Discretionary powers of the border guards
We cannot guarantee the legally prescribed equal treatment of all citizens at the borders, as there is still a lot of legal grey area or discretionary scope for the respective border officials in matters of entry and sometimes communication difficulties at the Slovenian or Croatian border can lead to misunderstandings, which, as we have learned, can always be resolved.
Entry from Germany to Austria
In fact, checks at the border between Germany and Austria are no longer carried out, except for a few random samples. Recently, we have not been aware of any case in which a German wishing to leave the country was unable to cross the border into Austria. The Austrians, for their part, have no objections to transit, but one should have enough fuel in the tank to be able to travel through without stopping. According to information from the border, there are no objections to a visit to the toilet in an emergency, as is unanimously reported.
Entry from Austria to Slovenia
When entering Slovenia from Austria, there are occasional checks, but if you enter Croatia as your destination, you can usually pass. Transit through Slovenia from Austria to Croatia is permitted, even if official websites sometimes claim otherwise. SeaHelp has explicitly inquired at the Slovenian embassy in Berlin. According to their information, there are no objections to transit, which must take place within 24 hours. Publications to the contrary are wrong, according to the embassy.
Entry from Slovenia to Croatia
Anyone who has a valid reason to enter Croatia can do so. For holidaymakers, good reasons include a boat in one of the Croatian marinas, a property, a booked boat charter in Croatia or a booking of an apartment, hotel or camping site. Or, to put it another way: Whenever paid services of the tourist industry in Croatia, which is particularly battered by COVID-19, are used, there is a good reason to enter Croatia. Only, with the entry one should not see it too loose, as travelers to Croatia report to us. Partly only the destination is asked, partly however also strictly controlled. The following documents should be carried with you when entering Croatia:
Documents entry to Croatia
- Boat owner: sea letter or IBS, valid berth contract of a Croatian marina
- Apartment booking: rental contract for the apartment (if possible, list all fellow travellers by name), voucher
- Campsite: rental contract, booking confirmation, voucher (if possible, list all fellow travellers by name)
- Hotel: booking confirmation, voucher (if possible, list all fellow travellers by name)
Furthermore, the following must be taken into account on entry:
- A transfer confirmation in the form of a bank statement or a copy of the transfer cannot harm particularly critical officers of the Croatian border police, but is not mandatory.
- If you are travelling to Croatia with your partner (different surname), you should also carry up-to-date proof that you live with her in domestic community, as a recent case has shown. She should be explicitly mentioned on the crew list, the voucher or the rental contract for hotel or apartment so that there are no unnecessary complications at the border. For yacht owners, the home marina can also help in an emergency.
Quarantine on return journey from Croatia to Austria
The “Austrian Quarantine Ordinance”, i.e. the Ordinance of the Federal Minister of Social Affairs, Health, Care and Consumer Protection on measures to be taken when entering Austria from neighbouring countries will expire on 31 May 2020. De jure it could still be extended, but de facto one does not expect it at present if one follows the statements of the politicians. A continuation, explicitly with Slovenia or Croatia, is not known to us so far. As things stand today, this would mean that Austrians returning to Austria from their Pentecost holiday in Croatia would no longer have to go into quarantine.
Quarantine on return journey to Germany
In Germany, too, the individual federal states are increasingly dispensing with the previous quarantine obligation. North Rhine-Westphalia, Rhineland-Palatinate, Lower Saxony, Thuringia, Saarland as well as Bavaria have already stopped the quarantine obligation on entry from other EU countries. Residents of the other federal states are advised to follow the news or to inform themselves on the official homepage of their federal state.
Explicitly: Charter guests may also enter
As there is still some confusion among some charter guests: Entry to Croatia for charter guests is expressly permitted. Here the corresponding link to the PDF.
Translated it says in the section:
The chartering of ships and/or the use of accommodation facilities on ships, yachts and boats is considered an extremely important economic reason for entering the Republic of Croatia, which must be proven by the list of crew and passengers entered into the eNautical System either by the charter company or by the ship owner. The status of the document “In preparation” is also acceptable.
Update regarding quarantine on return journey to Austria:
