Croatia or Netherlands
Two countries side by side across the same rows as the full comparison. A dash means the value is missing: fields are not filled with guesses. about the data
| Croatia | Netherlands | |
|---|---|---|
| Salary in IT | $ 56 900 | $ 106 972 |
| Citizenship | 8 years | 5 years |
| Partner can work | yes | yes |
| Parents | difficult | no |
| Pets | difficult | no trouble |
| Pet limit | 5 | 5 |
| Quarantine | no | no |
| Residence permit fee | — | $ 481 |
| Rent, 2 bedrooms | $ 1 081 | $ 2 390 |
| Basket | $ 40,1 | $ 49,1 |
| Life expectancy | 78.93 | 81.97 |
| Homicides/100k | 1.01 | 0.66 |
| Natural hazards, 0–10 | 4.5 | 5.1 |
How the two sets of routes differ
Long-stay routes in this reference: Croatia — 91, Netherlands — 61. Types present in both: work, study, family, repatriation, job seeking and working holiday. Croatia adds: remote work and investment. Netherlands adds: startup.
Fees, thresholds and deadlines
Croatia: fees range from 13.27 to 93 EUR. Routes with no fee: 2. Routes stating an income threshold: 1; the lowest is 3,622.5 EUR a month. Routes with a published decision deadline: 1; the shortest is 15 days. Netherlands: fees range from 85 to 1,337 EUR. Routes with no fee: 10. Routes stating an income threshold: 21; the lowest is 690 USD a month. Routes with a published decision deadline: 58; the shortest is 30 days.
Beyond the first permit
Permanent status: both after 5 years. Citizenship: Croatia after 8 years, Netherlands after 5 years. Neither recognises a second citizenship. Bringing your own parents: Croatia — yes, Netherlands — no.
Croatia in brief
A member of the EU, Schengen and the eurozone with a growing tech sector (Zagreb, Split) and a Mediterranean coast; permanent residence after 5 years, and a digital nomad visa of up to 18 months. Held back by citizenship at 8 years requiring you to give up the previous one (dual is difficult), noticeable seismic risk (the 2020 earthquakes), corruption above the EU average and IT salaries below Western European levels.
Netherlands in brief
High salaries and quality of life. Reuniting with a partner's parents is not provided for. The working language in tech is English.
Other comparisons
More on each: Croatia · Netherlands. Build your own comparison — up to four countries
This material is for reference and is not legal, tax or immigration advice. Visa rules, tax thresholds and prices change. Before deciding anything, check the official sources and consult a licensed professional in the relevant country.