confirm before your appointment which proof your office will accept.

If you married abroad or changed your surname, the Ministry states that this must first be recorded in the Croatian civil registers through the competent registry office. Whether, in your case, your birth must also first be entered in the Croatian register of births is not stated explicitly on the official passport pages, so ask the consulate before the appointment.

The consular officer may ask for other documents as well. The safest course is therefore to confirm the list by e-mail with the office where you have your appointment. A general overview is on our Documents page.

6. Fee and payment method

The consular fee for a passport is set by the Regulation on the Tariff of Administrative Fees (Official Gazette Narodne novine 156/2022 and 130/2025), tariff item 26. The 2025 amendment did not touch that item:

Applicant	Fee
Persons over 21	€74.32
Persons under 21	€55.74

The same amounts appear on our Costs page. No separate fee is charged for the application itself. The same Regulation entitles the head of a diplomatic mission or consular office, in countries whose national income is lower than Croatia's, to charge the fee at a 50% lower amount. Official pages do not say whether this is applied in Serbia, so confirm the exact amount and currency with the consulate. The Consular Portal states explicitly that payment in cash is not possible. It does not say which means of payment is used (card, bank transfer), so ask that too when booking.

7. Deadline, collection and validity

Under Article 40 of the Travel Documents Act, the consular office must decide on the application within 30 days of its submission. That is the deadline for deciding the application, not a promise that you will hold the passport within 30 days. Neither the Consular Portal nor the Ministry's passport page states how long production and delivery of the booklet to the consulate take, so ask the consulate for the expected time when you apply, and do not plan travel until you have collected the passport.

You collect the finished passport at the same office where you applied (Article 23(2)). The status of the application can be checked on the Consular Portal under “Provjera statusa zahtjeva” (application status check), where you enter a serial number and PIN.

Validity is set by Article 12: a passport is issued for 10 years, and for citizens under 21 for 5 years. The same article provides exceptions with one-year validity (for example, where fingerprints temporarily cannot be taken).

8. The Croatian ID card and your Serbian documents

A Croatian ID card (osobna iskaznica) cannot be obtained at a consulate. Under Article 8 of the Identity Card Act, it is issued by a police administration or police station of the Croatian MUP, and the application is made there. The pages of Croatian diplomatic missions (mvep.gov.hr) state that ID cards are issued exclusively at police administrations and police stations in Croatia and that diplomatic missions and consular offices are not authorised to issue them. Citizens without registered residence in Croatia have the right, but not the obligation, to hold an ID card, which then shows their residence outside Croatia; they apply at any police administration or station in Croatia.

As for your Serbian documents: in the passport procedure they serve as proof of identity. Under Article 36 of the Travel Documents Act, a document showing identity is presented for inspection, and cancellation is prescribed only for an earlier Croatian passport enclosed with the application (Article 37). Bear in mind Article 2 of the Croatian Citizenship Act as well: a citizen who also holds foreign citizenship is regarded by Croatian authorities exclusively as a Croatian citizen. What acquiring Croatian citizenship means for your Serbian citizenship, and how to use two passports, is covered on our Dual citizenship page.

Sources

Note: this website is an unofficial information guide and is not affiliated with the authorities of the Republic of Croatia. Regulations and fees change — before applying, check with the competent authority (consular office, Croatian Ministry of the Interior, civil registry office).