Croatia's education ministry has prepared new rules for enrolment in secondary schools, whereby schools can hold entrance exams that will award more points to entrants.

The performance of the candidates in entrance exams will also carry some weight in the final ranking, on top of their grade average during elementary education and successes in previous contests and school competitions.

Entrance exams can be conducted to assess the knowledge of the Croatian language, mathematics, the first foreign language, as well as of subjects important for the continuation of secondary education.

The new rules envisage that school-age foreigners from the countries outside the European Economic Area and Switzerland can also enroll in Croatian secondary schools as regular students free of paying costs, provided that other relevant conditions are met.

These specific rules for students who have foreign citizenship take into consideration bilateral agreements, student exchange, and the temporary residence given to students for family reunions or for humanitarian reasons, when their parents are asylum-seekers or have applied for international protection.