Factsheet for measure
HR-2020-10/342
–
Updated
– measures in Croatia
Chamber of Commerce temporarily suspends membership fee
Odluka o privremenom ukidanju obveze plaćanja članarine)
Background information
At its extraordinary session on March 20, 2020 the Croatian Chamber of Commerce, decided to provisionally repeal the provisions of its Financing Decision which prescribes the obligation, amount and manner of payment of the membership fee for its members.
Following the 19 March 2020 decision of the Civil Protection Headquarters of the Republic of Croatia on measures to limit social gatherings, work in commerce, services and the holding of sporting and cultural events due to COVID-19 outbreak, the Croatian Chamber of Commerce
decided to temporarily suspend the payment of its membership fee.
Content of measure
The Croatian Chamber of Commerce (CCC) Decision on the temporary suspension of the obligation to pay membership fees (OG 36/2020) stipulates temporary suspension of the membership fee to the Croatian Chamber of Commerce for the period from 1 March to 31 May 2020. Members are entrepreneurs from the various economic sectors, primarily in retail trade, preparation of food and drinks, accommodation, education, culture etc. According to the data by the Croatian Bureau of Statistics this measure could cover around 80 thousand business entities with 250 thousand employees.
In accordance with this Decision the Croatian Chamber of Trades and Crafts (HOK) decided that debit of the mandatory chamber contribution for the period April - June 2020 is written off. (
See case 344 in the COVID-19 EU PolicyWatch database
).
Updates
The following updates to this measure have been made after it came into effect.
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20 July 2021
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The fee for the Croatian Chamber of Commerce must be paid monthly, until the last day of the month for the current month, otherwise the interest will be accumulated. Due to the difficulty of performing some activities due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Croatian Chamber of Commerce made the decision to exempt some companies from paying membership fees in a first part of 2021. These are companies from various economic sectors, like Manufacturing of games and toys; Urban and suburban passenger land transport and Other passenger land transport, Restaurants and Other food preparation and serving activities; Beverage serving activities; Film screening activities; Organization of meetings and trade fairs; Education and teaching in the field of sports and recreation and culture; Performing arts and Activities auxiliary to performing arts; Artistic creation; Work of art objects; Gambling and betting activities; Operation of sports facilities; Activities of sports clubs; Fitness centers and Other sports activities; and Amusement and theme park activities. Due to the improvement with the health situation, the Chamber of economy abolished this exemption, so companies had to pay the membership fee again from 1 July 2020. Due to the natural disasters in certain areas and cities in Croatia, some companies are still exempt from paying the fees. However, the exemption from liability to pay membership fees continues for counties that were affected by strong earthquakes, storms and floods which prevented them from operating regularly. The decision does not require the obligation to report damages, so all members of the Chamber based in affected places are not charged for the membership fee on their tax-accounting cards regardless of whether they suffered a damage or not.
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16 July 2020
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The Croatian Chamber of Commerce (CCC) gave layoffs to almost half of its employees due to the crisis and falling membership fees. The CCC employed about 520 people in the central office, branches, but also in foreign representative offices. The number of dismissals was almost 200. The reason is the decline in revenue from membership fees that have not been collected for three months, and will fall in 2021 year due to the reduction of membership fees. Therefore, the Croatian Chamber of Commerce is preparing a reorganization. For year 2020, the CCE planned revenues of HRK 233 million (€31.07 million), and about 70% or about HRK 165 million (€22 million), should have come from the mandatory membership fee paid by all companies operating in Croatia. After the outbreak of the COVID-19 crisis, the CCE decided that companies would not pay membership fees for three months. From all revenues, annually around HRK 90 million (€12 million) was spent for employees’ salaries and social contributions. The rest of the costs were material costs, organisation of trips to fairs, external services and the like. Entrepreneurs advocate that membership be voluntary, not mandatory as soon as a company is established.
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Use of measure
Not yet known.
Target groups
Actors and funding
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Actors
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Funding
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Employers' organisations
Company / Companies
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Employers organisation
No special funding required
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Social partners
Social partners' role in
designing the measure
and form of involvement:
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Trade unions
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Employers' organisations
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Role
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No involvement as case not in social partner domain
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Agreed (outcome) incl. social partner initiative
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Form
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Not applicable
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Any other form of consultation, institutionalised (as stable working groups or committees) or informal
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Social partners' role in the
implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:
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Only employers' organisations
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Main level of involvement: Peak or cross-sectoral level
Involvement
Although the employers are fully aware that the CCC has some positive activities, like representation, coordination and safeguarding common interests of its members before country institutions; participation in shaping the economic system and economic policy; promotion of the Croatian economy abroad, business training and execution of entrusted public authority, they would like that membership in the Croatian Chamber of Commerce be voluntary, not mandatory.
Views and reactions
Entrepreneurs advocate that membership in the Croatian Chamber of Commerce be voluntary, not mandatory as soon as a company is established.
Sectors and occupations
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This case is sector-specific
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Economic area
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Sector (NACE level 2)
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G - Wholesale And Retail Trade; Repair Of Motor Vehicles And Motorcycles
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G45 Wholesale and retail trade and repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles
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G46 Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles
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G47 Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles
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I - Accommodation And Food Service Activities
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I55 Accommodation
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I56 Food and beverage service activities
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R - Arts, Entertainment And Recreation
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R90 Creative, arts and entertainment activities
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R92 Gambling and betting activities
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R93 Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities
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This case is not occupation-specific.
Sources
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20 March 2020: Odluka o privremenom ukidanju obveze plaćanja članarine
(narodne-novine.nn.hr)
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27 March 2020: Suspension of the obligation to pay the CCC and HOK membership fees
(www.rrif.hr)
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16 July 2020: Drastični rezovi: HGK će dati čak 200 do 250 otkaza zbog krize
(www.24sata.hr)
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16 July 2020: Reorganizacija: Ide val otkaza u Hrvatskoj gospodarskoj komori, posao će izgubiti više od 200 ljudi?
(www.tportal.hr)
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20 July 2021: Promjene u plaćanju članarine HGK-u od 1. srpnja 2021. godine (Changes in the payment of the fee for the Croatian Chamber of Commerce from 1 July 2021)
(www.rrif.hr)
