Country Profile Croatia

General Country Information

Summary

There are two national women’s helplines in Croatia, both of which are free of charge, offer multilingual support, and one of them is accessible 24/7. Additionally, there are several other regional helplines supporting survivors of violence against women in Croatia. There are 26 shelters accessible to women in Croatia, with a total of 402 beds provided. Eleven of them are women-only shelters. There are approximately 61 women’s centres, 30 of which are exclusively for survivors of violence against women and 31 for all survivors of gender-based violence, as well as specialised services for survivors of sexualised violence. There is no specific budget allocated to primary prevention, and no official documents, such as National Action Plans, include measures related to it. The state collects data on women’s specialist services, but not on primary prevention activities, and this data is available upon request.

Women’s Specialist Services

Croatia has a state-wide women’s helpline for survivors of violence against women (Nacionalni pozivni centar za žene koje su preživjele nasilje), available free of charge and operated by the Autonomous Women’s House Zagreb (Autonomna ženska kuća Zagreb) under the EU helpline number 116 016. This helpline is not available 24/7 due to a lack of additional state funding, and it offers multilingual support in Croatian, English, French, Italian, and German. There is a second free, 24/7 helpline called Women’s Help Now (Ženska pomoć sada, tel. +385 800655222), which provides support in Croatian and English. Both helplines provide assistance for survivors of various forms of violence, including domestic violence, partner violence, gender-based violence, and institutional violence. The main funding sources are national and local authorities, donations and international funding, among others. Together, the helplines received 2,065 calls from 869 callers in 2024, with physical and psychological violence being the most reported forms. While the first helpline does not meet the Istanbul Convention standards due to its limited hours, the second helpline complies with the Convention’s requirements, being available 24/7 and free of charge. Additionally, there are several other helplines supporting survivors of violence against women in Croatia, specialised in, among others, aiding survivors of sexualised violence, human trafficking and war violence.

There are 11 women-only shelters in Croatia offering 130 beds. Some of the women-only shelters provide 24/7 access, and none require women to pay for their accommodation. The average length of stay in these shelters can vary depending on individual circumstances and shelter policies. The most common in-house services offered include casework, counselling and psychological support, legal advice, referrals to or collaboration with other services, and practical advice on issues such as housing, healthcare, employment, and social benefits.

Most women-only shelters in Croatia can accommodate women with uncertain residence permits or undocumented status, refugee women, older women and homeless women. Some shelters are equipped to support women with physical, cognitive and/or sensory disabilities. Additionally, some shelters can accommodate women with substance abuse issues, transgender women, women with older sons and women with children with disabilities. None are accessible to unaccompanied girls under the age of 18. There are no specific shelters in Croatia dedicated exclusively to particular groups of survivors.

Funding for women-only shelters in Croatia primarily comes from state funding provided by national and local authorities, as well as donations. Shelters are located in most regions of Croatia, and women’s NGOs with a gender-specific and feminist approach run seven women-only shelters. In 2024, the main reasons for declining referrals were the lack of space and capacity to support the survivor, and the shelters not being adequately equipped to meet the specific needs of women and their children. The most common forms of violence reported by survivors were physical violence, psychological violence, and violence directly or indirectly affecting children. Around 120 women and children were accommodated in women-only shelters during 2024.

Besides the 11 women-only shelters, Croatia has 15 other shelters providing a total of 272 beds. These are faith-based and government-run (local or state) facilities that are not women-only. They are available to survivors of violence without specifying particular groups served. Some of these shelters offer 24/7 access.

Croatia has approximately 61 women’s centres, of which 30 are exclusively for women survivors of violence against women and 31 for all survivors of gender-based violence, including women. Most centres provide counselling and psychological support, financial and social welfare support and advocacy, and referrals or collaboration with other services. Some offer legal advice, housing advice, employment support, and residential services, while a few provide representation at court, police, or social services. Several centres specialise in supporting survivors of trafficking, undocumented women, women with disabilities, older women, and transgender women. Women’s centres also provide specialist support services for survivors of sexualised violence, including needs assessment, specialist psychological care, advocacy, community awareness, education for prevention, and legal advice.

Some women’s centres in Croatia are accessible to women with uncertain residence permits and undocumented women, refugee women, older women, and transgender women. The same applies to the accessibility of women’s centres for women with physical, cognitive, or sensory disabilities. There are three women’s centres specialised in supporting survivors at risk of or affected by forced marriage, honour-based violence, female genital mutilation, women with uncertain residence permits/undocumented women, refugee women, and Black and Minority Ethnic women. In Croatia, 50 women’s centres are run by women’s NGOs and 11 by other NGOs. Funding mainly comes from state funding provided by national and local authorities, donations, and international funding. Women’s centres operate in all regions of the country. In 2024, they supported approximately 5,000 women.

Croatia has specialised services for survivors of sexualised violence, including one centre specialised in supporting survivors of sexualised violence and other centres that offer counselling to survivors of different forms of violence, including sexualised violence. Such services provide needs assessment, specialist psychological care, specialist advocacy services, community awareness and prevention activities, and legal advice. Funding comes mainly from state funding, as well as donations. Services are located only in major cities and support women aged 18 and over, young women and children under 18, and men survivors of sexualised violence. There are two helplines specialised in supporting survivors of sexualised violence in Croatia.

There is no official data collection on primary prevention activities in Croatia, and the country does not have a National Action Plan or an official definition of primary prevention of violence against women and girls. A working group was established to produce a National Plan for Protection against Violence against Women and Domestic Violence, and an Action Plan for its implementation. The state does not allocate a specific budget for primary prevention activities. Existing primary prevention measures include empowerment activities for girls and women, school-based programmes, training for primary prevention practitioners, and awareness-raising campaigns or programmes.