Croatia VAT Return Skill (Obrazac PDV) v2.0

Section 1 — Quick reference

Read this whole section before classifying anything. The workflow runbook is in vat-workflow-base Section 1 — follow that runbook with this skill providing the country-specific content and eu-vat-directive providing the EU directive content.

Field	Value
Country	Croatia (Republic of Croatia)
Standard rate	25%
Reduced rates	13% (accommodation, restaurant/catering food, newspapers, water, certain pharmaceuticals, cultural/sporting events, funeral services, firewood), 5% (basic foodstuffs, books, medical equipment, menstrual hygiene)
Zero rate	0% (exports, intra-EU B2B supplies of goods)
Return form	Obrazac PDV (PDV-S for summary)
Filing portal	https://e-porezna.porezna-uprava.hr (ePorezna)
Authority	Porezna uprava (Tax Administration), Ministry of Finance
Currency	EUR (from 1 January 2023)
Filing frequencies	Monthly (default); Quarterly (turnover < EUR 110,000 prior year, no intra-EU acquisitions)
Deadline	Last day of the month following the period (from 2026)
Companion skill (Tier 1, workflow)	vat-workflow-base v0.1 or later — MUST be loaded
Companion skill (Tier 2, EU directive)	eu-vat-directive v0.1 or later — MUST be loaded
Validated by	Deep research verification, April 2026
Validation date	April 2026

Key PDV return rows:

Row	Meaning
I.1	Supplies outside Croatia (place of supply not HR)
I.2	Exempt supplies without right of deduction
I.3	Exempt supplies with right of deduction (exports, intra-EU)
I.4	Intra-EU supplies of goods
I.5	Intra-EU supplies of services (B2B)
II.1	Domestic supplies at 25% — base
II.2	Output PDV at 25%
II.3	Domestic supplies at 13% — base
II.4	Output PDV at 13%
II.5	Domestic supplies at 5% — base
II.6	Output PDV at 5%
II.7	Self-assessed PDV on EU acquisitions — base
II.8	Self-assessed PDV on EU acquisitions — tax
II.9	Self-assessed PDV on EU services received — base
II.10	Self-assessed PDV on EU services received — tax
II.11	Self-assessed PDV on non-EU services — base
II.12	Self-assessed PDV on non-EU services — tax
III.1	Input PDV on domestic purchases
III.2	Input PDV on EU acquisitions (reverse charge input)
III.3	Input PDV on EU services (reverse charge input)
III.4	Input PDV on non-EU services (reverse charge input)
III.5	Input PDV on imports
IV	Total output PDV
V	Total input PDV
VI	Net PDV payable or refundable (IV minus V)

Conservative defaults:

Ambiguity	Default
Unknown rate on a sale	25%
Unknown VAT status of a purchase	Not deductible
Unknown counterparty country	Domestic Croatia
Unknown B2B vs B2C status for EU customer	B2C, charge 25%
Unknown business-use proportion	0% recovery
Unknown SaaS billing entity	Reverse charge from non-EU
Unknown blocked-input status	Blocked
Unknown whether transaction is in scope	In scope

Red flag thresholds:

Threshold	Value
HIGH single-transaction size	EUR 3,000
HIGH tax-delta on a single conservative default	EUR 200
MEDIUM counterparty concentration	>40% of output OR input
MEDIUM conservative-default count	>4 across the return
LOW absolute net PDV position	EUR 5,000

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Section 2 — Required inputs and refusal catalogue

Required inputs

Minimum viable — bank statement for the period in CSV, PDF, or pasted text. Must cover the full period. Acceptable from any Croatian or international bank: Zagrebacka banka (ZABA), PBZ (Privredna banka Zagreb), Erste & Steiermarkische Bank HR, OTP banka, Addiko Bank, RBA (Raiffeisenbank Austria d.d.), Revolut Business, Wise Business, or any other.

Recommended — sales invoices (especially for intra-EU B2B and exports), purchase invoices for input PDV claims above EUR 200, client's OIB (11-digit Personal Identification Number).

