Apparatus for controlling the closing of a door of a household appliance, in particular for a washing machine, such as a dishwasher; said door being arranged to close an inner chamber obtained in a casing of said household appliance and communicating with the outside through an inlet opening; said apparatus comprising an engagement element, which is intended to be fitted on one between said casing and said door and arranged for being held in a releasable manner by a retaining element intended to be fitted on the other one between said door and said casing, so as to constrain said door to said casing, when using said household appliance; said engagement element comprises: - a support body intended to be fitted on one between said casing and said door; - a striker adapted to be coupled in a releasable manner to said retaining element, and mounted so as to move relative to said support body between a retracted position and an extracted position; when said striker is coupled to said retaining element and assumes said retracted position and said extracted position, said door being suited to be, respectively, in a complete closing condition, in which it closes said access opening in a fluid-tight manner, and in a pre-opening condition, in which it is spaced apart from said access opening, so as to establish a fluid communication between said inner chamber and the environment outside said casing; - a stop mechanism tending to move from a release position, in which it is adapted to liberate said striker, thus allowing said striker to move from said retracted position to said extracted position, when said striker is coupled to said retaining element, to a locking position, in which it is adapted to hold said striker, when said striker is in said retracted position; - electrically-operated driving means arranged for controlling the movement of said stop mechanism from said locking position to said release position; wherein said stop mechanism comprises a safety element, which is manually controllable by a user and is movable between a liberation arrangement, in which it allows the stop mechanism to move between the locking condition and the release condition, and an inhibition condition, in which it forcedly constrains the stop mechanism in the release condition. - a support body intended to be fitted on one between said casing and said door; - a striker adapted to be coupled in a releasable manner to said retaining element, and mounted so as to move relative to said support body between a retracted position and an extracted position; when said striker is coupled to said retaining element and assumes said retracted position and said extracted position, said door being suited to be, respectively, in a complete closing condition, in which it closes said access opening in a fluid-tight manner, and in a pre-opening condition, in which it is spaced apart from said access opening, so as to establish a fluid communication between said inner chamber and the environment outside said casing; in a complete closing condition, in which it closes said access opening in a fluid-tight manner, and in a pre-opening condition, in which it is spaced apart from said access opening, so as to establish a fluid communication between said inner chamber and the environment outside said casing; - a stop mechanism tending to move from a release position, in which it is adapted to liberate said striker, thus allowing said striker to move from said retracted position to said extracted position, when said striker is coupled to said retaining element, to a locking position, in which it is adapted to hold said striker, when said striker is in said retracted position; from a release position, in which it is adapted to liberate said striker, thus allowing said striker to move from said retracted position to said extracted position, when said striker is coupled to said retaining element, to a locking position, in which it is adapted to hold said striker, when said striker is in said retracted position; - electrically-operated driving means arranged for controlling the movement of said stop mechanism from said locking position to said release position; wherein said stop mechanism comprises a safety element, which is manually controllable by a user and is movable between a liberation arrangement, in which it allows the stop mechanism to move between the locking condition and the release condition, and an inhibition condition, in which it forcedly constrains the stop mechanism in the release condition. wherein said stop mechanism comprises a safety element, which is manually controllable by a user and is movable between a liberation arrangement, in which it allows the stop mechanism to move between the locking condition and the release condition, and an inhibition condition, in which it forcedly constrains the stop mechanism in the release condition.