COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL on the Main Findings of the Comprehensive Monitoring Report on Croatia’s state of preparedness for EU membership
Date: 2012-10-10
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Community acquis, Croatia, Schengen Agreement, accession criteria, competition policy, economic reform, judicial reform, political reform, transitional period (EU)

EUROPEAN 
COMMISSION 

Brussels, 10.10.2012  
COM(2012) 601 final 

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN 
PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL 

on the Main Findings of the Comprehensive Monitoring Report on Croatia’s state of 
preparedness for EU membership 

{SWD(2012) 338 final}

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COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN 
PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL 

on the Main Findings of the Comprehensive Monitoring Report on Croatia’s state of 
preparedness for EU membership 

1. 

INTRODUCTION 

Accession  negotiations  with  Croatia  were  closed  in  June  2011.  After  the  Commission’s 
favourable  opinion,  the  European  Parliament’s  assent  and  the  Council  decision  on  the 
admission  of  Croatia,  the  Accession  Treaty  was  signed  on  9  December  2011  (OJ  L  112, 
24.4.2012).  Croatia  has  ratified  the  Accession  Treaty  and  will  become  a  Member  of  the 
European  Union  on  1  July  2013,  subject  to  the  Accession  Treaty  being  ratified  by  all 
Members  States.  As  an  acceding  country,  Croatia  has  an  active  observer  status  during  the 
interim period before accession.  

In the course of the negotiations, Croatia has agreed to a number of commitments, which have 
to  be  implemented  by  the  date  of  accession,  at  the  latest,  unless  specific  transitional 
arrangements have been agreed. 

In its Strategy Paper and Report published in October 2011, and in the Monitoring Report on 
Croatia’s accession preparations of April 20121, the Commission noted the progress made by 
Croatia in its preparations for accession. The Commission also identified a number of areas 
where  further  improvements  are  necessary  in  order  to  fully  meet  all  membership 
requirements. Croatia has developed an action plan to follow up on the findings of the April 
Monitoring Report. The action plan is being implemented, with a number of measures having 
already been adopted. Notably, the restructuring of Brodosplit advanced, and discussions are 
progressing  with  regard  to  the  privatisation  and  restructuring  arrangements  for  3.Maj  and 
Brodotrogir. Implementation of the judicial reform strategy and action plan has continued and 
a revised strategy is currently under finalisation. The government proposed new enforcement 
legislation  to  Parliament.  The  track  record  of  results  in  fighting  corruption  and  organised 
crime continued to be developed and the initial steps have been taken for the setting up of the 
Conflict of Interest Commission. In the field of fundamental rights, amendments to the anti-
discrimination  Act  and  new  Ombudsman  legislation  were  adopted.  Discussions  have 
intensified  with  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina  to  address  the  outstanding  issues  on  border 
management. Progress was noted in the alignment with the Services Directive and in the field 
of mutual recognition of professional qualifications. The fee/tax measure on mobile services 
was abolished with effect from July 2012. 

Article  36  of  the  Act  of  Accession  requires  the  Commission  to  closely  monitor  all 
commitments  undertaken  by  Croatia  in  the  accession  negotiations  focusing  in  particular  on 
competition  policy,  judiciary  and  fundamental  rights,  and  freedom  security  and  justice.  The 
Act  further  provides  for  the  Commission  to  present  a  Comprehensive  Monitoring  Report  to 
the European Parliament and the Council in autumn 2012. 

This  Communication  summarises  the  main  findings  of  the  Comprehensive  Monitoring 
Report, which assesses the progress made by Croatia in its preparations for accession in the 

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COM(2012) 186 final. 

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period  October  2011  to  September  2012,  it  provides  an  overall  assessment  of  the  level  of 
preparedness for membership and highlights the areas where further efforts are necessary in 
order for Croatia to be ready for membership on 1 July 2013.  

The report assesses Croatia’s state of preparedness on the basis of the political and economic 
criteria for membership and of the requirement to adopt and implement the EU acquis, as laid 
down by the Copenhagen European Council in 1993. 

The assessment is based on information gathered and analysed by the Commission, including 
input  provided  by  Croatia,  and  information  shared  by  Member  States,  and  international  and 
civil society organisations in their regular contacts with the Commission. The Report is also 
based on the Commission’s findings in its updated Monitoring Tables, a working tool aimed 
at following up in detail on all of Croatia’s commitments in the context of the negotiations.  

Through this report, the Commission also aims to assist Croatia in its further preparation for 
membership.  

COMPLIANCE  OF  CROATIA  WITH  THE  COPENHAGEN  CRITERIA  –  SUMMARY  OF 

2. 
FINDINGS 

2.1 

Political criteria 

Croatia continues to meet the political criteria. In all areas covered by the political criteria 
(stability of institutions guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law, human rights and respect for 
and protection of minorities) work has continued and results are becoming tangible.  

Parliamentary elections were held in December 2011 in a pluralistic environment and were 
administered in an efficient and transparent manner. Improvements are necessary with regard 
to maintenance of  the  voters’ list, for which work has  already started. In the field of public 
administration,  further  efforts  are  needed  to  improve  the  professionalism  of  the  public 
service. Completion and efficient implementation of the relevant legal framework is necessary 
in order to build a modern, reliable, transparent and citizen-oriented public service. In view of 
the  recent  substantial  restructuring  of  the  public  administration,  and  taking  into  account  the 
additional  responsibilities  related  to  EU  membership,  Croatia  should  address  without  delay 
the  administrative  capacity  constraints  identified  in  the  Comprehensive  Monitoring  Report 
and ensure that the completion of preparations for EU membership is not affected. 

In  the  field  of  judiciary,  efforts  to  strengthen  the  independence,  accountability,  impartiality 
and  professionalism  of  the  judiciary  have  continued.  The  reformed  State  Judicial  Council 
(SJC) and State Prosecutorial Council (SPC) have continued to function independently. Both 
bodies have continued to appoint judicial officials based on transparent, uniform and objective 
criteria. Efforts are needed to improve their functioning especially in order for them to carry 
out their increased tasks including the systematic and accurate checking of assets declarations 
and  pro-active  application  of  disciplinary  procedures.  Improvements  are  needed  in  the 
procedures leading to the selection and assignment of new judges and prosecutors. Croatia has 
continued to implement various measures aiming at improving the efficiency of the judiciary. 
While the backlog of  old criminal  cases continues to  fall, the number  of  old  civil cases has 
increased over the last 18 months. This general trend of increase of unresolved cases, mainly 
civil, commercial, misdemeanours and enforcement cases is a matter of concern. The revised 
enforcement  legislation,  adopted  by  government  in  July  2012,  needs  to  be  adopted  by 
parliament and implemented in order to lead to further concrete results.  

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With  regard  to  the  fight  against  corruption,  an  adequate  legal  and  institutional  framework 
remains  in  place  and  a  track  record  of  implementation  continues  to  be  developed.  Law 
enforcement bodies remain pro-active, especially on higher-level cases. Local level corruption 
needs attention, particularly in public procurement. Croatia has improved its track record of 
strengthened  prevention  measures  by  means  of  a  number  of  preventive  legal  instruments. 
However,  Croatia  has  not  fully  implemented  the  conflict  of  interest  legislation  and  has 
overturned  the  previous  provisions  on  the  criteria  for  membership  of  supervisory  and 
management boards of public companies. Some initial steps have been taken for the setting up 
of the Conflict of Interest Commission, with the publication by Parliament of the request for 
expression of interests for the selection of the Commission’s members in August 2012. The 
Commission  needs  to  be  established  and  start  operating  without  delay.  The  scope  and 
implementation of the access to information legislation requires attention. Croatia is advanced 
with  regard  to  police  cooperation  and  the  fight  against  organised  crime.  Activities  have 
continued  with  the  aim  of  bringing  the  national  legislation  in  line  with  the  EU  acquis  and 
coping with the future challenges of fighting the organised crime within the EU.  