Ideal — complete invoice register, prior period PDV return, fiscalization records (fiskalizacija), reconciliation of credit brought forward.

Refusal policy if minimum is missing — SOFT WARN. If no bank statement, hard stop. If bank statement only, proceed but record in reviewer brief.

Croatia-specific refusal catalogue

These apply on top of EU-wide refusals in eu-vat-directive Section 13.

R-HR-1 — Small business exemption attempting PDV return. Trigger: client is exempt (turnover < EUR 60,000) and not voluntarily registered. Message: "Exempt small businesses do not file PDV returns. Register voluntarily first if you wish to charge and recover PDV."

R-HR-2 — Partial exemption. Trigger: client makes both taxable and exempt-without-credit supplies, non-de-minimis. Message: "Mixed taxable/exempt supplies require pro-rata input PDV apportionment. Use a qualified accountant."

R-HR-3 — VAT group. Trigger: client is in a PDV group. Message: "PDV groups require consolidation. Out of scope."

R-HR-4 — Special schemes (margin, travel agent). Trigger: second-hand goods, travel packages. Message: "Special schemes require transaction-level computation. Out of scope."

R-HR-5 — Real estate option to tax. Trigger: client exercises option to tax immovable property (domestic reverse charge). Message: "Immovable property transactions with option to tax require specialist review. Out of scope."

R-HR-6 — Fiscalization non-compliance. Trigger: client has not fiscalized domestic invoices as required. Message: "All domestic invoices must be fiscalized (fiskalizacija). Ensure compliance before filing the PDV return."

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Section 3 — Supplier pattern library (the lookup table)

Match by case-insensitive substring. Most specific match wins. No match = fall through to Section 5.

3.1 Croatian banks (fees exempt — exclude)

Pattern	Treatment	Notes
ZAGREBACKA BANKA, ZABA	EXCLUDE for bank charges/fees	Financial service, exempt
PBZ, PRIVREDNA BANKA ZAGREB	EXCLUDE for bank charges/fees	Same
ERSTE BANK HR, ERSTE & STEIERMARKISCHE	EXCLUDE for bank charges/fees	Same
OTP BANKA HR	EXCLUDE for bank charges/fees	Same
ADDIKO BANK	EXCLUDE for bank charges/fees	Same
RBA, RAIFFEISENBANK	EXCLUDE for bank charges/fees	Same
REVOLUT, WISE, N26 (fee lines)	EXCLUDE for transaction/maintenance fees	Check for taxable subscription invoices
KAMATA, INTEREST	EXCLUDE	Interest, out of scope
KREDIT, LOAN, ZAJAM	EXCLUDE	Loan principal, out of scope

3.2 Croatian government and statutory bodies (exclude)

Pattern	Treatment	Notes
POREZNA UPRAVA, TAX ADMINISTRATION	EXCLUDE	Tax payment
HZZO, CROATIAN HEALTH INSURANCE	EXCLUDE	Social security
HZMO, PENSION FUND	EXCLUDE	Pension contribution
HGK, CROATIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE	EXCLUDE	Membership (check if PDV applies)
FINA	EXCLUDE	Government agency fees
SUDSKI REGISTAR, COURT REGISTER	EXCLUDE	Registration fees

3.3 Croatian utilities

Pattern	Treatment	Row	Notes
HEP, HRVATSKA ELEKTROPRIVREDA	Domestic 25%	III.1	Electricity
VODOVOD, VODOOPSKRBA	Domestic 13%	III.1	Water supply at 13%
HRVATSKI TELEKOM, HT, T-COM	Domestic 25%	III.1	Telecoms
A1 HRVATSKA, A1 HR	Domestic 25%	III.1	Telecoms
TELEMACH	Domestic 25%	III.1	Telecoms/broadband

3.4 Insurance (exempt — exclude)

Pattern	Treatment	Notes
CROATIA OSIGURANJE	EXCLUDE	Insurance, exempt
ALLIANZ HRVATSKA	EXCLUDE	Same
GENERALI OSIGURANJE	EXCLUDE	Same
EUROHERC	EXCLUDE	Same
UNIQA HR	EXCLUDE	Same
OSIGURANJE, INSURANCE, POLICA	EXCLUDE	All exempt

