Cross‑Border Tax Forecast 2026 in Croatia

On 1 January 2026, Croatia introduced the mandatory issuance, receipt and fiscalisation (real-time exchange of invoice data with the tax authorities) of e-invoices.

This is currently limited to domestic B2B transactions (where both the issuer and the recipient have a registered seat, domicile or habitual residence in Croatia), but it is part of the ViDA (VAT in the Digital Age) legislative package. ViDA should lead to the implementation of real-time digital reporting across the EU by 2030, thus reducing the VAT gap by enabling more effective fraud detection in cross-border trade.

The requirement for issuance, receipt and fiscalisation of e-invoices is being introduced in two phases:

• as of 1 January 2026, all VAT-registered businesses in Croatia are required to both issue and receive e-invoices for domestic B2B transactions
• non-VAT registered businesses are currently required only to receive e-invoices, but will also need to issue them starting 1 January 2027.

Since both issuer and recipient will exchange invoice data with the tax authorities, it will make it possible to cross-check data, resulting in more effective control and detection of discrepancies.

All Croatian businesses must make IT/technical changes to ensure the issuance, receipt and fiscalisation of e-invoices in the structured electronic form (XML format) which facilitates automatic and electronic processing:

• businesses can either develop their own e-invoicing system, or buy a solution on the market by engaging a so-called information intermediary
• non-VAT registered businesses may also use the free-of-charge application, MIKROeRAČUN, maintained by the tax authorities

significant monetary fines are prescribed for non-compliance with e-invoicing requirements: up to EUR 66,360, or EUR 80,000 in case of a repeated offence.

• Businesses must understand the requirements and ensure compliance by engaging an information intermediary (if they have not developed their own e-invoicing system) and obtaining the necessary digital certificates
• VAT-registered businesses that fulfil specific criteria may want to consider de-registering from the VAT register to gain access to MIKROeRAČUN, which would enable them to receive e-invoices without having to engage an information intermediary and therefore cut down on costs. This is especially relevant for businesses that are in the process of liquidation, that have low activity, etc.