Post by Carol on Jun 16, 2015 12:28:23 GMT 1
I just found this. Its a year old, but its still being published, so its still the latest advice. is it right?
www.gov.uk/government/publications/overseas-business-risk-croatia/overseas-business-risk-croatia#bribery-and-corruption
1. Political and Economic
Croatia proclaimed independence in 1991 and has made significant progress in overcoming the characteristic difficulties of a country in transition and legacy issues associated with the war, which ended in 1995. Croatia was given EU candidacy status in 2005. The accession negotiations were completed in June 2011 and Croatia officially joined the EU on 1 July 2013. Croatia has also been a NATO member since April 2009.
Croatia’s legal framework is based on Austrian and German models. Acquis Communitaire has been fully transposed into Croatia’s legal system. The Constitution of the Republic of Croatia guarantees free transfer of capital and free profit repatriation to investors and Croatian laws guarantee equal rights for domestic and foreign private and legal entities.
The political environment is stable. A centre-left led coalition government has been in power since December 2012, with the next elections due to be held in December 2015. The Croatian economy is amongst the most developed in Southeast Europe. The Croatian National Bank operates a fixed exchange rate regime; the local currency is stable and the inflation rate has been low. But Croatia has been badly hit by the global financial crisis and is currently in its sixth straight year of recession. In order to achieve sustainable economic recovery Croatia needs to undertake deep structural reforms. The structure of its economy is dominated by the service sector, primarily through its well developed tourism industry which is the main economic driver. In 2013 Croatia’s tourism sector recorded 12.4 million visitors (10.9 million of which came from outside Croatia). Tourism receipts in 2014 were € 7.2 billion. Other key target sectors include Energy, Infrastructure, Pharmaceuticals and Life Sciences, Advanced Engineering, Security and Services, Marine.
2. Business and Human Rights
In Croatia, human rights are protected by the Constitution of the Republic of Croatia and international treaties to which Croatia is a signatory. Despite challenges by conservatives on issues such as same sex marriages, the Government’s commitment to the protection of human and minority rights is strong.
Employees have the right to join trade unions of their choice without prior authorisation and union representatives are protected against anti-union discrimination. The right to strike is recognised by law.
Despite the fact that the proportion of women in leading positions in economic and political decision making bodies is still not equal to men, the number of women in these areas has been increasing and institutional mechanisms for gender equality at government levels are developing. Minority representation in state institutions is relatively well respected, but does not exceed 5%. Some positive steps in terms of Roma access to education and the labour market also reflects Government efforts to improve Roma integration.
Despite a sound legal framework it is not unusual that employees do not receive their salaries on a regular basis or that salaries are not properly declared. The current Government has tried to fight the issue with naming and shaming campaigns, publicly disclosing employers who are not paying salaries or not declaring salaries according to the law. But the effects so far have been limited.
3. Bribery and Corruption
Bribery is illegal. It is an offence for British nationals or someone who is ordinarily resident in the UK, a body incorporated in the UK or a Scottish partnership, to bribe anyone anywhere in the world.
In addition, a commercial organisation carrying on business in the UK can be liable for the conduct of a person who is neither a UK national or resident in the UK or a body incorporated or formed in the UK. In this case it does not matter whether the acts or omissions which form part of the offence take place in the UK or elsewhere.
The Business Anti-corruption Portal reports that, “Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have the perception that the majority of civil servants expect to be bribed when meeting with companies, but in most cases SMEs do not report actual occurrences of bribery” and “Although foreign investors are legally entitled to national treatment, Croatia’s ineffective legal system and a lack of transparency within both private and public sectors have presented the greatest challenges to investors. Transparency in developing legislation and regulations is often hampered by an inefficient public administration and a lack of intra-governmental coordination. The significant backlog of cases has made dispute resolution via the courts an undesirable option for companies. As a result of the very long timeframes involved in obtaining judgments in court, companies often try to resolve disputes without seeking judicial remedies.”
According to Transparency International’s corruption perception index (CPI)] Croatia ranked 57th out of 177 countries surveyed in 2013.
Visit the Business Anti-Corruption portal page providing advice and guidance about corruption in Croatia and some basic effective procedures you can establish to protect your company from them.
Read the information provided on our Bribery and corruption page.
4. Terrorism Threat
There is a low threat from terrorism.
Read the information provided on our Terrorism threat page.
5. Protective Security Advice
Croatia has a low crime rate and violent crime is rare.
Read the information provided on our Protective security advice page.
6. Intellectual Property
Intellectual Property Rights are territorial, that is they only give protection in the countries where they are granted or registered. If you are thinking about trading internationally, you should consider registering your IP rights in your export markets.
For information on registering your trademark or patent in Croatia you should contact the State Intellectual Property Office of the Republic of Croatia. Their web site page (www.dziv.hr) contains an English page.
Read the information provided on our Intellectual Property page.
7. Organised Crime
Organised crime does exist in Croatia, but people and businesses unconnected with such groups have not been specifically targeted by serious organised crime. Businesses should carefully check the background of any potential partners.