3.5 Post and logistics

Pattern	Treatment	Row	Notes
HRVATSKA POSTA, HP	EXCLUDE for standard post		Universal service, exempt
HRVATSKA POSTA (parcel/courier)	Domestic 25%	III.1	Non-universal services
OVERSEAS EXPRESS	Domestic 25%	III.1	Courier
DPD HR	Domestic 25%	III.1	Courier
DHL INTERNATIONAL	EU reverse charge (IE/DE entity)	III.3	Check invoice

3.6 Transport

Pattern	Treatment	Row	Notes
HZ PUTNICKI PRIJEVOZ, CROATIAN RAILWAYS	Domestic 25% or 13%	III.1	Domestic rail
ZET, ZAGREB TRAM	EXCLUDE / 13%		Public transport
UBER, BOLT (platform fee)	EU reverse charge (IE entity)	III.3	Platform fee; underlying ride domestic
CROATIA AIRLINES (international)	EXCLUDE / 0%		International flight

3.7 Food retail (blocked unless hospitality)

Pattern	Treatment	Notes
KONZUM, KAUFLAND, LIDL HR, SPAR HR, PLODINE	Default BLOCK input PDV	Personal provisioning
RESTAURANT, RESTORAN, KAFIC	Default BLOCK	Entertainment

3.8 SaaS — EU suppliers (reverse charge, Row II.9/II.10 + III.3)

Pattern	Billing entity	Row	Notes
GOOGLE (Ads, Workspace, Cloud)	Google Ireland Ltd (IE)	II.9/II.10 + III.3	Reverse charge services
MICROSOFT (365, Azure)	Microsoft Ireland Operations Ltd (IE)	II.9/II.10 + III.3	Reverse charge
ADOBE	Adobe Systems Software Ireland Ltd (IE)	II.9/II.10 + III.3	Reverse charge
META, FACEBOOK ADS	Meta Platforms Ireland Ltd (IE)	II.9/II.10 + III.3	Reverse charge
LINKEDIN (paid)	LinkedIn Ireland Unlimited (IE)	II.9/II.10 + III.3	Reverse charge
SPOTIFY	Spotify AB (SE)	II.9/II.10 + III.3	EU reverse charge
DROPBOX	Dropbox International Unlimited (IE)	II.9/II.10 + III.3	Reverse charge
SLACK	Slack Technologies Ireland Ltd (IE)	II.9/II.10 + III.3	Reverse charge
ATLASSIAN	Atlassian Network Services BV (NL)	II.9/II.10 + III.3	EU reverse charge
ZOOM	Zoom Video Communications Ireland Ltd (IE)	II.9/II.10 + III.3	Reverse charge
STRIPE (subscription)	Stripe Technology Europe Ltd (IE)	II.9/II.10 + III.3	Transaction fees exempt

3.9 SaaS — non-EU suppliers (reverse charge, Row II.11/II.12 + III.4)

Pattern	Billing entity	Row	Notes
AWS EMEA SARL	AWS EMEA SARL (LU)	II.9/II.10 + III.3	LU = EU reverse charge
NOTION	Notion Labs Inc (US)	II.11/II.12 + III.4	Non-EU reverse charge
ANTHROPIC, CLAUDE	Anthropic PBC (US)	II.11/II.12 + III.4	Non-EU reverse charge
OPENAI, CHATGPT	OpenAI Inc (US)	II.11/II.12 + III.4	Non-EU reverse charge
GITHUB	GitHub Inc (US)	II.11/II.12 + III.4	Check if billed by IE
FIGMA	Figma Inc (US)	II.11/II.12 + III.4	Non-EU reverse charge
CANVA	Canva Pty Ltd (AU)	II.11/II.12 + III.4	Non-EU reverse charge

3.10 Payment processors

Pattern	Treatment	Notes
STRIPE (transaction fees)	EXCLUDE (exempt)	Financial service
PAYPAL (transaction fees)	EXCLUDE (exempt)	Same

