November the 5th, 2024 – Croats appear to be returning home from living and working abroad in countries like Ireland and Germany, but what’s pushing this trend?
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, exactly how many Croats who went abroad in search of a better future have decided to return to Croatia? This is the question that sparked a lengthy discussion on the popular Croatia subreddit about Croats returning home. The focus on the question was especially on the last decade, i.e. after the country joined the European Union back in July 2013.
The Reddit user who asked the question from the beginning pointed out that the perception of Croats returning to their country of origin is spreading throughout the diaspora. He strongly believes that the situation truly has been somewhat reversed.
“Do you know anyone who has returned to Croatia in the last 10 years (since 2013, when Croatia joined the EU)? Word is spreading throughout the diaspora that people are returning. It seems to me that the story is being reversed,” the user wrote in their Reddit post.
That post was followed by a series of comments from people who indeed had left Croatia with no money in their pockets, and among them were a number of those who returned or are planning to do so in the near future. One of the Reddit users who responded shared their own personal story. They left Croatia with their father back in 2008, and they returned home in 2021, as Večernji list reports.
“We lived relatively modestly, but completely comfortably, but we had to really pay close attention to our finances. Our goal has always been to return,” he wrote in a comment. Another Reddit user pointed out that anyone who left and owns their own property in a bigger city somewhere in Croatia will definitely eventually return from Germany.
“Whoever left in the past and has their own home in a larger Croatian city where it’s now easier to find a job will 100 percent return from Germany within the foreseeable future. People from smaller areas and rural parts and other Balkan countries will likely not return,” the comment reads.
“For some, Germany is the ideal country, but for plenty of people, it really is not. Realistically, at the moment, it’s not a great place to go, the cost of living is expensive like everywhere else, and the wages aren’t really incredible in this day and age. The notions of heaven and earth aren’t really what makes the difference for people who have a primarily economic reason guiding them,” reads another comment. In addition to Germany, another country that attracts Croatian emigrants was mentioned in the comments, and that is Ireland.
“I’m coming back from Ireland in six months, if you don’t live modestly then it’s expensive, so if you want to spend time here and there and have fun, you won’t save much”, said one of the users.
“Three years ago it was much better, but now I don’t really see a reason to stay when everything has gone up in price, considering everything, I have an apartment in Zagreb and I’ll be better off earning a Croatian salary at home,” writes another comment from one of multiple Croats intent on returning home.
