Pursuant to the Croatian law all vessels over 2.5 m long or vessels whose overall engine power is greater than 5 kW shall be entered in the boat register. The vessels are entered in the Register by the Harbour Master's Office or its branch office.

First of all, you need to know the category of your vessel. There are two main categories of vessels under the Croatian flag:

Boat
The boat belongs to any vessel bigger than 2.5 m and 15 m in length, or boats with a total capacity of propulsion machinery of more than 5 kW.

The vessel may be registered in each port authorities and more importantly any branch office, and get the label of port offices and a number, if it will be used for private purposes. The vessels for commercial purposes are numbered first, then have mark of Port Offices.

Technical inspection for boats up to 5 m is obligatory only for first registration, and for the vessels larger than 5m every five years and it is usually done by Port Captain. Only the vessels for commercial purposes is regulated by different time intervals of technical review (every two years).

Yacht
Vessel for pleasure, whether used for personal purposes or for economic activity, and whose length is bigger than 15 meters and is designed for longer voyages. Registration of a yacht can be done only at Port Authority and then they mark yacht name and location of office.

Technical review of the yacht is done by the Croatian Register of Shipping. For yacht for commercial purposes is once a year, and for sports and entertainment is every five years.

For yacht is also important to note that the procedure for registration of yachts from 15-24 m is much simpler than those above 24m.

Registration process - import of vessel

The vessel registration under the Croatian flag is divided into three main parts.

The first and most importing is paying the customs duty and VAT for vessels under temporary import procedure. Once the customs duty is paid, a customs clearance declaration is issued to the authorized shipping agent on behalf of the owner. The customs declaration is proof that the customs and VAT have been paid for the vessel.

The next step in the process of vessel registration refers to the vessel owner. The owner must obtain the certificate of deregistration from the Register of Shipping of initial registration. This is the only part of the registration process that the owner must personally perform. The rest of the documentation is obtained by the authorized shipping agent. If the owner decides for the area of navigation 2 (international navigation in the Adriatic Sea with a limit of navigation up to 12 nautical miles from mainland or island) or beyond, the vessel must have a license for a radio station on board, which is to be filed with the Croatian Post and Electronic Communications Agency (HAKOM) by the shipping agent.

After submitting all the necessary documents, the port authority issues a navigation permit. The process of registering a yacht is very similar, except that the shipping agent must file a request for vessel name assignment and a request for basic yacht inspection.  After the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure issues the yacht name certificate and HAKOM issues the permit for a radio station, the port authority issues a yacht registration certificate. However, this certificate alone is not enough for a yacht to sail, but needs to be complemented with the certificate attesting the yacht's seaworthiness, issued by the Croatian Register of Shipping after the initial technical inspection.

Need documentation

In order to enter a vessel in the Croatian boat register the following documents are required:

• Boat ownership certificate (purchase agreement, receipt, customs declaration, construction certificate, etc.)
• document as evidence of displacement and deadweight of vessel intended for commercial activities
• evidence of registration for commercial activity vessels (charter)
• removal from the register as evidence that the boat has been deleted from the foreign register, if the boat is being transferred from a foreign register into the Croatian Register
• copy of obligatory insurance policy if boat engine exceeds 15 kW
• evidence of paid customs and tax obligations
• Evidence of see worthiness (inspection record, construction certificate, etc.)

Having entered the boat, a navigation permit is issued that must be kept on board at all times.

Chartering of foreign yacht and boats

For chartering yachts and boats in Croatia under the foreign flag, charter companies have to follow some obligations, depending on the vessel's flag.

EU FLAG - Along with the written request for the granting of the right to use the central database (crew list evidence), they are required to submit evidence that the yacht or boat satisfies the statutory requirements, at least those for yachts flying the flag of the Republic of Croatia (Regulation on statutory certification of boats and yachts). Registration sheet/traffic licence or another equivalent document; a record or report of the most recent technical inspection of the vessel (not older than 12 months); proof of payment in the amount of HRK for boats; and for yachts over 24 meters' hull length class certificate issued by a classification society recognised pursuant to Regulation (EC) No. 391/2009

THIRD COUNTRY FLAG - Charter services can also be provided using yachts flying the flag of a third country, whose hull length is over 40 meters, if they possess a cabotage permit. The cabotage permit is issued following the submission of a request by a charter company or maritime agent to the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure, with the relevant documents.

In any case, we suggest that for the first registration of the boat or yacht you hire Euronautic Ltd that will handle the entire process of buying a boat to make it as straightforward as possible. Our company has long-term relationships with the best boat dealers in Europe also mean that you get the best possible price.

Furthermore, we will arrange delivery, transport, and all charter equipment. This includes safety equipment, electrical equipment, bed linen, kitchen equipment, out boarder and more! In addition to this, we also handle all import procedures. We then register your boat and arrange insurance.

Euronautic Ltd. can do everything for you so you can save a lot of time and nerves in the registration and alignment of all institutions to timely obtain all the necessary paperwork.