Buying & Selling a Used Vehicle in Croatia: The Digital Nomad in Croatia & Foreigner’s Guide

Are you a digital nomad in Croatia or another type of foreigner, moving to or already living in the country and eager to purchase a vehicle? Having your own set of wheels can make exploring this beautiful country a lot cheaper and easier than renting a car, but there are some things you should know first. So, here is the foreigner’s guide to buying (and selling) a vehicle in Croatia:

You must have Croatian residency (temporary or permanent) and have your residency card (not the temporary paper one) before you can legally purchase a vehicle in Croatia.

Vehicles in Croatia are registered for one year at a time and the insurance policies are also renewed for one year at a time and for the dates that correspond with the registration. For example, if your registration is from January 24, 2023 – January 24, 2024, then the insurance will also be good for those same exact dates.

If you have temporary residency in Croatia and your residency permit expires during the year in which your vehicle is being registered, the clerks at the tehnički pregled will only register your vehicle until your residency expiration date as opposed to the full year.

Within a few weeks of the registration expiring, you will be required to take the vehicle to a tehnički pregled location in your county of residence so that the vehicle can undergo its annual inspection. If your vehicle does not pass inspection, the defects will need to be corrected. Once the vehicle passes inspection and you show proof of an updated insurance policy in your name, your registration will be renewed for another year.

Always verify that the seller is the registered owner of the vehicle or that the registered owner of the vehicle can sign off on the sales contract. Also, we have been told that it is common in Croatia that the kilometers on the vehicle odometer are incorrect. You should always ask the seller if the kilometers are the original number and ask if they have the service history or registration history for the vehicle to prove it (unless of course you do not care about this).

Obviously, always take the vehicle for a test drive and thoroughly check the vehicle for defects before you decide to make a purchase. It is okay to think about it for a day or two before making your decision. You can also ask to take it to a mechanic of your choice to have checked out prior to purchase (at your own expense). Also, ask the seller if there are any outstanding parking tickets or other tickets on the vehicle.

If you are keeping the license plate on the car, this will also need to be written on the sales contract form in the notes section.

At the time you purchase a vehicle, you should meet the seller at any tehnički pregled location so that the vehicle can be registered in your name. You and the seller will need to fill out a motor vehicle sales contract (ugovor o kupoproda motornog vozila). This form can be purchased at any Trafika location and usually costs less than €1, so make sure you have one of these ahead of time in case the seller does not bring one. You will need to show this completed form along with your residency card and the vehicle’s valid insurance paperwork to the clerk at tehnički pregled. The clerk will then issue you registration paperwork in your own name until the original date of registration expiration or until your residency expiration date, whichever comes first. The insurance policy will remain in the seller’s name until the original expiration date until you renew it the following year when the vehicle has its annual inspection.

You do not need a Croatian driver’s license to register a vehicle. We have been to tehnički pregled many times and they have never asked to see our driver’s licenses.

Our experiences at tehnički pregled offices have all been positive. They are fast and efficient with paperwork, usually there is someone who speaks good English, and there is also usually a café attached or nearby while you wait for your vehicle’s inspection. It is Croatia after all and Croats love their coffee!

If you are looking to purchase a scooter and do not have a motorcycle endorsement on your driver’s license, then the fastest scooter you can legally drive in Croatia is a 50cc scooter. This is what we had and it was a perfect way to zip around the city. Plus, you can pretty much park anywhere, which is the ultimate convenience since parking a normal-sized vehicle can be a nightmare in the larger cities. You will still have to register a scooter in the manner as a vehicle.

This is a very popular website for buying used goods in Croatia (not just vehicles) or finding real estate opportunities. If you visit the website on a laptop, you can choose settings so that the website displays in your native language, which is extremely helpful. If you are a non-Croatian speaker, I would suggest using Google Translate to translate messages to sellers (or a listing when you are the one selling a vehicle) into the Croatian language. It can be time consuming to always translate their responses to your native language, but this is Croatia and attempting to speak Croatian or translating messages can get you a lot further and show respect.

Log in to your Facebook account or create an account to see marketplace listings in your area. There is even a great translation feature on the posts, and although the translation is not perfect, you can at least get a general knowledge of what the post is trying to convey. Again, I would suggest translating your messages into the Croatian language. I have found that I get more responses this way. This is how we found the vehicle we purchased and the 50cc scooter we purchased.

Sometimes another foreigner or digital nomad living in Croatia might be moving away and looking to sell their vehicle. Posting in various expat WhatsApp groups or Facebook groups can be a good place to start. And, as a bonus, they may speak your native language, so you won’t need to translate anything.

We do not have experience purchasing from a dealership in Croatia, but there are plenty of car dealerships all throughout Croatia that sell used vehicles. A possible bonus with purchasing from a car dealership is that they may help you with the vehicle registration. I cannot confirm if this is true, however.

Tax on the vehicle purchase – varies, depending on the price and type of the vehicle. For example, out 50cc scooter cost us €13 in taxes. Our Opel Zafira cost us €51 in taxes, so unless you are purchasing a fancy and expensive used vehicle, the taxes are relatively low.

(once per year) - €44 for our Opel Zafira

(once per year) - €77 for our Opel Zafira

(once per year) – approximately €200. This can vary depending on the type of vehicle, age of vehicle, and/or insurance company.

1.       It can be helpful to create your post on Facebook or Njuškalo in the Croatian language.

2.       Disclose anything that is wrong with your vehicle, any upgrades you have made, or anything you’ve recently fixed on your vehicle in your original post.

3.       Always meet the potential buyer in a safe location. Let the potential buyer know that if they decide to purchase the vehicle that you will be immediately switching the registration to their name and doing so at a tehnički pregled location.

4.       Ensure that any parking tickets or other tickets on the vehicle have been paid in full before attempting to sell it.

5.       If you know that the potential buyer does not speak your native language, it may be helpful to take a trusted Croatian speaker with you to meet the buyer so that there are no translation issues. If this is not possible, Google Translate can come in handy.

Having a vehicle as a digital nomad in Croatia can be a very beneficial experience for a lot of reasons, but it can also be an intimidating process to figure out until you have gone through it a time or two. Hopefully you find this guide for buying a used vehicle in Croatia useful! If you have any questions, experiences, or things to add, feel free to leave them in the comments below. Thanks for following The Meandering Michiganders!

Want to hear the crazy story about when we bought our 50cc scooter? Read the blog here. Trust me, you won’t be disappointed…