Changes in the EU: What Rules Apply from Today?

The European Union, which Croatia joined as its 28th member, is undergoing the greatest crisis in its history, and in the coming years, it faces a significant task in seeking new solutions, the outcome of which is difficult to predict.

Addressing the debt crisis in certain eurozone countries through drastic austerity measures has worsened the crisis in the real economy, leading to record unemployment rates in southern member states, particularly among the youth.

There is a fear that this ‘lost generation’ may turn against the European Union, which was initially created as a peace project and later as a guarantee of a better life. In discussions and ideas circulating to resolve the crisis, there is a prevailing view, at least on a verbal level, that the way out of the crisis lies in even closer integration and further transfer of national powers to the European level.

The entry of our country into the European Union brings significant and essential changes, which will not be immediately visible and will take some time to be felt in the daily lives of citizens and in the economy, whether positive or negative.

Joining the single market of half a billion people, which entails the free movement of people, goods, and services, is itself a major change that opens up numerous opportunities but also presents challenges. Operating in a large market can be an advantage, but on the other hand, one must be prepared to face greater competitive pressure.

Croatia’s economy has been largely integrated into the European one even before membership; trade has been mostly liberalized since the Stabilization and Association Agreement, over 60 percent of Croatian exports and imports are directed to the European market, and the majority of direct foreign investments have come from EU member states. With the exit from the Central European Free Trade Agreement (CEFTA), some Croatian agricultural and food products will be somewhat less competitive in the markets of neighboring countries that remain outside the EU, and some producers are trying to address this issue by relocating part of their production to those countries.

The most visible advantage of membership is the fact that Croatia will have access to several times more funds from European funds than it has had so far as a candidate country. In the next seven-year budget period, Croatia will have 11.7 billion euros at its disposal.

When the amount that Croatia will contribute to the European budget is deducted from this figure, it turns out that it will have around one billion euros available annually. However, this is not guaranteed money, and it can only be drawn based on quality projects that must meet strict criteria.

Regarding students, the European Union offers them the opportunity to study in other member states under the same conditions that apply to their citizens, and it will also positively impact the development of science, research, and innovation.

Croatian students in other member states of the Union will be exempt from paying tuition fees, meaning they will pay the same tuition fees as citizens of the country where the higher education institution is located. The same will apply to foreign citizens studying in Croatia.

Although we have entered the EU, no one in Croatia yet knows how this will affect our sports, just as no one knows how the state will be able to financially support it. The only thing that is certain is that with Croatia’s entry into the EU, national rules for financing sports no longer apply, but rather EU rules that do not allow professional clubs to receive money from the budget.

Although Croatian sports today survive on state subsidies and support from local governments, many of our sports professionals believe that nothing significant will change due to the entry into the European Union, as our sports clubs are ‘non-profit organizations’, except for Hajduk, which is currently the only sports joint-stock company.

Crossing the border will be much simpler from today. With a valid ID card, which children under 16 can obtain for about fifty kuna, starting from July 1, we will be able to travel to all EU countries, as well as neighboring Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Kosovo, and once formalities are completed, to North Macedonia.

Contrary to what the police claimed until recently, that we would travel with ID cards to Iceland, Norway, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein, we will still need passports for those countries for the time being.

Citizens of countries in the region, such as Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, which are not in the Union, will need biometric passports or visas along with old passports to enter Croatia.

Nine countries have introduced a two-year restriction on Croatian workers in the labor market. These are Germany, the Netherlands, Austria, the United Kingdom, Slovenia, Belgium, Spain, Luxembourg, and Cyprus.

So far, 12 countries have confirmed that they will not impose restrictions – Portugal, Poland, Sweden, Romania, Hungary, Ireland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Estonia, and Lithuania.