With  regard  to  human  rights  and  the  protection  of  minorities,  human  rights  continue  to  be 
generally well respected, with attention still needed for the respect of Lesbians, gays, bisexual 
and trans-gender people (LGBT) rights. The gay pride events in Split and Zagreb took place 
without major incidents, with strong commitment of the Croatian government to their smooth 
organisation. 

With  regard  to  respect  for  and  protection  of  minorities  and  cultural  rights,  protection  of 
minorities  has  continued  to  improve,  through  the  implementation  of  measures  for  the 
protection  of  minorities,  including  the  Constitutional  Act  on  the  Rights  of  National 
Minorities.  However,  the  level  of  employment  of  minorities  in  the  state  administration  and 
judiciary remains below  the requirements set by the act. In line with the Constitution, eight 
representatives of national minorities were elected at the parliamentary elections of December 
2011. However, Croatia needs to continue to foster a spirit of tolerance towards minorities, in 
particular Croatian Serbs and to take measures to protect those who may still be subjected to 
threats or acts of discrimination, hostility or violence. The Roma minority faces particularly 
difficult living conditions, and challenges remain in the areas of education, social protection, 
health care, employment and access to personal documents.  

The situation with regard to refugee return issues has improved and the implementation of the 
housing  care  programmes  continues,  although  at  a  slower  pace.  Conditions  for  sustainable 
refugee return need to be further developed.  

With  regard  to  war  crimes,  Croatia  continues  to  cooperate  with  the  International  Criminal 
Tribunal  for  the  former  Yugoslavia  (ICTY)  and  to  process  war  crimes  cases.  Efforts  to 
address impunity for war crimes should be intensified, as the majority of crimes have yet to be 
successfully prosecuted. Measures need to be taken to facilitate the protection and attendance 
of  witnesses  at  trial,  especially  in  cases  relocated  to  the  specialised  chambers.  As  regards 
regional  cooperation,  Croatia  has  maintained  the  dialogue  with  neighbouring  countries  in 
order to address open bilateral issues. The Declaration of the Croatian Parliament of October 
2011  on  promoting  European  values  in  south-east  Europe  emphasised  Croatia’s  firm 
commitment to supporting the other countries of the region on their path to the EU. Croatia 
continued to engage in cooperation on war crimes at the bilateral and regional level and good 
cooperation  between  judicial  authorities,  in  particular  prosecutors,  is  in  place.  Croatia  has 
continued to contribute actively to the Sarajevo Declaration Process. An international Donors’ 
Conference was held in April 2012 in Sarajevo to secure funding for a durable solution for all 

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refugees  in  the  region  who  were  displaced  as  a  result  of  the  armed  conflicts  in  the  former 
Yugoslavia in the 1990s. Croatia needs to allocate the necessary additional funding.  

A comprehensive process to review the cases of missing persons needs to be carried out as an 
important step in the reconciliation process in the region. 

With  regard  to  bilateral  relations,  the  procedure  on  the  international  border  arbitration 
between  Croatia  and  Slovenia  started  and  the  Arbitral  Tribunal  held  its  first  procedural 
meeting  on  13  April  2012.  Concrete  progress  remains  to  be  achieved  with  regard  to  border 
demarcation with Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina.  

2.2 

Economic criteria 

The  economy  of  Croatia  stabilised  temporarily  in  mid-2011  before  returning  to  recession 
towards  the  end  of  the  year.  The  economic  contraction  continued  in  the  first  half  of  2012. 
Unemployment,  public  deficit  and  debt  continued  to  increase  in  2011  from  already  high 
levels. The high external indebtedness remains a key vulnerability of the economy.  

As  regards  the  economic  criteria,  Croatia  is  a  functioning  market  economy.  Vigorous 
implementation  of  urgently  needed  structural  reforms  should  enable  Croatia  to  cope  with 
competitive pressures and market forces within the Union in the near term. 

Broad political consensus on the fundamentals of a market economy was maintained. Given 
the  existing  constraints,  macroeconomic  policy  has,  by  and  large,  been  appropriate.  The 
central bank succeeded to preserve exchange rate and financial stability while maintaining a 
relatively  accommodative  monetary  policy  as  underlying  inflationary  pressures  stayed  low. 
The banking sector remained well capitalised. In the fiscal area, the authorities made efforts to 
contain the rising deficit by reining in expenditures. The current account deficit remained at a 
low level as a renewed rise of imports was offset by increasing exports. Gross external debt 
has stabilised, albeit at a very high level. 

Structural reforms progressed slowly in some areas, not least with respect to privatisation and 
the  restructuring  of  loss-making  enterprises,  and  were  almost  non-existent  in  others.  In  the 
area  of  labour  markets  in  particular,  where  already  low  levels  of  employment  and 
participation declined further, reforms are still at a very early stage and need urgently to be 
stepped  up.  The  investment  climate  continued  to  suffer  from  a  heavy  regulatory  burden, 
lengthy procedures, uncertainties in the legal environment, unpredictability of administrative 
decisions,  and  a  high  number  of  non-tax  fees.  Social  transfer  payments,  which  represent  a 
relatively high share of public budgets, remained not well-targeted. Considering the need to 
achieve medium-term fiscal sustainability, the budgetary process could be improved further. 
Enhancing the efficiency of public spending remains a key challenge. 

2.3 

Ability to take on the obligations of membership 

Regarding  its  ability  to  take  on  the  obligations  of  membership,  Croatia  has  continued  to 
make  progress  in  adopting  and  implementing  EU  legislation  and  is  now  completing  its 
alignment  with  the  acquis.  Nevertheless,  the  Commission  has  identified  a  number  of  issues 
requiring continued attention. The Croatian authorities need to take all necessary measures to 
ensure  that  the  country  is  fully  prepared  for  membership  by  1  July  2013,  including  with 
regard to the administrative capacity for the implementation of the acquis. 

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In accordance with Article 36 of the Act of Accession, particular focus is given in this section 
to competition policy, judiciary and fundamental rights and freedom, justice and security.  

Chapter 8: Competition policy 

Croatia  is  generally  meeting  the  commitments  and  requirements  arising  from  the  accession 
negotiations in the field of competition policy and should be in a position to implement the 
acquis  as  of  accession.  Urgent  attention  must  be  paid  to  the  signature  of  the  contracts  for 
privatising the shipyards in difficulty.  

Croatia has largely aligned its legislation in the fields of anti-trust and mergers and of State 
aid.  It  has  also  kept  up  its  efforts  to  build  a  positive  enforcement  record.  Croatia’s 
Competition Agency (CCA) is fully operational and functionally independent; it carries out its 
duties in line with the legislation in force. A proper system of merger and State aid control is 
in place. 

In the field of anti-trust and mergers, since 1 October 2011, the CCA issued 29 decisions 
and  25  opinions.  The  CCA  continued  to  provide  the  government  with  assessments  of  draft 
laws and other expert opinions.  

In the field of State aid, the CCA took 30 decisions, of which 13 involved aid schemes and 
17 concerned individual aid measures.  