Read the information on our Organised Crime.
www.gov.uk/government/publications/overseas-business-risk-croatia/overseas-business-risk-croatia#bribery-and-corruption
Information on key security and political risks which UK businesses may face when operating in Croatia
1. Political and Economic
Croatia proclaimed independence in 1991 and has made significant progress in overcoming the characteristic difficulties of a country in transition and legacy issues associated with the war, which ended in 1995. Croatia was given EU candidacy status in 2005. The accession negotiations were completed in June 2011 and Croatia officially joined the EU on 1 July 2013. Croatia has also been a NATO member since April 2009.
Croatia’s legal framework is based on Austrian and German models. Acquis Communitaire has been fully transposed into Croatia’s legal system. The Constitution of the Republic of Croatia guarantees free transfer of capital and free profit repatriation to investors and Croatian laws guarantee equal rights for domestic and foreign private and legal entities.
The political environment is stable. A centre-left led coalition government has been in power since December 2012, with the next elections due to be held in December 2015. The Croatian economy is amongst the most developed in Southeast Europe. The Croatian National Bank operates a fixed exchange rate regime; the local currency is stable and the inflation rate has been low. But Croatia has been badly hit by the global financial crisis and is currently in its sixth straight year of recession. In order to achieve sustainable economic recovery Croatia needs to undertake deep structural reforms. The structure of its economy is dominated by the service sector, primarily through its well developed tourism industry which is the main economic driver. In 2013 Croatia’s tourism sector recorded 12.4 million visitors (10.9 million of which came from outside Croatia). Tourism receipts in 2014 were € 7.2 billion. Other key target sectors include Energy, Infrastructure, Pharmaceuticals and Life Sciences, Advanced Engineering, Security and Services, Marine.
2. Business and Human Rights
In Croatia, human rights are protected by the Constitution of the Republic of Croatia and international treaties to which Croatia is a signatory. Despite challenges by conservatives on issues such as same sex marriages, the Government’s commitment to the protection of human and minority rights is strong.
Employees have the right to join trade unions of their choice without prior authorisation and union representatives are protected against anti-union discrimination. The right to strike is recognised by law.
Despite the fact that the proportion of women in leading positions in economic and political decision making bodies is still not equal to men, the number of women in these areas has been increasing and institutional mechanisms for gender equality at government levels are developing. Minority representation in state institutions is relatively well respected, but does not exceed 5%. Some positive steps in terms of Roma access to education and the labour market also reflects Government efforts to improve Roma integration.
Despite a sound legal framework it is not unusual that employees do not receive their salaries on a regular basis or that salaries are not properly declared. The current Government has tried to fight the issue with naming and shaming campaigns, publicly disclosing employers who are not paying salaries or not declaring salaries according to the law. But the effects so far have been limited.
3. Bribery and Corruption
Bribery is illegal. It is an offence for British nationals or someone who is ordinarily resident in the UK, a body incorporated in the UK or a Scottish partnership, to bribe anyone anywhere in the world.
In addition, a commercial organisation carrying on business in the UK can be liable for the conduct of a person who is neither a UK national or resident in the UK or a body incorporated or formed in the UK. In this case it does not matter whether the acts or omissions which form part of the offence take place in the UK or elsewhere.
The Business Anti-corruption Portal reports that, “Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have the perception that the majority of civil servants expect to be bribed when meeting with companies, but in most cases SMEs do not report actual occurrences of bribery” and “Although foreign investors are legally entitled to national treatment, Croatia’s ineffective legal system and a lack of transparency within both private and public sectors have presented the greatest challenges to investors. Transparency in developing legislation and regulations is often hampered by an inefficient public administration and a lack of intra-governmental coordination. The significant backlog of cases has made dispute resolution via the courts an undesirable option for companies. As a result of the very long timeframes involved in obtaining judgments in court, companies often try to resolve disputes without seeking judicial remedies.”
According to Transparency International’s corruption perception index (CPI)] Croatia ranked 57th out of 177 countries surveyed in 2013.
Visit the Business Anti-Corruption portal page providing advice and guidance about corruption in Croatia and some basic effective procedures you can establish to protect your company from them.
Read the information provided on our Bribery and corruption page.
4. Terrorism Threat
There is a low threat from terrorism.
Read the information provided on our Terrorism threat page.
5. Protective Security Advice
Croatia has a low crime rate and violent crime is rare.
Read the information provided on our Protective security advice page.
6. Intellectual Property
Intellectual Property Rights are territorial, that is they only give protection in the countries where they are granted or registered. If you are thinking about trading internationally, you should consider registering your IP rights in your export markets.
For information on registering your trademark or patent in Croatia you should contact the State Intellectual Property Office of the Republic of Croatia. Their web site page (www.dziv.hr) contains an English page.
Read the information provided on our Intellectual Property page.
7. Organised Crime
Organised crime does exist in Croatia, but people and businesses unconnected with such groups have not been specifically targeted by serious organised crime. Businesses should carefully check the background of any potential partners.
Read the information on our Organised Crime.