Bringing equipment into Croatian hospitals
Rijeka Gateway has operated since 2025, and its operator describes a berth for ships up to 24,000 TEU, with trains running inland from Rijeka. A quote for equipment supplies to Croatia still needs to answer two questions before freight matters. Can the device be supplied under the EU rules and the Croatian act that applies them, and, for X-ray, who holds the import permit?
We're MediGear. Registered in England and Wales as a medical equipment distributor, we quote, document and ship certified equipment for healthcare buyers in more than 80 countries. With your requirement in hand, we find verified makers who can supply it, check what matters for a Croatian site, and return a quote your clinical and purchasing teams can work from. Requests go through our buyers page, and no account is needed.
Croatian hospitals, polyclinics and practices
Across the healthcare system in Croatia, public and private, we quote for buyers such as:
- Clinical hospital centres such as KBC Zagreb, KBC Sestre milosrdnice, KBC Rijeka, KBC Split and KBC Osijek
- Other public hospitals such as Clinical Hospital Dubrava in Zagreb and the general hospital in Varaždin
- Private polyclinics such as Medikol, with sites in Zagreb, Rijeka, Split and Osijek
- Private cardiac centres such as Klinika Magdalena, and cardiology departments in public hospitals
- Dental practices, which are more than half of all radiation licence holders in the country
- Veterinary practices running their own X-ray units
- Local firms on HALMED's distributor register
Croatia's National Recovery and Resilience Plan 2021-2026 lists investments in health care in Split, namely digital imaging and robotic-surgery theatres at KBC Split. The buying process differs from one buyer to the next. Public hospitals tender under the Public Procurement Act on the EOJN RH platform, where contracts are now signed digitally. Their quote has to fit the tender papers. A small private practice, such as a dental surgery replacing one panoramic unit, needs a clear quote and a firm date. Before we quote, we ask for procurement details, such as whether it is a tender or a direct purchase, because they determine the required documentation.
HALMED and the Croatian act on the MDR
A 2018 act puts the EU Medical Devices Regulation into effect in Croatia. The Ministry of Health and HALMED, the agency for medicines and medical devices, are the competent authorities. The act sets the language: anything meant for patients must be in Croatian, while text used only by healthcare staff may be in Croatian, English or both. HALMED's medical devices pages cover registration, the distributor register and a searchable device database.
Distributors must be in HALMED's register before they trade, while firms that bring devices in from outside the EU register in EUDAMED instead. Since the UK is outside the EU, who holds the importer's role under the MDR when a hospital buys a unit from us directly is for the hospital and its own advisers to settle. We are not a Croatian importer or registered distributor and cannot give regulatory advice. Each quote lists the unit's certificates, so your team can check them against the rules that apply to you.
Civil Protection and the X-ray permit
Radiation safety sits with the Ministry of the Interior's Civil Protection Directorate under the Act on Radiological and Nuclear Safety. CT, radiography, fluoroscopy, mammography and dental panoramic or cone-beam units need approval, valid for three or five years. Intra-oral dental and bone density units need a registration, which lasts ten years. The directorate's guidance on registering X-ray units lists what a registration application needs, from wall shielding sums to a testing contract.
X-ray apparatus is tested before first use and then once a year by an authorised technical service. The seller or supplier must arrange the acceptance test before handover and give the report to the user. A unit coming from outside the EU, including the UK, also needs a prior import permit, issued only to a registered importer and only for a licensed end user. Ask about both while the quote is open.
Getting the specification right for Croatia
Croatian buyers most often ask us to settle these points with the maker:
- Mains and sockets. Croatian sockets take type C and F plugs, and EU product rules define mains as 230 V at 50 Hz. If a unit was built for 110 V or 60 Hz, the factory may have to supply a different build.
- Annual testing. Radiation equipment is tested every year by an authorised service, and the user runs its own quality control. Ask for the service manual and test data early so the first test is not delayed.
- Reprocessed devices. Reprocessed single-use devices may not be made available in Croatia, so plan stock of disposables. Ask us which spare parts and consumables fit the unit and can be reordered through us.
