Anyone moved to Croatia from the USA
Posted by PhiNoRe@reddit | expats | View on Reddit | 9 comments
We have been interested in learning more about jus sanguinis (blood right) since we visited my Great grandfathers and Great grandmother's villages in Croatia. My wife and I really loved Croatia when we visited and are going back this summer. We have talked seriously about retiring there. We have all the ancestral documents and a research from a historian. My last name is Croatian and it is a straight line. At least there they know how to spell my last name there😄.
Any advice will be appreciated.
PhiNoRe@reddit (OP)
hvala Puno, thank you.
Mugmugmug33@reddit
Dobar dan, I am an American and received citizenship through my great grandfather. You can expect the process to take 3 years. It involves FBI background checks, translating and certifying documents and multiple appointments at your local Croatian consulate. I did it myself for about $1k, there is a Facebook group as well as a website, expat in Croatia that I relied on. Good luck.
PhiNoRe@reddit (OP)
My grandfather is from Dubrava, so that should help. Got to love church records.
a_library_socialist@reddit
We looked into it - but the ethnic hatred there is still very real, as is the Balkan patriarchy thing. So ultimately we went elsewhere.
epadoklevise@reddit
Wont argue against the statement, but how much does either of those impact a life of two retirees, one of whom is ethnically Croatian?
epadoklevise@reddit
Hm, check the conditions on governmental websites. I may be mistaken, but if you plan to obtain citizenship there are additional requirements and it's not always straightforward.
Sometimes they can take a hard line on requiring evidence that you have been identifying yourself as a Croat, or that your parents have been doing so (e.g. birth certificate stating Croatian ethnicity).
Some ethnic Croats struggled with this.
Also they may require an evidence that your grandparents were ethnic Croats, despite the fact that they lived in Croatia (or Yugoslavia at the time). Their documents might have stated Yugoslavian and not Croatian, while there were other ethnicities living in Croatia at the time as well so they sometimes ask for this stated somewhere explicitly.
PhiNoRe@reddit (OP)
My grandparents were married in a Croatian catholic church in Kansas City in a Croatian neighborhood but the rest could be an issue. Thanks. My last name matches a ex prime minister and Croatian World Cup player (not the same person).
epadoklevise@reddit
Ah ok, you seem to have some good foundation there. This was not to discourage you in any way, just to prepare yourself mentally that it can be a shitshow and experiences of people with similar backgrounds do not necessarily match when it comes to obtaining citizenship.
Also just FYI, some surnames are shared between Serbs and Croats - e.g. Milanovic (another Croatian ex-pm) that's why the officials require other proofs of connection to Croatian people.
But you seem to be in a good spot with that marriage certificate. Good luck with it and start with the language ASAP!
Bitter_Initiative_77@reddit
Start learning Croatian yesterday.