Retiring from Switzerland to Croatia: what a couple should arrange beforehand

The starting point

A typical example: a Croatian couple, both in their early sixties, have worked in Switzerland for decades. Both have paid into the AHV and a pension fund, and they also have a pillar 3a and savings. Retirement is approaching and the wish is clear: they want to spend it in Croatia. Nothing has been planned yet.

That is no cause for concern, but it is a good moment to start. Two to three years of lead time is ideal, because some decisions are tied to deadlines and cannot be made up after the move. The following sections show what Swiss pension provision delivers in Croatia, how taxes are divided and how best to proceed depending on your housing situation.

AHV: the pension travels with you

Croatia is part of the EU. Under the Agreement on the Free Movement of Persons, Switzerland pays the AHV pension to Croatia without any reduction, to an account in Croatia or in Switzerland. This also applies to the 13th AHV pension, which has been paid every year with the December pension since December 2026.

• Application: Apply for the pension three to four months before reference age. It is easiest while you still live in Switzerland, through your current compensation office. After the move, the Swiss Compensation Office (SAK) in Geneva is responsible. It asks for a life certificate once a year.
• Reference age: 65 for men and women. For women born between 1961 and 1963, a transition with a slightly lower age applies. The pension can be drawn early from 63 or deferred until 70, with a reduction or a supplement.
• Married couples: Together you receive at most 150 percent of the maximum single pension. This applies regardless of where you live.
• Years in Croatia: If you worked in Croatia or the former Yugoslavia before coming to Switzerland, you receive a Croatian pension for those years. Each country pays its share.
• What does not come with you: Supplementary benefits and the AHV helplessness allowance are only paid in Switzerland.

Pension fund: annuity or lump sum

This is where the biggest decision is made. The law allows you to draw at least a quarter of the mandatory savings as a lump sum, and many pension funds allow more or all of it. Depending on the regulations, you must give notice of a lump-sum withdrawal a few months to three years in advance. If you miss this deadline, you receive the annuity.

Annuity

• For life, even if you live a long time
• Survivor's pension for the surviving spouse
• Paid to Croatia without Swiss withholding tax
• Taxed as income in Croatia every year

Pension fund⇄

Lump sum

• Freely available, for example for a home in Croatia
• Taxed once before the move, separately from other income
• Afterwards only the returns are taxed in Croatia
• Investment and budgeting are up to you

Timing matters. If you draw the lump sum while you live in Switzerland, it is taxed once, at a lower rate and separately from your other income. If it is only paid out after the move, Switzerland deducts withholding tax. You get it back if the Croatian tax administration confirms that it is aware of the payment and you file the claim within three years. Croatia may then treat the capital as income, at its normal rates. How Croatia treats such payments in an individual case should be clarified bindingly in advance. In most cases, drawing the money before you leave is the safer route.

• Buy-ins: If you make a buy-in to your pension fund, you cannot draw the bought-in amount as a lump sum for three years. A buy-in shortly before retirement therefore only pays off if you choose the annuity or have enough lead time.
• Married couples: Lump sums drawn by both spouses in the same year are added together to determine the tax rate. Spreading withdrawals over several years often saves a noticeable amount.

Pillar 3a and vested benefits accounts

You can draw pillar 3a and vested benefits assets from five years before reference age. With several accounts, withdrawals can be spread over different years, which lowers the tax. Here too, drawing before the move is usually simpler and cheaper. After you leave, Switzerland deducts withholding tax, which you can reclaim with a confirmation from Croatia.

Taxes after the move

With the move, your tax liability in Switzerland ends, apart from any Swiss property. For the last year, you file a tax return up to the day you leave. From then on, Croatia is your country of tax residence.

• Pensions: Croatia taxes AHV and pension fund annuities as income. EUR 600 per month remain tax-free. Each municipality sets its own rates; in Zagreb they are 23 percent up to EUR 5,000 a month and 33 percent above that. Pensioners currently receive a 50 percent reduction. In a ruling from July 2025, the Croatian tax administration calculated a monthly advance payment of around EUR 311 for a Swiss pension of CHF 3,100 a month.
• What could change: In September 2026, the Croatian government proposed raising the reduction to 100 percent from 2027, for pensions in the lower tax band. Have it checked before you move whether the law is passed in this form and whether it also applies to pensions from abroad.
• Registration: Anyone receiving a pension from abroad must register with the Croatian tax administration (Porezna uprava) on form RPO within eight days of the first payment.
• Wealth: Croatia has no wealth tax. Interest and dividends are taxed at 12 percent. Swiss dividends and interest remain subject to the 35 percent withholding tax, part of which you can reclaim under the double taxation agreement.

Health insurance

If you receive only a Swiss pension and live in Croatia, you remain insured with a Swiss health insurer, at premiums that apply to Croatia. With form S1, you register with the Croatian health insurance fund HZZO and are treated in Croatia like those insured there. You are also covered during stays in Switzerland.

If you also receive a Croatian pension, you are insured in Croatia and no longer in Switzerland. Inform your health insurer before the move so that the change happens without a gap. In Croatia, Swiss premiums can increase the tax-free amount in the annual assessment.