With  regard  to  Croatia’s  reporting  obligations  in  the  steel  sector,  the  first  reports  were 
submitted  to  the  Commission  on  15  December  2011  and  18  June  2012  in  line  with  the 
requirements arising during the negotiations. 

Sisak has yet to reimburse the aid received. In October 2011, the owners decided to close and 
sell the steel mill, resulting in production being completely halted. The owners of CMC Sisak 
sold the steel mill to a new investor, the Italian group Danieli.  

The reports also provide updated information on the bankruptcy proceedings concerning the 
other steel mill, Željezara Split.  

With  regard  to  Croatia’s  obligations  to  report  on  the  shipbuilding  industry,  on  16  January 
2012 it submitted the first six-monthly report on the restructuring of the Croatian shipyards in 
difficulty as required by Annex VIII of the Act of Accession. The report contains data on the 
measures  taken  to  return  to  viability,  aid  used,  own  contribution  and  production  capacity, 
following  the  methodology  for  monitoring  implementation  by  Croatia  agreed  with  the 
Commission.  The  report  also  provides  details  on  the  agreements  regulating  property  law  in 
the context of expropriation in the maritime domain. On 16 July 2012 Croatia submitted its 
second  six  monthly  report  on  the  restructuring  of  the  Croatian  shipbuilding  industry.  In 
addition,  Croatia  submitted  the  first  Report  on  the  Annual  Output  of  the  Shipyards  under 
restructuring. 

In  March  2012,  the  bid  for  the  shipyard  Brodosplit  was  accepted  and  Croatia  has  indicated 
that the privatisation contract will be signed shortly. The bids for the shipyards Kraljevica and 
Brodotrogir  were  rejected  by  the  government  and  the  bid  for  the  shipyard  3.Maj  was 
withdrawn  by  the  potential  investor.  The  government  has  decided  to  initiate  bankruptcy 
proceedings for Kraljevica and to seek new privatisation and restructuring arrangements for 
3.Maj and Brodotrogir. 

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Croatia  needs  to  proceed  with  the  signing  of  the  privatisation  contract  for  Brodosplit, 
following the Commission’s positive decision of August 2012, and with finding a solution for 
3.Maj and Brodotrogir, as a matter of urgency in order to fulfil the requirements of the Treaty 
Annex on restructuring of the shipyards by the date of Croatia’s accession. 

As regards existing aid, Croatia has provided the Commission with a list of 11 aid measures 
that  it  wishes  to  be  considered  as  existing  aid  at  the  date  of  accession.  Seven  of  these 
measures  have  been  included  in  the  Act  of  Accession.  Croatia  needs  to  provide  further 
information on the remaining ones for the Commission to complete its assessment.  

Chapter 23: Judiciary and fundamental rights 

Croatia  is  generally  meeting  the  commitments  and  requirements  arising  from  the  accession 
negotiations in the field of the judiciary and fundamental rights and should be in a position to 
implement the acquis as of accession, as outlined in the 10 areas set out in Annex VII of the 
Act of Accession. However, increased efforts are needed to continue strengthening the rule of 
law, by improving administration and the judicial system, and to fight and prevent corruption 
effectively. Prosecution of domestic war crimes, respect for human rights and the protection 
of minorities require continuous attention.  

1)  To  continue  to  ensure  effective  implementation  of  its  Judicial  Reform  Strategy  and 
Action Plan 

Implementation of the judicial reform strategy and action plan has continued generally in line 
with  the  deadlines  set,  and  included  legislative  fine-tuning  in  a  number  of  areas.  Working 
groups  have  been  established  and  are  active  to  further  improve  specific  legislation  and  to 
increase coordination of legal instruments. Human resources planning, including for the long-
term  needs  of  the  judiciary,  remains  to  be  improved.  The  budget  available  for  the  judiciary 
remained  stable  at  around  € 337  million,  or  0.7%  of  GDP.  A  council  for  monitoring  the 
implementation of the Judicial Reform Strategy was established in February 2012, focusing in 
particular on the efficiency of court proceedings. Amendments to the State Judicial Council 
Act  were  adopted  in  October  2011  to  further  increase  scope  for  transferring  judicial  staff 
according to needs. 

2)  To  continue  to  strengthen  the  independence,  accountability,  impartiality  and 
professionalism of the judiciary 

Implementation  of  the  various  measures  taken  in  2010  and  2011  to  strengthen  the 
independence, accountability, impartiality and professionalism of the judiciary has continued. 
The  reformed  State  Judicial  Council  (SJC)  and  State  Prosecutorial  Council  (SPC)  have 
continued to function independently.  

Both  bodies  have  continued  to  appoint  judicial  officials  based  on  transparent,  uniform  and 
objective  criteria.  Since  2011  63  judges  have  been  appointed.  Improvements  in  the 
implementation  of  the  transitional  system  of  appointing  judges  and  prosecutors  have  been 
introduced,  including  greater  transparency  in  marking  interviews,  with  attention  paid  to 
ensuring  equal  treatment  of  all  candidates.  This  is  important  in  the  final  months  of 
implementation  of  the  transitional  system,  up  to  December  2012.  Lessons  learned  from  the 
implementation of the transitional system should be applied to the implementation of the new 
system  of  appointments  through  the  State  School  for  Judicial  Officials,  which  will  start  in 
January  2013.  This  experience  should  also  be  taken  into  account  in  upgrading  the  selection 
procedure for transferring judges to different positions. The first intake of candidates for the 

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State School for Judicial Officials is finishing the second school year. However, enrolment of 
the  second  annual  intake  of  55  candidates  was  substantially  delayed,  with  candidates  being 
selected only in July for the programme to start in September. 

The  SJC  has  begun  implementation  of  the  new  system  of  asset  declarations  for  judges. 
Disciplinary measures are being taken in cases of wrongdoing by judicial officials. Both SJC 
and  SPC  became  more  proactive.  However,  the  track  record  of  implementation  of  the  new 
system of disciplinary proceedings needs to be further developed. 

The SJC and SPC need to be provided with further administrative resources to function more 
effectively  and  need  to  demonstrate  independence  and  accountability  in  carrying  out  their 
increased  tasks,  including  systematic  and  accurate  checking  of  asset  declarations  and 
proactive application of disciplinary procedures. 

Secondary legislation remains to be amended to limit judges’ immunity, thereby completing 
the  legislative  framework  in  this  field,  and  further  guidance  should  be  provided  on  the 
application of the code of conduct.  

The Judicial Academy continued to work well. Professional training programmes, including 
initial training, have continued. Training on EU law has been stepped up. The involvement of 
the  Judicial  Academy  in  Europe-wide  activities  has  increased  and  Croatia  has  signed  a 
Memorandum  of  Understanding  with  the  Commission  on  participation  in  the  EU  Civil  and 
Criminal  Justice  Programmes.  However,  budget  limitations  (a  cut  of  approximately  28%  in 
the 2012 budget compared to 2011) affected the functioning of the Academy. Attention has to 
be paid to fully preparing judges to apply EU law and jurisprudence as of accession. 

3) To continue to improve the efficiency of the judiciary 

Croatia has continued to implement various measures aiming at improving the efficiency of 
the  judiciary.  In  the  first  semester  2012  the  backlog  of  criminal  cases  continued  to  fall  by 
around 12%, and the number of old civil cases decreased by around 5%. However, a bigger 
effort  is  needed  to  reduce  the  number  of  unresolved  civil  and  commercial  cases  further. 
Slightly  more  new  cases  entered  the  system  in  the  first  semester  2012  (844,218)  than  were 
resolved (836,160).  