3.11 Professional services (Croatia)

Pattern	Treatment	Row	Notes
JAVNI BILJEZNIK, NOTAR	Domestic 25%	III.1	Notary
RACUNOVODSTVO, ACCOUNTANT	Domestic 25%	III.1	Accounting
ODVJETNIK, LAWYER	Domestic 25%	III.1	Legal

3.12 Payroll and social security (exclude)

Pattern	Treatment	Notes
HZZO, HZMO	EXCLUDE	Social contributions
PLACA, SALARY, WAGES	EXCLUDE	Wages
POREZ NA DOHODAK	EXCLUDE	Income tax

3.13 Property and rent

Pattern	Treatment	Notes
NAJAM, RENT (commercial with PDV)	Domestic 25%	Commercial lease
NAJAM, RENT (residential)	EXCLUDE	Residential exempt

3.14 Internal transfers and exclusions

Pattern	Treatment	Notes
INTERNI PRIJENOS, OWN TRANSFER	EXCLUDE	Internal movement
DIVIDENDA, DIVIDEND	EXCLUDE	Out of scope
OTPLATA KREDITA, LOAN REPAYMENT	EXCLUDE	Loan principal
BANKOMAT, ATM, CASH WITHDRAWAL	Ask	Default exclude

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Section 4 — Worked examples

Example 1 — Non-EU SaaS reverse charge (Notion)

Input line: 03.04.2026 ; NOTION LABS INC ; DEBIT ; Monthly subscription ; USD 16.00 ; EUR 14.68

Reasoning: US entity. Reverse charge under VAT Act Art. 17(1). Self-assess output PDV at 25% in Row II.11/II.12, input PDV in Row III.4. Net zero.

Output:

Date	Counterparty	Gross	Net	PDV	Rate	Row (input)	Row (output)	Default?	Question?	Excluded?
03.04.2026	NOTION LABS INC	-14.68	-14.68	3.67	25%	III.4	II.11/II.12	N	—	—

Example 2 — EU service reverse charge (Google Ads)

Input line: 10.04.2026 ; GOOGLE IRELAND LIMITED ; DEBIT ; Google Ads ; -850.00 ; EUR

Reasoning: IE entity. EU reverse charge. Output in Row II.9/II.10, input in Row III.3.

Output:

Date	Counterparty	Gross	Net	PDV	Rate	Row (input)	Row (output)	Default?	Question?	Excluded?
10.04.2026	GOOGLE IRELAND LIMITED	-850.00	-850.00	212.50	25%	III.3	II.9/II.10	N	—	—

Example 3 — Entertainment, blocked

Input line: 15.04.2026 ; RESTORAN DUBRAVKIN PUT ; DEBIT ; Business dinner ; -220.00 ; EUR

Reasoning: Restaurant. Entertainment/representation in Croatia: input PDV is NOT deductible for entertainment (VAT Act Art. 61). Block.

Output:

Date	Counterparty	Gross	Net	PDV	Rate	Row	Default?	Question?	Excluded?
15.04.2026	RESTORAN DUBRAVKIN PUT	-220.00	-220.00	0	—	—	Y	Q1	"Entertainment: blocked"

Example 4 — Capital goods

Input line: 18.04.2026 ; LINKS D.O.O. ; DEBIT ; Laptop Dell ; -1,595.00 ; EUR

Reasoning: Movable capital goods above the threshold (EUR 6,636 for 5-year adjustment). This laptop at EUR 1,595 is below the adjustment threshold — treat as overhead. Input PDV deductible at 25%.

Output:

Date	Counterparty	Gross	Net	PDV	Rate	Row	Default?	Question?	Excluded?
18.04.2026	LINKS D.O.O.	-1,595.00	-1,276.00	-319.00	25%	III.1	N	—	—

Example 5 — EU B2B service sale

Input line: 22.04.2026 ; STUDIO KREBS GMBH ; CREDIT ; IT consultancy ; +3,500.00 ; EUR

Reasoning: B2B service to Germany. Place of supply = Germany. Report in Row I.5 at 0%. Verify customer's USt-IdNr.