Property in Switzerland: sell or keep

• Selling: The canton levies a property gains tax on the profit. In most cantons, the longer you have owned the property, the lower it is. Deferral for a replacement purchase is only available if you buy a home in Switzerland again, not for a purchase in Croatia.
• Pension fund withdrawal for home ownership: If you withdrew money from the pension fund for the property, you must repay it if you sell before retirement. This obligation ends once you are entitled to retirement benefits. The timing of the sale can therefore make a big difference.
• Keeping and renting out: This is possible. Croatian nationals may keep a property they acquired as residents of Switzerland after they leave. You continue to pay tax on the rental income in Switzerland. Croatia must avoid double taxation under the agreement. Talk to your bank about the mortgage early and arrange who will manage the property locally.

Property in Croatia

• Declared so far? A flat or house in Croatia belongs in the Swiss tax return, even though Switzerland only takes it into account for the tax rate. If it is missing, it is best to correct this before you leave with a penalty-free voluntary disclosure. More on this in the article Holiday home in Croatia.
• As your main residence: Since 2025, Croatia has levied an annual property tax of EUR 0.60 to 8 per square metre. It does not apply to the registered main residence.
• Buying: A purchase is subject to 3 percent real estate transfer tax; for a new build bought directly from the developer, 25 percent VAT applies instead. Swiss banks generally do not finance property in Croatia. Most buyers use their own funds, for example the sale proceeds in Switzerland or the pension fund capital.

Four starting points, four routes

Property in Switzerland and in Croatia can be combined in any way. This results in four starting points with different approaches.

Property in Switzerland and in Croatia

The most common solution: the house in Croatia becomes the main residence and the property in Switzerland is sold. If you have withdrawn money from the pension fund, it is best to sell only after retirement benefits have started. If the children would like to take over the Swiss flat later, keeping and renting it out can make sense. You then remain liable to tax in Switzerland for this property. Check before you leave that the Croatian property has been declared correctly.

Property only in Switzerland

The sale proceeds finance the fresh start. Because Swiss banks rarely finance purchases in Croatia, this capital is often decisive. Renting in the region you have in mind for six to twelve months first has proven its worth. That way, you do not buy under time pressure and you know the location, the neighbours and how accessible it is in winter. Work through the property gains tax, the repayment of any pension fund withdrawal and the costs of buying in Croatia together.

Property only in Croatia

The simplest starting point. In Switzerland, you give notice on your rented flat in time; in Croatia, you register the house as your main residence. The property often needs renovating before you move in. Plan part of the capital from the pension fund or pillar 3a for this. Here too, it is important that the property has been listed in your Swiss tax returns for previous years.

No property

You have the most flexibility. Rent in Croatia first and decide later whether to buy. If you are considering a purchase, take it into account when deciding between annuity and lump sum: the money for a home then usually comes from the pension fund. A partial withdrawal combines both, a secure annuity and capital for the purchase.

Your roadmap

Which steps apply to you?

Three questions, your most important steps before and after the move.

Do you own property in Switzerland?

Yes No

Do you own property in Croatia?

Yes No

What is your status in Switzerland?

Swiss citizen C permit B permit

Answer the three questions.

Swiss passport, C or B permit: what differs

For the AHV and pension fund, it hardly matters whether you are a Swiss citizen, a dual citizen or a Croatian national with a permit. The differences lie in a possible return, in pensions from public employers and in buying property in Switzerland later.

• With a C permit: The settlement permit lapses when you deregister or after six months abroad. If you want to keep the option of returning, apply before you leave to keep it for up to four years. Naturalisation requires residence in Switzerland, including during the procedure. If you are considering it, you should complete it before the move.
• With a B permit: The permit lapses when you deregister. As an EU citizen, you can move back to Switzerland later, even without working, if you have sufficient means and health insurance. However, you do not get your previous status back.
• As a Swiss citizen: You can return at any time and keep all your rights. In Croatia, you register with the Swiss Embassy in Zagreb and can continue to vote.
• Inheritance: With residence in Croatia, Croatian law generally applies to your estate. If you do not want this, you can choose the law of your home country in your will; dual citizens can choose between the two. Have an existing will reviewed before the move.

The roadmap

1. Two to three years before: Read your pension fund certificate and regulations, note the deadline for lump-sum withdrawal, request an AHV pension forecast, decide on buy-ins.
2. One to two years before: Decide on annuity or lump sum, spread withdrawals from pillar 3a and vested benefits accounts over the years, decide about the properties, check the declaration of the property in Croatia.
3. Three to six months before: Apply for the AHV pension, inform your health insurer, apply to keep the C permit if desired, clarify bank and mortgage, review your will.
4. When you leave: Deregister with the municipality, draw the lump sum, file the last tax return up to the day you leave, list the household goods for Croatia.
5. After arrival: Register your residence with the police, register with Porezna uprava within eight days of the first pension payment, register with HZZO using form S1, report your address to the AHV, pension fund and banks.

Many mistakes do not happen out of ignorance, but because the steps are taken in the wrong order: the lump sum only after the move, the house sale before retirement, deregistration before the application to keep the C permit. With a plan that looks at both countries together, the transition to retirement in Croatia succeeds without unpleasant surprises.