Also  the  number  of  enforcement  cases  increased  by  around  5%  in  the  first  semester  2012, 
although  the  enforcement  system  for  monetary  claims  run  by  the  financial  agency  FINA 
worked  well.  In  July  2012  the  government  submitted  to  Parliament  proposals  for  new 
enforcement legislation, which no longer provides for the introduction of public bailiffs. The 
new system, once adopted, will have to demonstrate its capacity to ensure the enforcement of 
court  decisions  and  writs  of  execution  and  to  reduce  the  backlog  of  enforcement  cases. 
Further attention needs to be paid to ensuring that higher courts, including the Supreme Court, 
are adequately equipped to handle the disproportionate increase as cases advance through the 
system. The new system of administrative justice came into force in January 2012, albeit with 
some  delays  in  appointing  the  necessary  staff.  Croatia  needs  to  continue  to  implement  the 
foreseen  immediate  and  short-term  efficiency  measures  with  vigour,  in  particular  to  ensure 
improved rates of case handling and reductions in the number of old cases.  

Some progress has been made with the physical infrastructure and computerisation of courts. 
The merger of courts as part of the court rationalisation process is continuing. The roll-out of 
the integrated case management system (ICMS) in 33 municipal courts is underway. Once it 
is finished, it will cover almost all courts in Croatia. However, the system should be applied 

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to  all  courts,  including  the  High  Commercial  Court  and,  for  case  management  of 
misdemeanours,  the  High  Misdemeanour  Court.  Moreover,  further  improvements  are  still 
needed in statistical data collection and analysis and in the monitoring of the overall length of 
proceedings.  In  general,  misdemeanour  courts  need  better  equipment  and  premises.  Further 
efforts  are  needed  to  increase  mobility  of  judges  and  to  develop  the  framework  criteria  for 
assessing their productivity. 

4) To continue to improve the handling of domestic war crimes cases 

Croatia has continued to process domestic war crimes cases. Implementation of the strategy 
for addressing impunity has started and a number of priority cases identified at national and 
regional  level  have  been  addressed,  with  further  arrests,  indictments  and  court  rulings. 
However,  the  majority  of  crimes  have  not  yet  been  pursued  in  Court.  A  more  balanced 
approach  to  trials  has  continued,  with  further  cases  being  transferred  to  the  four  specialised 
courts  (87).  Measures  have  been  taken  to  protect  witnesses  with  improved  witness  support 
services  at  certain  courts.  The  war  crimes  database  should  be  upgraded  to  enable  more 
analytical information searches and should be effectively used by county prosecutors. Courts 
should  further  specialise  in  war  crimes  trials,  through  specific  training  of  dedicated  judges, 
and  should  prepare  for  an  increasing  number  of  cases.  Croatia  needs  to  give  continuous 
attention to the issue of witness protection and attendance of witnesses in war crimes trials, 
especially in cases relocated to the specialised chambers. The review of cases tried in absentia 
should  continue.  The  Law  on  invalidation  of  certain  legal  acts  of  the  judicial  bodies  of  the 
Former Yugoslav National Army, the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and of 
the Republic  of Serbia adopted in October 2011 gave rise to concerns about future bilateral 
cooperation with Serbia in war crimes cases. The law has been challenged by the President in 
the  Constitutional  Court  on  procedural  grounds.  Croatia  has  made  contact  with  Serbia  to 
address  the  possible  adverse  effects  of  the  law,  and  has  started  technical  negotiations  with 
Serbia on an agreement on cooperation in this field.  

Further efforts have to be made to tackle impunity especially as the majority of cases have yet 
to reach final verdict or are still to be investigated. Croatia needs to give continuous attention 
to the issue of witness protection and attendance of witnesses in war crimes trials, especially 
in cases relocated to the specialised chambers.  

5)  To  continue  to  ensure  a  sustained  track  record  of  substantial  results  based  on 
efficient, effective and unbiased investigation, prosecution and court rulings in organised 
crime  and  corruption  cases  at  all  levels  including  high  level  corruption,  and  in 
vulnerable sectors such as public procurement 

An  adequate  legal  and  institutional  framework  remains  in  place  for  the  fight  against 
corruption  and  organised  crime  and  a  track  record  of  implementation  continues  to  be 
developed.  Law  enforcement  bodies  remain  proactive,  especially  in  higher-level  cases. 
Developments include guilty verdicts against a former manager of a state-owned company, a 
city mayor and a County Court judge for abuse of office and indictment of a political party for 
corruption.  While  the  law  enforcement  bodies  continue  to  focus  on  more  complex,  higher-
level cases, the overall number of cases being handled is falling. 

Local-level  corruption  needs  attention,  particularly  in  public  procurement.  The  legal 
framework  for  the  seizure  and  confiscation  of  assets  needs  to  be  better  implemented  across 
the board.  

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Further attention should be paid to the system for checking on dismissals of criminal cases by 
the prosecutor. The current system does not provide for independent checks on decisions by 
State prosecutors to dismiss reports of crime. 

A number of senior appointments to the police were made. The implementation of the Law on 
the  Police  should  be  ensured,  in  particular  to  depoliticise  the  police  and  increase 
professionalism of the police. 

6) To continue to improve its track record of strengthened prevention measures in the 
fight against corruption and conflict of interest  

Croatia  improved  its  track  record  of  strengthened  prevention  measures  in  the  fight  against 
corruption by means of a number of legal instruments, e.g. on the financing of political parties 
and electoral campaigns, access to information and public procurement. However, Croatia has 
not efficiently implemented all legal measures to prevent conflict of interest. 

As  regards  the  financing  of  political  parties  and  election  campaigns,  the  State  Electoral 
Commission, which is the supervisory body, was strengthened and new rules were applied to 
the  general  elections  in  December  2011  without  major  difficulties  and  with  few  reported 
shortcomings. A working group was set up to draw on lessons learnt in preparing for the local 
elections planned for 2013. Continuous efforts are needed to effectively control the financing 
of political parties, including outside the election period. 

New rules on access to information are being applied, with the first appeals reaching court. 
However,  general  monitoring  by  the  Data  Protection  Agency,  which  is  in  charge  of 
implementing the law, is difficult because in 2011 less than half of the institutions concerned 
submitted a report to the agency. In 2011, no public interest test was applied to classified data. 
The current practice of the Administrative Court is to confirm the existence of such data and 
deny  access  to  it.  The  practice  of  applying  the  public  interest  test  to  classified  information 
needs to be developed, including through legislative changes.  

The  new  public  procurement  legislation  in  force  since  January  2012  provides  for  increased 
transparency, including publication of information on the  actual execution of contracts. The 
effective implementation of this legislation is key. 

Improved and stricter conflict of interest legislation was adopted in early 2011; however, the 
new  Conflict  of  Interest  Commission  has  still  not  been  appointed,  and  this  has  delayed  the 
implementation  of  the  law.  Some  initial  steps  have  been  taken  for  the  setting  up  of  the 
Commission, with the publication by the Parliament of the request for expressions of interest 
for the selection of the Commission’s members in August 2012. The system for checking on 
asset  declarations  and  unjustified  wealth  needs  to  be  strengthened  and  effectively 
implemented.  

