It is the holiday season, meaning increased cross-border traffic for travelers. To make it easier for travelers from Slovenia, Austria, Germany, and Switzerland to come and go on vacation in Croatia, HRTurizam outlines the currently valid measures.
Entry into the Republic of Croatia will be allowed to passengers coming directly from EU member states and/or regions, i.e., Schengen member states and/or areas and countries associated with the Schengen area, regardless of citizenship, if they have a valid EU digital COVID certificate.
Exceptionally, passengers coming directly from EU member states and/or regions or countries and/or regions of the Schengen area and countries associated with the Schengen area, and do not have an EU digital COVID certificate, will be allowed to enter the Republic of Croatia with a negative PCR test or rapid antigen test – BAT. With a BAT test made abroad, the test manufacturer and/or the commercial name of the test must be visible. Otherwise, the test will not be accepted as credible for entry into the Republic of Croatia. In addition, the result of the PCR test must not be older than 72 hours, and the BAT test 48 hours from the moment of testing until the arrival at the border.
Entry into Croatia will also be possible for persons with a vaccination certificate and a certificate of COVID-19 infection or with PCR testing or rapid antigen testing – BAT on SARS-CoV-2 immediately upon arrival in the Republic of Croatia (at their own expense), with the obligation of self-isolation until the arrival of a negative result. If testing is not possible, a self-isolation measure of ten days is determined.
From Thursday, 15 July, Slovenia will change the entry criteria. The same measures will apply to all passengers, regardless of their country of origin – they will need to present a valid vaccination certificate, a certificate of illness, or a negative test for COVID-19 not older than 48 hours and 72 hours, respectively, depending on the test. These measures will also apply to professional drivers in freight and passenger transport.
A European digital vaccination certificate or third-country digital certificate will be valid as proof for the entry of passengers into Slovenia without quarantine. The new rules will not apply only to foreigners who own land or real estate in Slovenia and to children under the age of 15 if a parent or guardian accompanies them. All passengers in transit, including professional drivers in passenger and freight transport, must leave the country within 12 hours. Otherwise, they are assigned an epidemiological measure of self-isolation. Detailed information is available here.
Entry into Austria is possible upon presenting a negative test (rapid antigen test not older than 48 hours or a PCR test not older than 72 hours), a vaccination certificate, or a certificate of recovery from COVID-19. If none of the above certifications is available, it is necessary to register via the Pre-Travel-Clearance form and be tested in Austria within 24 hours of crossing the border.
Certificates in German or English are valid as proof of vaccination. As proof of recovery, a medical certificate in German or English is valid, which shows that the person has suffered from COVID 19 in a period of 180 days and which is not older than 90 days. Confirmation of illness is identical to the evidence of neutralizing antibodies, which at the time of entry into Austria must not be older than 90 days.
Children up to the age of 12 are exempted from the obligation to test and present other certificates. Furthermore, passengers for medical reasons can enter Austria without restrictions upon presenting a certificate of necessity to use the medical service in English or German. Likewise, persons in transit, carriers of goods and passengers, emergency vehicles, and the like can enter Austria without restrictions.
According to the existing rules, entry into the Federal Republic of Germany is basically possible for all citizens of the European Union with certain restrictions and compliance with the prescribed epidemiological measures. Germany categorizes areas into risk and areas with mutated variants of the COVID-19 virus, and the current categorization is available here.
The entire territory of the Republic of Croatia – except Zadar County – is categorized as risk-free. Therefore, passengers coming from risk-free parts of the Republic of Croatia can enter the Federal Republic of Germany without the obligation to announce entry, test, certificates, and quarantine.
Passengers coming from the Republic of Croatia from risk areas can enter Germany without quarantine if they have a negative PCR test not older than 72 hours or an antigen test not older than 72 with proof of digital announcement of entry (electronically or in printed form, available at the link) 48 hours before arrival, made in an authorized health institution and printed in German, English or French, a certificate of complete vaccination with a vaccine from the Paul-Ehrlich-Institute list in German, English, French, Italian or Spanish in paper or digital form or a certificate for persons who have survived COVID-19, a medical certificate in German, English, French, Italian or Spanish in paper or digital form proving that at least 28 days have passed since the cessation of the disease, and not more than 6 months. Children up to 6 years of age are exempt from this obligation.
Air passengers, regardless of their area of origin (risk-free or risky), are obliged to comply with the rule of submitting evidence of testing, proof of recovery from infection, or evidence of vaccination before take-off. Information can be found on the website of the German Federal Ministry of Health.
People who come to the Swiss Confederation from Croatia do not need to be quarantined. However, all persons arriving by bus, train, boat, or plane must complete an online form available at the link. In addition, all persons arriving in Switzerland by plane are required to present a negative PCR test not older than 72 hours upon boarding.
Exempted from these obligations are children under 16 years of age, persons who have been fully vaccinated following the recommendations of the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health or the country of arrival, upon presentation of appropriate documentation, persons who have survived COVID-19 for 6 months, with appropriate documentation. For travelers coming to the Swiss Confederation, detailed information is available here.
All additional information on entry into the Member States of the European Union and the measures in force in individual countries can be found on Reopen Europa.
For all you need to know about coronavirus specific to Croatia, including travel, border, and quarantine rules, as well as the locations of vaccination points and testing centers across the country, make sure to bookmark our dedicated COVID-19 section and select your preferred language.
For more on travel in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page.
