The asylum procedures are prescribed by the Act on International and Temporary Protection and by the Protocol on the Treatment of Unaccompanied Children. In March 2023, the Croatian Parliament passed the Law on Amendments to the Law on International and Temporary Protection, which entered into force on 1 April 2023. Some important changes relate to: asylum applicants can access the labour market after a period of 3 months from the date of submission of the application; the possibility for humanitarian admission was introduced; broadening the reasons for the restriction of freedom of movement and/or detention; the introduction of an obligation for the court to review the restriction of movement/detention within a reasonable time period, especially when it lasts longer than a month and the obligation for the Ministry of Interior to act without delay if a court decision proves that the mentioned restriction/detention is not lawful and other measures. 

UNHCR has been receiving allegations of denial of access to territory and procedures, and incidents of police violence, impacting effective access of persons in need of international protection to the territory and to a fair and efficient asylum procedure.  A recommendation to the Government was made to ensure effective access of persons in need of international protection to the territory and to a fair and efficient asylum procedure.

On 7 March 2022, the Government of the Republic of Croatia adopted the decision introducing temporary protection on the basis of Council Implementing Decision (EU) 2022/382 of 4 March 2022, which establishes the existence of a mass influx of persons in accordance with Article 5 of Directive 2001/55/ EC. Pursuant to this decision, Croatia grants temporary protection to Ukrainian nationals and members of their families residing in Ukraine on 24 February 2022 and who left Ukraine from 24 February 2022 onwards; stateless persons and third country nationals who were under international or equivalent national protection in Ukraine on 24 February 2022 and members of their families who were granted residence in Ukraine on 24 February 2022 and who left Ukraine since 24 February 2022; third country nationals who had a valid permanent stay in Ukraine on 24 February 2022 in accordance with Ukrainian regulations and who cannot return to their country or region of origin in safe and permanent conditions and who left Ukraine since 24 February 2022.  

Temporary stay on humanitarian grounds is regulated by the Foreigners Act, which is aligned with Council Directive 2004/81/EC (2004) on the Residence Permit Issued to Third-country Nationals who are Victims of Human Trafficking or who have been the Subject of an Action to Facilitate Illegal Immigration, who Cooperate with the Competent Authorities.

Croatia does not provides for specific procedures for determining the status of statelessness, so that the exact number of stateless people in Croatia is not available thus UNHCR estimates that there are over 700 persons under its statelessness mandate. Majority of the stateless/at risk population belongs to the members of the Roma community.