Provisions  of  the  previous  legislation  on  criteria  for  membership  of  the  supervisory  and 
management boards of public companies have been overturned. Croatia needs to ensure that a 
strong  system  is  in  place  to prevent  corruption  in  state-owned  companies.  The  Conflict  of 
Interest  Commission  needs  to  be  established  without  delay.  The  concept  of  political 
accountability and zero tolerance of corruption needs to be strengthened.  

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7)  To  continue  to  strengthen  the  protection  of  minorities,  including  through  effective 
implementation  of  the  Constitutional  Act  on  the  Rights  of  National  Minorities 
(CARNM) 

Implementation  of  the  Constitutional  Act  on  the  Rights  of  National  Minorities  continues. 
Eight  members  of  parliament  representing  national  minorities  were  elected  in  December 
2011.  Some  steps  have  been  taken  by  the  government  to  implement  the  May  2011  plan  for 
minority employment for the period 2011-2014. The level of employment of minorities in the 
state  administration  and  judiciary  remains  below  the  requirements  set  by  the  Constitutional 
Act on the Rights of National Minorities. While this may be partially explained by relatively 
few  new  recruitments  due  to  the  general  economic  crisis,  more  efforts  should  be  made  to 
ensure implementation of this plan, including increased monitoring efforts. 

Croatia also needs to continue to foster a spirit of tolerance towards minorities, in particular 
Serbs, and to take appropriate measures to protect those who may still be subjected to threats 
or acts of discrimination, hostility or violence. The Roma minority faces particularly difficult 
living  conditions,  and  challenges  remain  in  the  areas  of  education,  social  protection,  health 
care, employment and access to personal documents. 

8) To continue to address outstanding refugee return issues 

Housing Care programmes for returning refugees continue to be implemented, although at a 
slower pace. Under the March 2011 plan for dealing with the approximately 2,350 remaining 
applications, by August 2012, 259 were settled, out of which 139 families took over the keys. 
By August 2012, 1,305 positive approvals for housing care above the benchmark for housing 
care have been given. 106 appeals for housing reconstruction are still pending. The decision 
on  validating  pension  rights  continues  to  be  implemented.  Croatia  has  also  continued  to 
engage  with  the  other  countries  of  the  region  in  the  Sarajevo  Declaration  Process,  in  which 
progress is being made, particularly on the regional housing project. There has been limited 
implementation  of  the  new  purchase  options  under  favourable  conditions  for  housing  care 
beneficiaries and no significant progress with regard to the 15 unsolicited investment cases. 
Conditions for sustainable refugee return need to be further developed. 

9) To continue to improve the protection of human rights 

Human  rights  continued  to  be  generally  well  respected.  However,  existing  legal  provisions 
need 
to  be  applied  with  more  vigour.  The  general  Ombudsman  and  specialised 
ombudspersons continue to play an important role in human rights protection. However, the 
follow-up  of  the  Ombudsman’s  recommendations  needs  to  be  ensured.  The  Constitutional 
Court revoked a law on the merger of the Ombudsman’s offices with the Centre for Human 
Rights and with the three specialised Ombudspersons for gender equality, for children and for 
disabled  persons,  due  to  procedural  reasons.  New  legislation,  which  no  longer  foresees  the 
merger  of  the  offices,  was  adopted  in  July  2012.  The  Ombudsman  offices  need  to  be 
strengthened to further improve the human rights protection system. This includes providing 
adequate financing and office premises, and setting up a joint database.  

Croatia  has  further  developed  its  track  record  of  implementation  of  the  Anti-discrimination 
Act and legislation on hate crimes. This needs to continue to develop, with attention paid to 
ensuring  that  dissuasive  sanctions  are  applied.  Amendments  to  the  Anti-discrimination  Act 
were adopted by the Parliament in September 2012. The gay pride events in Split and Zagreb 
took place without major incidents, with strong commitment from the Croatian government to 

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their smooth organisation. Lesbians, gays, bisexual and trans-gender (LGBT) people still face 
threats and attacks. The legal framework for free legal aid has to be improved to enable better 
access to legal aid and to foster the role of NGOs as legal aid providers. 

10)  To  continue  to  cooperate  fully  with  the  International  Criminal  Tribunal  for  the 
former Yugoslavia 

Croatia  continues  to  cooperate  with  the  International  Criminal  Tribunal  for  the  former 
Yugoslavia  (ICTY).  There  have  been  no  particular  developments  with  respect  to  Croatia’s 
investigations  aimed  at  locating  or  determining  the  fate  of  missing  military  documents 
requested by the Office of the ICTY Prosecutor. Croatia’s request to act as amicus curiae in 
the appeal against the verdict of 15 April 2011 in the case of Croatian Generals Gotovina and 
Markač was rejected by the Court. The ICTY Chief Prosecutor has issued a positive report on 
Croatia’s cooperation with the ICTY.  

Chapter 24: Justice, freedom and security 

Croatia  is  generally  meeting  the  commitments  and  requirements  arising  from  the  accession 
negotiations  in  the  field  of  justice,  freedom  and  security  and  should  be  in  a  position  to 
implement the acquis as of accession. Increased efforts are needed in the area of migration, 
visa  policy,  border  management  and  the  fight  against  organised  crime,  including  on 
trafficking of human beings and anti-terrorism, in order to ensure that Croatia completes its 
preparations for membership by the date of accession. 

In the field of migration, Croatia has further aligned with the acquis and preparations in this 
area are almost complete. The number of irregular migrants apprehended in 2011 increased to 
3,461.  Over  the  same  period,  552  unaccompanied  irregular  minors  were  identified  (their 
number  is  almost  twice  as  high  as  the  previous  year).  Good  cooperation  with  the  other 
countries of  the region in the  field  of readmission can be noted; the agreement  with Bosnia 
and  Herzegovina  entered  into  force  in  April  2012.  A  similar  agreement  was  signed  with 
Germany  in  March  2012.  Work  is  on  track  to  build  the  facility  for  minors  and  other 
vulnerable groups of irregular migrants in Jezevo. Further efforts are needed to start building 
two  additional  transit  reception  centres  for  irregular  migrants.  On  legal  migration,  the  new 
Aliens  Act  entered  into  force  in  January  2012,  further  aligning  the  national  legislation  with 
the acquis in this field. The preparation of a new migration strategy needs to continue without 
delays. 

Croatia will need to implement the legal framework on unaccompanied minors, by developing 
for  them  appropriate  assistance,  and  start  building  the  new  reception  centres  for  irregular 
migrants before accession. Alternative temporary solutions, taking into account the growing 
number of migrants entering the country, especially in the border areas, need to be considered. 

In the field of asylum, Croatia has almost completed alignment with the acquis. Preparations 
need to ensure sufficient institutional capacity in this field, in terms of sufficient and trained 
personnel, taking due account of the steady increase in the number of asylum seekers in the 
country. 

Implementing  legislation  in  the  field  of  free  legal  aid  during  the  asylum  procedure  was 
adopted  in  March  2012.  The  administrative  courts  took  over  responsibility  for  second-
instance  asylum  cases  as  of  January  2012.  Following  a  three-month  transitional  period,  the 
commission for asylum ceased its work in March 2012. An initial number of posts for judges 
and  administrative  staff  of  the  new  courts  were  filled  and  training  on  asylum  for  the  staff 

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began.  Refugees  still  face  difficulties  in  securing  access  in  practice  to  the  rights  granted  to 
them  by  national  law.  The  recruitment  and  training  of  administrative  courts’  judges  and 
employees  need  to  continue.  The  number  of  asylum  seekers  increased  sharply,  from  290  in 
2010  to  807  in  2011.  The  Ministry  of  the  Interior  has  stepped  up  its  efforts  to  offer  certain 
services  to  asylum  seekers,  with  the  support  of  local  NGOs,  but  the  involvement  of  all  the 
other ministries needs to be ensured. Preparations for implementing the Dublin and Eurodac 
Regulations  have  continued,  including  by  providing  the  personnel  of  the  Ministry  of  the 
Interior and the border police with relevant training. Croatia will need to ensure that refugees 
enjoy full access to their rights.  

