Croatia has granted citizenship to a large number of citizens of South American nationals in the last years, but only a small percentage of those who have obtained the document reside in the country.
According to the most recent data shared by the Croatian Ministry of Interior, from the beginning of 2020 until the end of August 2024, Croatia granted citizenship to a total of 11,054 citizens of South American countries, Schengen.News reports.
However, what is surprising is that only 342 South Americans who have obtained Croatian citizenship have declared their residence in Croatia, raising concerns among the authorities.
Figures from the Ministry show that the top beneficiaries of Croatian citizenship during the above-mentioned period were Argentinians. A total of 5,581 Argentinian citizens were granted Croatian citizenship from the beginning of 2020 until the end of August 2024.
Argentinians were followed by citizens of Chile, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, Venezuela, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Colombia, which make up the top ten list of Croatian passport beneficiaries, with numbers being as follows:
• Citizens of Chile (who obtained Croatian citizenship from the beginning of 2020 until the end of August 2024) – 2,615
• Citizens of Peru – 741
• Citizens of Bolivia – 733
• Citizens of Brazil – 597
• Citizens of Ecuador – 206
• Citizens of Venezuela – 184
• Citizens of Paraguay – 167
• Citizens of Uruguay – 125
• Citizens of Colombia – 105
In addition to granting such a high number of passports to citizens of these countries, the Ministry disclosed that the authorities are also currently processing 1,233 citizenship applications filed by South Americans.
Politicians See South Americans of Croatian Origin as Solution to Workforce Shortage
As Globus explains, the latest estimates from the Central State Office for Croats show that there are around 200,000 people of Croatian origin in Chile, 70,000 in Brazil, 8,000 in Peru, 4,000 in Educador, and 5,000 each in Bolivia, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Venezuela.
Taking into account the current workforce situation in the country, many politicians in Croatia have suggested that South Americans of Croatian origin can be a solution to helping the country with the shortages.
However, they did not disclose any specific plans on how they would retain workforce from these countries as it has been shown that once South Americans of Croatian origin obtain a Croatian passport, they choose to reside in another EU country. Spain is the most attractive country for South Americans of Croatian origin who hold Croatian citizenship.
Source: https://schengen.news/croatia-granted-citizenship-to-over-11000-south-americans-since-2020-but-only-a-small-proportion-reside-in-country/