Output:

Date	Counterparty	Gross	Net	PDV	Rate	Row	Default?	Question?	Excluded?
22.04.2026	STUDIO KREBS GMBH	+3,500.00	+3,500.00	0	0%	I.5	Y	Q2 (HIGH)	"Verify German USt-IdNr"

Example 6 — Motor vehicle, restricted

Input line: 28.04.2026 ; INA D.D. ; DEBIT ; Fuel ; -80.00 ; EUR

Reasoning: Fuel for passenger vehicle. In Croatia, input PDV on passenger vehicles and related costs (fuel, maintenance) is deductible only for vehicles used exclusively for business (taxi, driving school, rental, delivery). Default: 0% recovery.

Output:

Date	Counterparty	Gross	Net	PDV	Rate	Row	Default?	Question?	Excluded?
28.04.2026	INA D.D.	-80.00	-80.00	0	—	—	Y	Q3	"Vehicle: confirm exclusive business use"

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Section 5 — Tier 1 classification rules (compressed)

5.1 Standard rate 25% (VAT Act Art. 38(1))

Default rate. Sales: Row II.1/II.2. Purchases: Row III.1.

5.2 Reduced rate 13% (VAT Act Art. 38(2))

Accommodation, restaurant/catering (food and non-alcoholic beverages), newspapers, water supply, certain pharmaceuticals, cultural/sporting events, funeral services, firewood.

5.3 Super-reduced rate 5% (VAT Act Art. 38(3))

Basic foodstuffs (bread, milk, eggs, cooking oil, baby food), books (printed/electronic), medical equipment, menstrual hygiene products.

5.4 Zero rate and exempt with credit

Exports: Row I.3. Intra-EU B2B goods: Row I.4. Intra-EU B2B services: Row I.5. International transport: Row I.3.

5.5 Exempt without credit

Financial services, insurance, healthcare, education, postal universal service, residential rental (>2 years), gambling, transfer of going concern.

5.6 Reverse charge — EU services received (VAT Act Art. 17(1))

Output PDV self-assessed at 25% in Row II.9/II.10, input PDV in Row III.3.

5.7 Reverse charge — EU goods received

Output in Row II.7/II.8, input in Row III.2.

5.8 Reverse charge — non-EU services received

Output in Row II.11/II.12, input in Row III.4.

5.9 Imports

Import PDV on customs declaration. Input in Row III.5.

5.10 Capital goods (VAT Act Art. 64-65)

Immovable property: 10-year adjustment. Movable capital goods (> EUR 6,636): 5-year adjustment.

5.11 Blocked input PDV (VAT Act Art. 61)

• Entertainment/representation: fully blocked (no exceptions)
• Passenger vehicles and related costs (fuel, maintenance): blocked unless exclusively for taxable business (taxi, driving school, rental, delivery)
• Personal use items: blocked
• Goods/services for exempt supplies: blocked

5.12 Fiscalization (Zakon o fiskalizaciji)

All domestic invoices must be fiscalized. Non-compliance is a separate obligation — does not affect PDV classification but must be flagged.

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Section 6 — Tier 2 catalogue (compressed)

6.1 Fuel and vehicle costs

Default: 0% recovery. Question: "Passenger car or commercial? Exclusive business use?"

6.2 Restaurants and entertainment

Default: block. Question: "Entertainment meal? (Note: blocked regardless of purpose in Croatia.)"

6.3 Ambiguous SaaS billing entities

Default: non-EU reverse charge. Question: "Check invoice for legal entity and billing country."

6.4 Round-number incoming transfers

Default: exclude as owner injection. Question: "Customer payment, own money, or loan?"

6.5 Incoming from individuals

Default: domestic B2C at 25%. Question: "Sale? B2B or B2C? Country?"

6.6 Foreign counterparty incoming

Default: domestic 25%. Question: "B2B with VAT number? Country?"

6.7 Large purchases (capital goods)

Default: if > EUR 6,636 gross, flag for adjustment tracking. Question: "Confirm total invoice amount."