Legislative alignment is moderately advanced as regards visa policy and needs to progress, to 
reach  full  alignment  with  the  acquis  on  visa  requirements  and  travel  documents.  The  new 
Aliens Act entered into force in January 2012; the related implementing legislation has not yet 
been  adopted.  On  visa  requirements,  Croatia  has  fully  aligned  its  legislation  with  the  EU 
positive  list  of  Regulation  539/2001.  Further  alignment  is  required  with  the  uniform 
procedure for issuing visas and the EU visa code. The list of countries whose nationals require 
a visa to enter Croatian territory is not yet fully aligned with that of the EU. The government 
adopted  a  decision  temporarily  liberalising  the  visa  regime  for  citizens  of  the  Russian 
Federation, Ukraine and Kazakhstan for transit through or staying up to 90 days from 1 April 
to 31 October 2012, which is not in line with the acquis; the decision will cease to apply as of 
November.  Biometric  passports  are  compliant  with  EU  standards;  the  old  ID  cards  issued 
before 2003 are still in circulation but in August 2012 the Government adopted the decision 
that they cannot be used as valid travel documents. 

With  regard  to  external  borders  and  Schengen,  legislative  alignment  with  the  acquis  has 
progressed moderately and needs to continue for Croatia to be prepared to take over control of 
the EU external borders. The State Border Control Act and its implementing legislation were 
amended  at  the  end  of  2011.  The  Integrated  Border  Management  (IBM)  Action  Plan  was 
revised in April 2012. The National Maritime Centre in Zadar has started to be operational; 
yet  its  interconnectivity  with  relevant  Ministries  has  to  be  ensured.  The  cooperation  with 
Frontex  was  enhanced  and  includes  Croatia’s  participation  in  different  activities  and  joint 
operations. Regular coordination meetings take place with neighbouring countries, as do joint 
patrols  of  the  borders;  those  with  Serbia  and  with  Montenegro  need  to  be  enhanced.  A 
common  contact  point  with  Serbia  was  established  at  the  border  crossing  point  (BCP)  of 
Bajakovo-Batrovci and it is fully operational. A first coordination meeting with the authorities 
of Bosnia and Herzegovina, to implement the mutual agreement on state border control, was 
held  in  December  2011.  Discussions  with  both  countries,  and  with  Montenegro,  to  bring 
bilateral agreements on local border traffic in line with the acquis are advancing and need to 
be  finalised  before  accession.  The  Free  Transit  Agreement  with  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina 
(‘Neum agreement’) needs to be brought in line with the EU acquis before accession. 

Staffing  targets  for  the  border  police  set  for  2011  were  almost  completely  met;  308  new 
officers were hired in 2011. The total number as of May 2012 is 6,017, of which 4,647 are at 
the future external border. The recruitment needs to continue to reach the Schengen standards. 
Basic and specialised training continued; full alignment with the programme of the Common 
Core Curriculum needs to be ensured, with the specialised training systematically included in 
the curricula of the border police.  

The IBM Action Plan was partly implemented; certain activities planned in 2011, relating to 
the procurement of technical equipment and to infrastructures, have been postponed to 2012. 
Delays in these areas need to be properly monitored and addressed, particularly with regard to 

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the Neum corridor. The construction of the BCPs at the Neum corridor needs to be finalised 
such  that  they  are  operational  upon  accession.  The  installation  of  the  National  Border 
Management  Information  System  (NBMIS)  has  continued  but  the  new  system  is  not  yet 
installed at all BCPs. As of August 2012, it was operational at 81 BCPs. The preparation and 
the relevant training need to continue.  

Efforts  need  to  be  made  to  conclude  the  interministerial  agreement  and  to  continue 
recruitment,  purchase  of  equipments  and  trainings,  with  a  view  to  making  the  National 
Maritime  Centre  in  Zadar  fully  operational.  Inter-agency  cooperation  on  IBM  issues  has 
continued,  but  a  joint  risk  analysis  is  missing.  Croatia  will  need  to  address  the  delays  in 
implementing  the  IBM  Action  Plan,  especially  those  related  to  infrastructures.  All  bilateral 
agreements need to be brought into line with the acquis before accession.  

Croatia has continued to align its legislation in the field of judicial cooperation in civil and 
criminal  matters  and  the  preparation  is  almost  completed.  An  agreement  on  mutual 
execution  of  criminal  judgments  with  Montenegro,  and  an  extradition  agreement  with  the 
former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, were signed in October 2011. A working group has 
been  set  up  and  met  several  times  to  prepare  the  new  Act  on  International  Private  Law. 
Cooperation  with  the  European  Judicial  Network  in  civil  and  commercial  matters  has 
progressed; a network of national contact points is being developed in this regard.  

Croatia  will  need  to  continue  strengthening  interinstitutional  coordination  on  judicial 
cooperation. 

As  regards  police  cooperation  and  the  fight  against  organised  crime,  activities  have 
continued with the aim of bringing the national legislation into line with the EU acquis and 
coping  with  the  future  challenges  of  fighting  organised  crime  within  the  EU.  In  this  area, 
Croatia  is  advanced,  but  needs  to  remain  vigilant  given  the  important  challenges  as  regards 
organised crime activities in the region. 

A number of bilateral agreements in the field of police cooperation and organised crime were 
signed;  those  with  Bulgaria  and  with  Poland  were  ratified.  Good  cooperation  with  Europol 
has continued. Two new liaison officers have been appointed, respectively for Europol and for 
Bosnia  and  Herzegovina.  The  technical  preparation  and  staff  training  to  establish  the 
Supplementary Information Request at the National Entry (SIReNE) Office and the National 
Office  for  the  Schengen  Information  System  (SIS)  have  progressed.  The  regulatory 
framework  for  the  SIS  office  is  still  missing.  A  decision  on  the  premises,  staff  and  the 
budgetary allocation destined to the SIReNE office needs to be taken. 

Both  the  legal  framework  and  the  institutions  in  charge  of  combating  organised  crime  have 
effectively  contributed  to  counteracting  this  phenomenon,  at  both  national  and  international 
level, taking into account the good level of alignment with the EU standards achieved in this 
area.  Training  and  activities  to  improve  police  performance  continued.  The  government 
decided  not  to  revise  the  Law  on  Police  currently  in  force;  part  of  the  legislation 
implementing  the  Police  Act  is  still  missing  and  needs  to  be  prepared  without  delay.  The 
Ministry of the Interior needs to develop IT support to ensure transparent implementation of 
the  Strategy  for  its  Human  Resources  Management.  The  track  record  on  organised  crime 
cases has continued to develop, not least on drug trafficking. 

Implementation of the legal framework on the seizure and confiscation of assets needs to be 
consolidated, as does the coordination between criminal and financial investigations. The total 

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level of assets seized and confiscated is relatively low and further efforts are necessary in this 
regard.  A  monitoring  system  to  fight  corruption  in  border  management  is  in  place.  The 
equipment  and  the  premises  of  PNUSKOK’s  regional  office  in  Split  would  still  need  to  be 
upgraded; operational guidelines and specialised training for the newly employed staff of the 
office  need  to  be  introduced.  The  second-instance  body  which  reviews  cases  of  offences 
against the public administration is remains to be strengthened.  

