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Post by rijekafan on Oct 23, 2007 20:59:10 GMT 1
Have just been told today that our German neighbours who have a holiday home like us arrived to visit 2 weeks ago to find the house bolted without access subject to payment of K30000 fine as the Tourist inspectors believe they were renting illegally. As far as we knew it was only used by family as we saw the same people there every time. How can anyone have the right to lock you out of your own house - a fine fair enough but this??? There is something Kafkaesque about Croatia at times.... This thread is fascinating. I assume the most problems are in Dalmatia. I am so glad I avoided doing business there, although Istria seems to be corrupt at times as well. In Primorska Goranska, government officials have always been helpful and cooperative with me. I never had to pay the special taxes as I always rented to Croats. I will have to pay extra taxes now I as I have a tourist place on Losinj. What I have done here is involve the local inspectors in the process from the beginning. Officials here love it when foreigners suck up. I say something like, "oh great sir or madam, this is my understanding of my responsibilities.Do I understand the situation properly? Can you advise me of any regulations or payments I should know about?" I probably should get everything in writing but I have always had sincere and friendly help. |
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Post by darcy on Oct 23, 2007 22:14:08 GMT 1
I never had to pay the special taxes as I always rented to Croats. I will have to pay extra taxes now I as I have a tourist place on Losinj. Please explain, what taxes we are talking about? BTW, there is also VAT of 10% you should pay, add it to my list. |
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Post by rijekafan on Oct 25, 2007 12:50:00 GMT 1
Hi,
The special taxes I speak of relate to the annual tax on tourist properties and the government tourist tax. As the etaziranje has not been done yet there are no body corporate fees. There is also the fee for establishing the catagory of accomodation.
In Rijeka I only had to pay the norrmal 22% PDV plus local municipal and body corporate fees. Plus of course taxes on alleged profit. I should mention that these taxes made it uneconomic to keep my flat in Rijeka hence the decision to sell. The killer is the 22% PDV which is an insane impost on rents. Most Croats rent on the black so its not an issue but I religiously pay all my taxes.
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Post by zorro on Oct 29, 2007 2:08:20 GMT 1
I think this is important topic for everybody investing in Croatia. And the most important, do not let Croats too close, but they need to feel you respect them and be prepared to make some small favours from time to time and keep the good relations. A perception they are still running the show is essential. Are you some sort of deranged imperialist? |
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furio
Junior Member
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Post by furio on Oct 31, 2007 12:13:37 GMT 1
3lions,
Actually I have been told by all of my Croatian contacts to be very careful of my neighbors and be quite friendly with them, not for the sake of being neighborly so much, in order to keep them for having a reason to report me to police, tax authorities, tourist board etc to get back at me. This is common practice. No big deal for them. And the authorities in Croatia act first and then expect you to prove your innocence. It has been really bad this summer due to Croatia trying to get more tax revenue.
So if you have problems with a Croatian neighbor who is not so nice over say a parking spot, noise, anything you smile, be polite and submit. Or you get reported and stare at having your flat chained and a 5000 euro+ fine.
Most Croatians are very nice people but there is a sizable minority that have inate jealousy, nationalism and zenophobia. So you have to always be careful. I expect things will improve gradually over the years but you never know what the reaction to EU ascension will be.
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Post by Ribaric on Oct 31, 2007 13:18:34 GMT 1
This envy thing has spawned a joke hereabouts....
A Zagorski chap finds a magic lantern, rubs it, out pops a genie who tells him.."thanks for releasing me from my eternal prison, I will grant you one wish..anything...BUT! Whatever you ask for, your neighbour will get twice as much."
"Remove a kidney"
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Post by capio on Nov 1, 2007 11:01:00 GMT 1
This envy thing has spawned a joke hereabouts.... A Zagorski chap finds a magic lantern, rubs it, out pops a genie who tells him.."thanks for releasing me from my eternal prison, I will grant you one wish..anything...BUT! Whatever you ask for, your neighbour will get twice as much." "Remove a kidney" Very true ;D Now make your neighbours 40 years younger than you, richer than you and English....ohh the envy. |
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Post by rijekafan on Nov 1, 2007 12:47:03 GMT 1
Maybe I have been lucky but I have always had great near neighbors. The crazy old ladies that exist in every block can be bought off with chocolates, flowers and someone to hear their problems. I think part of my luck is being in Kvarner, the people here really are worlds away from the Dalmatians. Most people in Dalmatia really seem to hate all foreigners and even any Croatian not from Dalmatia. They have told me lots of times they hate Rijeka because it was not bombed in the war. Imagine wanting people to be bombed, your own people as well.
I got told recently by a guy in Rijeka " You will never be one of us but you have become our foreigner". In my flat in Pecine I was their foreigner and in time in Losinj I have no doubt I will be given this equivilent of honoury white status. I cant imagine Dalmatians who are not lesbians ever accepting me. I dont want to even go down there any more I am so sick of the rudeness and cheating. People are so nice to me in Istria and Kvarner, even in Zagreb. Its a shock to meet the rudeness and graft I encounter down the south
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Post by Carol on Nov 1, 2007 13:10:30 GMT 1
Dalmatians don't only have a problem with foreigners and non-Dalmatian croats. They are not too keen on the people from other parts of dalmatia either and even the people in their own village often have problems with jealousy.
Question: instead of pouring vast amounts of energy into being jealous of others, why not put the energy into making something of your own life?
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Post by happy on Nov 1, 2007 20:28:43 GMT 1
instead of pouring vast amounts of energy into being jealous of others, why not put the energy into making something of your own life? If only ............... |
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Post by justapixel on Nov 1, 2007 20:57:32 GMT 1
Dalmatians don't only have a problem with foreigners and non-Dalmatian croats. They are not too keen on the people from other parts of dalmatia either and even the people in their own village often have problems with jealousy. Question: instead of pouring vast amounts of energy into being jealous of others, why not put the energy into making something of your own life? Usually people whose preoccupation is meddling into other people's lives are utterly hopeless when it comes to changing their own life. They're either retired, have a housewife status or are limited in vertical social movement due to their lack of education, brains or because of pure slothfulness. . |
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Post by rijekafan on Nov 14, 2007 5:38:05 GMT 1
I guess when you think about it, Dalmatia is fairly barren and traditionaly the people were pretty poor and usualy treated odiously by which ever foreign power was in charge. They are pretty remote and that would help explain the xenophobia. The best ones tend to go to greener pastures leaving a reactionary rump population. I guess there is also the resentment that most are losing out in all the development and tourist influx. When you talk about envy there is allot of it all over Croatia. I am sure people in Kvarner are just as envious as the ones in Dalmatia but they process the information differently. Maybe because they tend to have more exposure to foreign peoples and cultures. After all, alot of people in Istria and Kvarner commute to work and play in Italy, Germany and Austria.
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