6.8 Mixed-use phone/internet/home office

Default: 0%. Question: "Dedicated business or mixed-use?"

6.9 Outgoing to individuals

Default: exclude as drawings. Question: "Contractor, wages, or personal?"

6.10 Cash withdrawals

Default: exclude. Question: "What was the cash used for?"

6.11 Rent payments

Default: no PDV (residential). Question: "Commercial or residential?"

6.12 Water supply rate

Default: 13%. Question: "Confirm water supply invoice (13% reduced rate)."

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Section 7 — Excel working paper template (Croatia-specific)

Per vat-workflow-base Section 3 base. Column H accepts Croatia PDV row codes. Sheet "Row Summary" maps to Obrazac PDV rows I.1 through VI. Bottom-line: Row VI (net payable/refundable).

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Section 8 — Croatia bank statement reading guide

CSV conventions. ZABA and PBZ use semicolons with DD.MM.YYYY. Revolut uses ISO dates.

Croatian language. najam (rent), placa (salary), kamata (interest), prijenos (transfer), gotovina (cash).

Internal transfers. "Interni prijenos", "vlastiti racun". Exclude.

Sole trader draws. Self-employed (obrt) cannot pay themselves wages. Exclude.

HRK legacy. Croatia adopted EUR on 1 January 2023. Any pre-2023 HRK amounts must be converted at the fixed rate 7.53450 HRK = 1 EUR.

IBAN prefix. HR = Croatia. IE, DE, NL = EU. US, GB = non-EU.

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Section 9 — Onboarding fallback (only when inference fails)

9.1 Entity type

Inference: d.o.o. = limited, obrt = sole trader. Fallback: "Are you obrt (sole trader) or d.o.o. (company)?"

9.2 PDV registration

Fallback: "Are you PDV-registered (mandatory or voluntary)?"

9.3 OIB

Fallback: "What is your OIB? (11 digits)"

9.4 Filing period

Inference: transaction dates; monthly or quarterly. Fallback: "Which period?"

9.5 Industry

Fallback: "What does the business do?"

9.6 Employees

Fallback: "Do you have employees?"

9.7 Exempt supplies

Fallback: "Do you make exempt supplies?" If yes: R-HR-2 may fire.

9.8 Credit brought forward

Fallback: "Excess PDV credit from prior period?"

9.9 Cross-border customers

Fallback: "Customers outside Croatia? EU or non-EU? B2B or B2C?"

9.10 Fiscalization status

Fallback: "Are your invoices fiscalized?"

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Section 10 — Reference material

Sources

1. Zakon o porezu na dodanu vrijednost (VAT Act, OG 73/13, as amended)
2. Pravilnik o PDV-u (VAT Regulation)
3. Zakon o fiskalizaciji (Fiscalization Act)
4. EU VAT Directive 2006/112/EC — via eu-vat-directive companion skill
5. VIES — https://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/vies/

Known gaps

1. Supplier library does not cover every Croatian SME.
2. Fiscalization technical compliance not detailed.
3. Construction domestic reverse charge not covered in depth.

Change log

• v2.0 (April 2026): Full rewrite to Malta v2.0 structure. Croatian banks (ZABA, PBZ, Erste HR).
• v1.0 (April 2026): Initial skill.

Self-check

1. Quick reference with row table and conservative defaults: yes.
2. Supplier library: yes (14 sub-tables).
3. Worked examples (6): yes.
4. No inline [T1]/[T2]/[T3] tags: yes.
5. 10-section structure: yes.

End of Croatia VAT Return Skill v2.0

This skill is incomplete without BOTH companion files: vat-workflow-base v0.1+ AND eu-vat-directive v0.1+.

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Disclaimer

This skill and its outputs are provided for informational and computational purposes only and do not constitute tax, legal, or financial advice. Open Accountants and its contributors accept no liability for any errors, omissions, or outcomes arising from the use of this skill. All outputs must be reviewed and signed off by a qualified professional before filing or acting upon.

The most up-to-date, verified version of this skill is maintained at openaccountants.com.