Croatia is an ideal destination for digital nomads who are provided with a quality internet network in our country and can enjoy its fascinating scenery, pleasant climate, and overall safety, and this is a new development opportunity for Croatia's tourism, Minister Nikolina Brnjac said on Friday.

The tourism minister Brnjac underscored that digital nomads contribute to year-round tourism.

An estimated one billion people will be teleworking in 2035 and a significantly higher number of digital nomads are expected in the next period, she underscored at a conference organised by the Novi List daily in the seaside resort of Opatija .

Director of the Croatian National Tourist Board (HTZ) Kristjan Stanicic underlined that an estimated 17 million people are digital nomads.

A joint campaign by the ministry and tourism board was launched this spring in an effort to promote Croatia’s comparative advantages for digital nomads, primarily on the British market, followed and later on the markets of the USA, Canada and Russia.

200 applications for digital nomad status in Croatia

That has resulted in about 200 applications for digital nomad status in our country, said Stanicic.

Croatia is one of the first EU countries to regulate a one-year temporary residence status for nomads. Cooperation between the ministries of tourism and of the interior has resulted in a series of laws being adapted related to digital nomads.

Interior Ministry State Secretary Terezija Gras recalled that the Law on Aliens had been amended to introduce digital nomads as a new category eligible for temporary residence. Conditions of eligibility have been entirely simplified and have cut unnecessary red tape, she said.

They have also been exempted from dual taxation payments and health insurance issues have also been regulated.

Digital nomads from Croatia and elsewhere presented their views and experiences at the conference.