From brief to first shift in Croatia: a realistic timeline

Fixed by law

• HZZ labour-market test: 15 days, only for occupations not on the exemption list.
• MUP decision: up to 90 days from a complete application, 30 more in complex cases (NN 55/2026). Before 2026 the nominal deadline was 30 days and practice was often longer; the new deadline is realistic and enforceable.
• Change of employer (for workers already in Croatia): notification within 3 days, HZZ opinion within 5, closed within 45 days including any test.

Fixed by us

• Two to four weeks to a tested shortlist for standard trades and hospitality roles; add two weeks for a test we have not run before.
• MUP file prepared to the police administration's checklist while you interview, so filing follows selection by days, not weeks.
• Visa D appointment, MWO Vienna verification, medical at a DOH-accredited clinic, pre-departure orientation and OEC run in parallel after MUP approval — two to five weeks.

Where time is lost

• An employer that fails a 2026 condition — turnover, the twelve-month domestic employee, the ratio, arrears — discovers it at MUP after months of sourcing. Our pre-check moves that discovery to week 0.
• Accommodation evidence missing or inadequate; the file is incomplete and the 90 days have not started.
• Vacancies written below the collective agreement, which attract HZZ referrals and questions.
• A test result left unused for more than 90 days — the application must follow within that window or the test is run again.
• Seasonal briefs in March for an April start; see the seasonal calendar.

A typical file

A manufacturing company in Varaždin briefs eight machine operators on 1 October; the occupation is exempt in the county; the employer passes the pre-check. Shortlist and interviews close on 24 October; contracts signed; MUP applications filed 31 October; approvals between mid-December and late January; visas and departure formalities through February; arrival in the first week of March — five months, with Christmas in the middle. The same file for an exempt hospitality role filed in January arrives in April.

The route is Croatia's combined residence-and-work permit: you file one application online through the joint HZZ/MUP platform, HZZ runs the labour-market test unless the occupation is on its exemption list and gives its opinion on your eligibility, MUP decides within 90 days, and the permit runs for the contract period — up to three years, depending on the route. Before anything is filed we check the 2026 employer conditions — €100,000 turnover over the last twelve months, at least one Croatian or EEA employee for the previous year, Croatian/EEA staff at 20 % of third-country headcount (10 % for exempt occupations), no arrears, adequate accommodation.

The Philippine side

Recruitment runs through our own DMW-licensed agency, Prime Search Manpower Agency Inc. in Makati (licence DMW-027-LB-11182024): your company is accredited at the Migrant Workers Office in Vienna, which has jurisdiction for Croatia, the job order is registered with the DMW, and every worker leaves Manila with a verified contract, medical clearance, pre-departure orientation and an Overseas Employment Certificate. The Philippine ban on direct hiring applies; the employer is always your company, directly — the Croatian permit is issued to you, not to an agency.

Everything here is subject to the Foreigners Act as amended (NN 40/2025, NN 55/2026), the HZZ exemption list in force and MUP practice.

Frequently asked questions

• Can it be faster than three months?

  Occasionally — exempt occupation, clean employer file, early visa appointment. We plan for three to five and are pleased when it is less.

• Does the trade test add time?

  No; it runs inside the two-to-four-week sourcing window. A new test design adds about two weeks once.

• What can we do in advance?

  Fix the accommodation, gather the employer documents (turnover, staff list, arrears certificates), and decide pay against the collective agreement. Those three items decide the MUP clock.