Inter-agency  cooperation  in  exchanging  data  on  transactions  suspected  of  involving  money 
laundering or terrorist financing is now facilitated by the signature of an annex to the protocol 
on  cooperation  between  authorities  dealing  with  corruption,  organised  crime  and  the 
associated  crimes  of  money  laundering  and  terrorist  financing.  Training  on  anti-money 
laundering  measures  and  on  the  fight  against  cybercrime  has  continued.  Administrative 
capacities in the anti-money laundering field need to be improved (see also Chapter 4 — Free 
movement of capital), as well as the capacities of the law enforcement authorities to conduct 
financial investigations. 

The new Criminal Code, adopted in October 2011, splits the criminal offence of trafficking in 
human  beings  and  slavery,  introducing  new  types  of  exploitation.  The  national  action  plan 
against trafficking in human beings for the period 2012-2015 was adopted in February 2012; a 
new national committee for action against trafficking was set up in March 2012.  

Implementation of the legislative framework on trafficking needs to be strengthened, as does 
public  awareness,  to  ensure  better  identification  and  protection  of  the  victims.  The  new 
national committee for action against trafficking has not yet met, since the beginning of 2012. 

In 2011, only 14 victims were identified (7 in 2010). Further measures need to be put in place 
to ensure their rehabilitation and compensation. The training for judges, prosecutors and other 
civil  servants  dealing  with  trafficking  needs  to  be  improved,  as  the  level  of  sentencing  in 
cases of human trafficking is very low compared to other types of organised crime.  

Croatia will need to complete a number of steps in this field before accession. These include 
putting  in  place  the  regulatory  framework  for  the  SIS  office  and  making  the  SIReNE’s  one 
fully operational, upgrading police equipment and the facilities of PNUSKOK, increasing the 
level  of  seized  and  confiscated  assets  and  better  coordinating  criminal  and  financial 
investigations. In the fight against trafficking in human beings, attention needs to be paid to 
implementation of the relevant legal framework and to the overall definition of policies in this 
area.  

With regard to internal border control, a decision on the application of the relevant Schengen 
acquis in Croatia shall be taken by the Council, in accordance with the applicable Schengen 
procedures  and  while  taking  into  account  a  Commission  report  confirming  that  Croatia 
continues to fulfil the commitments undertaken in its accession negotiations that are relevant 
for the Schengen acquis. 

Other acquis chapters 

Croatia is meeting the commitments and requirements arising from the accession negotiations 
and  is  in  a  position  to  implement  the  acquis  as  of  accession  in  the  fields  of  freedom  of 
movement  for  workers,  company  law,  intellectual  property  law,  financial  services, 
information  society  and  media,  economic  and  monetary  policy,  trans-European  networks, 
science and research, education and culture, as well as foreign, security and defence policy.  

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Croatia is meeting the commitments and requirements arising from the accession negotiations 
and is expected to be in a position to implement the acquis as of accession in the fields of free 
movement of goods, right of establishment and freedom to provide services, free movement of 
capital,  public  procurement,  transport  policy,  energy,  taxation,  statistics,  social  policy  and 
employment, enterprise and industrial policy, consumer and health protection, customs union, 
external relations, financial control, and financial and budgetary provisions. 

However, for these chapters further efforts are required, in the following areas.  

In the field of free movement of goods, further efforts are required in particular in the field of 
horizontal  measures,  as  well  as  new  and  old  approach  product  legislation.  Urgent  attention 
must still be paid to the requirements imposed by Croatia for additional intermediate storage 
of imported petroleum products. 

In  the  field  of  right  of  establishment  and  freedom  to  provide  services  further  efforts  are 
needed, particularly for the alignment with the Services Directive and in the field of mutual 
recognition of professional qualifications, despite the progress achieved to date in both areas. 

In  the  field  of  free  movement  of  capital  further  efforts  are  required,  in  particular  as  regards 
amendments  to  the  Act  on  Privatisation  of  INA  and  of  Telecom  as  well  as  the  Nature 
Protection Act and the implementation of the action plan against anti-money laundering. 

In  the  field  of  public  procurement  further  efforts  are  required,  in  particular  for  the 
implementation of the new public procurement act, especially at local level, also in view of 
the  future  management  of  the  structural  funds.  Furthermore,  improvements  concerning  the 
system of remedies are required. 

In  the  field  of  transport  policy  further  efforts  are  required,  in  particular  to  strengthen  the 
administrative  capacity  of  the  railway  safety  agency  and  to  establish  a  joint  accident 
investigation body. 

In  the  field  of  energy  further  efforts  are  required,  in  particular  to  complete  the  legislative 
alignment  in  the  area  of  the  internal  energy  market,  and  to  ensure  the  development  of  a 
competitive market for electricity and gas. Croatia also needs to continue efforts to meet the 
2020 requirements regarding the promotion of energy efficiency and renewable energy. 

In the field of taxation further efforts are required to ensure that all relevant IT systems are in 
place and able to exchange information with the EU and other Member States as from the day 
of accession. 

In the field of statistics, further efforts are required, in particular to complete preparations in 
the areas of ESA95 transmission programme, GNI inventory and the government deficit and 
debt statistics (EDP). 

In  the  field  of  social  policy  and  employment,  further  efforts  are  required,  in  particular  to 
complete legal alignment in the field of equal opportunities, address the structural weaknesses 
on  the  labour  market,  better  target  social  welfare,  and  to  strengthen  the  administrative 
capacity.  

In  the  field  of  enterprise  and  industrial  policy  further  efforts  are  required,  in  particular  to 
improve  the  business  environment  and  to  align  the  legislation  as  regards  combating  late 
payment in commercial transactions. 

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In the field of consumer and health protection further efforts are required, in particular in the 
area of medically assisted reproduction, where legal alignment remains to be completed, and 
in the areas of blood, tissues and cells, where facilities for handling them need to be upgraded 
and restructured in accordance with the EU technical requirements, and as regards staffing of 
the National Competent Authority in this field.  

In  the  field  of  customs  union  further  efforts  are  required,  in  particular  to  ensure  that  all 
relevant IT customs systems are in place and able to exchange information with the EU and 
other Member States as from the day of accession. 

In the field of external relations further efforts are required, in particular as regards alignment 
with the acquis of Croatia’s bilateral investment agreements with third countries. 

In  the  field  of  financial  control  further  efforts  are  required,  in  particular  to  consolidate  the 
overall functioning of the Public Internal Financial Control and external audit at central and 
local level. 

In the field of financial and budgetary provisions further efforts are required, in particular to 
further strengthen the capacity to coordinate the overall system of own resources efficiently 
after accession. The modernisation of the customs control strategy, so that it focuses more on 
post clearance controls, needs to be stepped up.  

Croatia  is  generally  meeting  the  commitments  and  requirements  arising  from  the  accession 
negotiations and should be in a position to implement the acquis as of accession in the fields 
of  competition  policy,  agriculture  and  rural  development,  food  safety,  veterinary  and 
phytosanitary  policy,  fisheries,  regional  policy  and  coordination  of  structural  instruments, 
judiciary and fundamental rights, justice, freedom and security and environment.  

