Access to the Register of Associations in Croatia
The Act on Associations (Narodne novine, No. 74/14, 70/17 and 98/19) regulates the establishment, legal status, activities, registration, financing, assets, liability, status changes, supervision, dissolution of associations with legal personality, as well as the registration and discontinuance of activities of foreign associations in the Republic of Croatia, unless otherwise regulated by a special law.
An association, within the meaning of the Act on Associations, is any form of free and voluntary association of natural or legal persons who, in order to protect their interests or to advocate the protection of human rights and freedoms, environment and nature protection, sustainable development as well as humanitarian, social, cultural, educational, scientific, sports, health, technical, information, professional and other convictions and aims which are not contrary to the Constitution and the law, without the intention to seek profit or other economically assessable benefits, subject themselves to the rules governing the organization and operation of such form of association.
An association may be founded by at least three founders. They can be natural persons with legal capacity i.e. persons not deprived of legal capacity to enter into legal transactions, and legal persons. In addition, an underage person from the age of 14 or a person of age who has been deprived of legal capacity to enter into legal transactions may be founders of an association, subject to a notarised letter of consent by their legal representative or guardian, provided before the founding assembly.
However, at the time of establishment of an association, at least one founder must be of age and not deprived of legal capacity to enter into legal transactions.
Associations are entered in the Register of Associations of the Republic of Croatia in a county or the City of Zagreb, according to the seat of the association. The Register of Associations is kept electronically in a uniform manner for all associations in the Republic of Croatia at the competent administrative body of a county or the City of Zagreb.
The following documents must be enclosed with the application form for registration:
- minutes of the founding assembly,
- decision of the assembly to initiate the procedure of registration in the Register of Associations, unless the decision was made at the founding assembly,
statute,
- list of founders,
- personal names of persons authorised for representation and name of the liquidator,
- copy from the companies register or other register for the foreign legal person acting as founder,
- copy of the ID cards or passports of founders, liquidator and persons authorised for representation,
- approval of the competent body for the performance of a specific activity, when this is stipulated by special law as a requirement for registering an association,
- notarised letter of consent by the legal representative or guardian, when a founder is an underage person from the age of 14 or a person of age who has been deprived of legal capacity in the part concerning the conclusion of legal transactions,
- notarised statement of a natural person if the name of the person or a part thereof forms the name of the association, i.e. a letter of consent of the person’s heirs,
- notarised letter of consent by an international organisation if its name or logo forms the name of the association.
The competent administrative body issues a decision on the registration of the association in the Register.
A person authorised to represent the association, who must be of age and not devoid of legal capacity to enter into legal transactions, is obligated to report to the competent administrative body any changes in the statute, name, objectives and activities, seat and address of the seat, persons authorised for representation, regardless of whether they are the same as in the previous term, selection and removal of liquidators, and dissolution of the association.
An application for entering changes in the Register of Associations must be submitted within 60 days of the date of decision on the changes concerned. An application submitted after the deadline, with the exception of the dissolution of an association, will be dismissed by a written decision.
An application for entry in the Register of Associations or an application for the entry of changes in the Register of Associations must be submitted in two identical copies.
An appeal may be lodged against the decision of the competent administrative body to the Ministry of Justice, Public Administration and Digital Transformation.
Pursuant to Article 55 (1) of the Act on Associations, associations are obligated to align their statutes with the Act on Associations within a year from entry into force of the new Act, and to submit an application for the entry of changes to the competent administrative body.
