Croatia records EU’s largest reduction in gender pension gap since 2020

ZAGREB, July 6, 2026 (Hina) – Croatia has achieved the largest reduction in the gender pension gap among EU member states, with the gap narrowing by 11 percentage points since 2020, largely due to credited pension service for parents, the government has said.

The government set out those figures in its opinion on the 2025 annual report by Gender Equality Ombudswoman Višnja Ljubičić, in which she identified the continued existence of a gender pension gap and stressed the need for further measures to reduce it.

Credited pension service of six months per child was introduced through amendments to the Pension Insurance Act in 2019. The government said the measure had had a positive impact on reducing the gender pension gap during the period in which it has been in force.

It noted that the gap had narrowed by 11 percentage points from 30.4% in 2020, representing the largest reduction recorded among EU member states.

According to Eurostat data, the gender pension gap in Croatia stood at 19.3% in 2024, well below the EU average of 24.5%, the government added.

It also highlighted that amendments to the Pension Insurance Act adopted in 2025 doubled the credited pension service for each biological or adopted child from six to 12 months, with the aim of reducing pensioner poverty and further narrowing the gender pension gap.

“This will contribute to a further reduction in gender-based inequalities in pension income. It is estimated that around 27,000 pension recipients will qualify for 12 months of credited service per child by the end of 2026, resulting in an average pension increase of 3% per child,” the government said.

Turning to employment, the government said the number of people registered as unemployed fell by 14.8% compared with 2024.

The number of women on the unemployment register declined by 18.6%, while the number of unemployed men fell by 10%. As a result, the share of women among all registered unemployed people was 2.5 percentage points lower than in 2024.

The ombudswoman’s report, submitted to parliament, analyses a range of issues including employment and labour, pensions, parents, gender-based violence, demographic policy, LGBTIQ people, the media, discrimination, applicants for international and temporary protection, and basic military training.

The government rejected the ombudswoman’s warning that provisions of the Defence Act favour men who have completed basic military training by giving them preferential treatment in recruitment across state bodies, amounting to indirect sex discrimination prohibited by law.

It argued that women would not be placed at a disadvantage because both men and women may enrol in basic military training on a voluntary basis.

The government said that of the 800 recruits who completed the first intake on 9 May 2026, 82 were women, accounting for 10.25%. In the second intake, which began on 18 May, 53 of the 900 recruits are women, representing 6% of the cohort.

Among her recommendations, the ombudswoman also called for an urgent review of the impact of the Civil Servants Act and the Local Civil Servants Act on the assessment of employees who have taken maternity or parental leave, and for amendments to remove any adverse effects arising from those provisions.

The government said that these provisions do not place civil servants who have taken parental leave at a disadvantage, as they are still assessed as successful even during periods of absence from work, and such an assessment is one of the conditions for career advancement.

On the issue of combating violence against women and domestic violence, particularly in terms of inter-institutional cooperation and coordination, the government noted that a working group was established in March this year to transpose the EU Directive on combating violence against women and domestic violence.

Its task is to draft amendments to the Criminal Code and propose necessary changes to the Criminal Procedure Act in order to further improve the legislative framework in this area.

In addition to representatives of the academic community and judicial officials, the working group also includes representatives of civil society organisations directly engaged in work with victims of violence against women and domestic violence, as well as a representative of the Office of the Gender Equality Ombudswoman, the government said.