The mandatory display of prices both in the kuna and the euro starts on Monday in Croatia, four months before the country switches to the euro as the sole legal tender on 1 January 2023.

The period of dual circulation of the two currencies begins on 1 January 2023 at 00:00 and ends on 14 January 2023 at 24:00 hours.

The mandatory period of dual display of prices, which will last until 31 December 2023, imposes a number of obligations on local businesses, and makes it possible for consumers to demand that correct dual display of prices is applied.

During the period for mandatory dual display of prices, business subjects will be obliged to display the kuna and euro price as well as the exchange rate.

Certain exceptions are foreseen when dual price display can’t be performed for practical reasons and could mean disproportionate costs for business subjects.

In mid-May, the Croatian 151-seat parliament passed a law on the adoption of the euro as legal tender, with 117 MPs voting in favour, 13 against and one abstaining.

On 12 July, the European Union’s Economic and Financial Affairs Council (Ecofin) adopted final three legal acts enabling Croatia to introduce the euro as its currency on 1 January 2023.

One of the legal acts sets the conversion rate between the euro and the Croatian kuna at 7.53450 kuna for 1 euro. The rate corresponds to the current central rate of the kuna in the exchange rate mechanism (ERM II).

Another of the three acts concerns the decision on the adoption of the euro by Croatia, while the third is an amendment to a regulation welcoming Croatia as the 20th member of the euro area as of next year.

The euro area has a population of more than 340 million and is the second strongest economy in the world, accounting for 15% of the global GDP.

Wages expressed in national currency and in the euro

As of 5 September, employers are obliged to express wages and other benefits both in the kuna and in the euro.

The same holds for pensions.

Ethical code for changeover to euro

In mid-July, the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development released the code of ethics for the process of switching to the euro at the start of 2023, and all business entities that interact with consumers are called to join the code.

The ethical code has been compiled in a bid to create a safe environment for consumes and to make sure that the changeover from the kuna to the euro will be conducted in a reliable and transparent manner.

In December 2020, the Croatian government and the national bank (HNB) announced the release of an ethical code for the introduction of the euro in the document titled “the National Euro Changeover Plan”.

The document reads that “retailers and other service providers will be invited to abide by the ethical code for the introduction of the euro, and will be able to participate in the campaign organised by the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development in cooperation with business associations.

So far, over 370 business entities had joined an ethical code introduced ahead of Croatia’s accession to the euro area on 1 January 2023 to ensure a transparent changeover.

Also, five civil society associations have so far joined in a project to ensure consumer protection during the changeover to the euro.

The associations’ representatives will monitor shops and prices of certain products, and warn about possible undue price rises during the changeover.

The associations will publish their first reports by 15 October, starting in August, and they can also publish black lists of those who unduly raise prices and wrongly convert the kuna to the euro.