However, for these chapters increased efforts continue to be necessary in the following areas. 

In the field of agriculture and rural development increased efforts are needed in the area of 
direct payments and rural development. 

In the field of food safety, veterinary and phytosanitary policy increased efforts are needed in 
the area of the animal by-products sector, the upgrading of establishments and its monitoring 
and in particular with regard to border inspection posts. Continued attention needs to be paid 
to the further strengthening of administrative capacity in this area. 

In  the  field  of  fisheries  increased  efforts  are  needed  in  the  legislative  alignment  and 
implementation of the acquis in the areas of fleet and resources management, inspection and 
control  as  well  as  structural  measures,  in  particular  as  regards  the  preparation  of  the 
management plans, the phasing out of the category of subsistence fisheries and the completion 
of the satellite based vessel monitoring system.  

In the field of regional policy and coordination of structural instruments, increased efforts are 
needed  to  strengthen  the  administrative  capacity  for  future  cohesion  policy  implementation 
and to develop a high-quality and mature project pipeline with a view to swift absorption of 
regional policy funds, building on the recent report of the European Court of Auditors. 

In the field of environment, increased efforts are needed to properly implement and enforce 
legislation. In particular in the field of climate change, urgent steps need to be taken to be in a 
position to implement the acquis by the date of accession. Administrative capacity needs to be 

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strengthened, especially in the fields of climate change, industrial pollution control and risk 
management,  nature  protection  and  chemicals.  Investments  need  to  be  increased  across  the 
sectors, but more particularly in the fields of air quality, industrial pollution control and risk 
management, water and waste. Specific attention needs to be paid to the timely fulfilment of 
commitments in the fields of waste and industrial pollution control and risk management. The 
quality of environmental impact assessment for projects needs to be significantly improved. 

2.4 

Translation of the acquis 

Croatia must ensure that the acquis is translated into Croatian. Of the nearly 144 000 pages of 
acquis,  Croatia  has  already  translated  about  114  000  pages.  However,  about  50%  of  these 
already translated pages have still to be revised by the national authorities before they can be 
submitted to the EU institutions. 

Croatia  should  further  increase  its  capacity  to  ensure  the  completion  of  the  translation  and 
revision of the acquis in time for accession. The Commission calls on the Croatian authorities 
to  maintain  focus  on  this  issue,  which  is  essential  in  order  to  ensure  legal  certainty  in  the 
implementation of EU legislation. 

2.5 

EU support measures 

Financial  assistance  is  provided  under  the  Instrument  for  Pre-accession  Assistance  (IPA). 
The  2012  IPA  programmes  amounted  to  € 156  million.  This  assistance  is  focused  on 
institution-building and preparing for implementation of the EU’s common agricultural policy 
and  cohesion  policy.  In  addition,  Croatia  continued  to  benefit  from  regional  and  horizontal 
programmes.  A  transition  facility  has  been  agreed  for  the  first  year  following  accession  to 
strengthen administrative and judicial capacity in Croatia.  

3. 

Conclusions 

In light of the above, the Commission confirms its earlier assessment that Croatia continues to 
meet the political criteria. Efforts must continue to strengthen the rule of law, by improving 
public administration and the justice system, and by fighting corruption and organised crime 
effectively.  As  regards  the  economic  criteria,  Croatia  is  a  functioning  market  economy. 
Vigorous implementation of urgently needed structural reforms should enable Croatia to cope 
with competitive pressures and market forces within the Union in the near term. 

Croatia has continued to make progress in adopting and implementing EU legislation and is 
now completing its alignment with the acquis. Further progress has been achieved since the 
2011 Progress Report, followed by the Monitoring Report on Croatia’s accession preparations 
and  the  last  update  of  the  monitoring  tables  of  April  2012.  The  Commission  has  identified 
areas  where  further  efforts  are  necessary  and  a  limited  number  of  issues  where  increased 
efforts  are  required.  These  issues  relate  in  particular  to  (1)  the  preparations  for  future  EU 
structural  funds  in  order  to  ensure  their  proper  management;  (2)  the  restructuring  of  the 
Croatian  shipbuilding  industry;  (3)  the  strengthening  of  the  rule  of  law  through  continued 
implementation  of  Croatia’s  commitments  to  further  improve  public  administration,  the 
justice  system,  (4)  preventing  and  fighting  corruption  effectively,  as  well  as  (5)  the 
management of external borders. Without prejudice to the importance of addressing all issues 
underlined  in  the  Comprehensive  Monitoring  Report,  the  Commission  considers  that 
particular attention should be paid by Croatia in the coming months to the following specific 
actions  in  the  areas  of  competition  policy,  judiciary  and  fundamental  rights,  and  freedom 
security and justice: 

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1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

7. 

8. 

9. 

Sign the privatisation contract for Brodosplit shipyard and take the necessary decisions 
to find a viable solution for the shipyards 3.Maj and Brodotrogir in order to complete 
the restructuring of the Croatian shipbuilding industry. 

Implement  the  immediate  and  advance  on  the  short-term  measures  elaborated  in 
September  2012  for  increasing  the  efficiency  of  the  judiciary  and  reducing  the  court 
backlog. 

Adopt  the  new  enforcement  legislation,  in  order  to  ensure  the  execution  of  court 
decisions and reduce the backlog of enforcement cases. 

Establish  the  Conflict  of  Interest  Commission  so  that  it  starts  its  regular  working 
activities. 

Adopt  the  new  law  on  access  to  information,  in  order  to  strengthen  the  legal  and 
administrative framework in the area of access to information. 

Complete the adoption of related by-laws, to ensure the implementation of the police 
law  

Complete the construction of border crossing points at the Neum corridor. 

Achieve the established recruitment target for border police for 2012. 

Finalise and adopt the migration strategy, clearly defining measures for the integration 
of the most vulnerable groups of migrants. 

10. 

Increase  the  capacity  to  translate  and  revise  the  acquis  such  that  this  task  can  be 
completed in time for accession. 

In addition, particular attention should be paid by Croatia, in the field of agricultural and rural 
development,  to  complete  the  alignment  of  the  legislation  on  direct  payments  and  the 
accreditation of the paying agency for direct payments by the end of 2012 at the latest. 

In view of the recent substantial restructuring of the public administration, and the additional 
responsibilities  related  to  EU  membership,  Croatia  should  also  take  immediate  steps  to 
address  administrative  capacity  constraints  identified  in  the  Comprehensive  Monitoring 
Report and ensure that the completion of preparations for EU-membership is not affected. 

The Croatian authorities should take all necessary measures to ensure that the country is fully 
prepared  for  membership  by  1  July  2013.  This  includes  the  full  translation  of  the  acquis  in 
time before accession.  

The  Commission  will  continue  monitoring  the  fulfilment  of  the  commitments  taken  by 
Croatia  in  the  context  of  the  accession  negotiations  focusing  on  the  issues  identified  in  the 
comprehensive  monitoring  report  and,  if  circumstances  would  so  warrant,  make  use  of  all 
instruments available under Article 36 of the Act of Accession.  

In  accordance  with  that  Article,  the  Commission  will  present  a  final  monitoring  report  on 
Croatia’s accession preparations in spring 2013. 

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In  order  to  help  Croatia  preparing  for  the  economic  policy  coordination  within  the  EU, 
Croatia will participate in the 2013 European semester on an informal basis. 

Croatia is expected to continue playing an active role in regional cooperation in the Western 
Balkans, and is encouraged to address the remaining open bilateral issues with its neighbours. 

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