- CEZIH links. For imaging units and other digital diagnostics, check DICOM and HL7 options with your IT team before the unit goes in, along with anything the national CEZIH record system needs.
If a detail is unclear, we raise it with the maker before we quote. It is much simpler to settle now than once the unit is on a lorry heading for Zagreb.
Paperwork and wood packaging for Croatia
For goods from outside the EU, customs works from an online declaration and the papers behind it, so every consignment of medical equipment supplies ships with:
- An itemised packing list and the commercial invoice
- A certificate of origin, which we arrange
- An HS code for every line
- The conformity declaration, with copies of each CE certificate
- Instructions in Croatian, or in English for devices used only by staff
Wood is checked at the border. The State Inspectorate's phytosanitary service supervises wood packaging entering the EU. It can refuse it, and its border plant health service covers the sea and air posts at Rijeka, Rijeka Gateway, Ploče, and Zagreb Airport. We ask for ISPM 15-treated, marked crates from the start.
Rijeka by sea or Zagreb by air
- Share the request. Send the model, specification, quantity and the hospital or practice, by RFQ form or email.
- Check the documented quote. It lists the product, lead time, certification, and route into Rijeka, usually within 48 hours for catalogue items.
- Approve in writing. The order exists from the moment your written approval reaches us.
- Shipping to Croatia. Sea freight goes into Rijeka, through Rijeka Gateway or the Adriatic Gate terminal with its daily rail links, or into Ploče. For a small or urgent item, air freight delivers medical equipment to Zagreb Airport.
Once the unit reaches the port or airport you nominate, the import passes to you. A customs representative, who must be approved and established in Croatia, can file on your behalf, and the importer can also file directly. Croatian Customs' page on its HRAIS2 system covers the import declarations, and you arrange the last leg. Island sites rely on Jadrolinija ferries, and the winter bura is strongest below Velebit, so tell us early.
Single orders, ward projects and pre-owned units
Most catalogue lines can be quoted for one unit, so there is no need to buy tonnes of medical supplies: a single monitor for the Zadar hospital or an autoclave for a practice is welcome. We also quote multi-line requests for new wards, theatres and day surgery units; see hospital setup for larger projects. Imaging teams moving from film to digital image diagnostics can browse Medical Diagnostic Equipment. For pre-owned units,,we offers our refurbished range. A used X-ray unit is registered again with the ministry when it changes hands, and it needs the same acceptance test as a new one.
Disclaimer
Please treat this page as general information for buyers in Croatia. It is not an offer to supply and does not amount to legal, regulatory or customs advice. Quotes are subject to what makers can supply, and an order is firm only once both sides have agreed to it in writing. Whether a device can be supplied depends on its CE status and intended use, and X-ray equipment needs a separate approval or registration under the Act on Radiological and Nuclear Safety. You are responsible for import clearance and for checking the rules that apply to your purchase. We do not act as an importer in Croatia, and we are not on HALMED's distributor register.
Replacing X-ray tubes or a whole unit?
A photo of the old unit's rating plate, a data sheet or just the model number will do, along with the Croatian hospital or practice. We'll return a quote that covers the CE file, the X-ray import permit if one applies and the route.
Frequently Asked Questions
No account is required. Our RFQ form on the buyers page lets you enter the model or specification, or you can email connect@medigear.uk. We quote medical equipment and supplies for public hospitals, private polyclinics, dental and veterinary practices, and distributors, from Split healthcare providers to island clinics. Every quotation comes back by email.
Material meant for patients and lay users must be in Croatian. Material used only by healthcare professionals may be in Croatian, English or both. We check what the manufacturer supplies before we quote and tell you about any gaps.
Yes. Distributors must be entered in HALMED's distributor register before they start trading, while importers bringing devices in from outside the EU register in EUDAMED. Who holds the importer's role when a hospital imports directly from the UK is for the hospital and its own advisers to settle, so confirm your position before ordering.
It needs a prior import permit from the Ministry of the Interior, issued only to a registered importer and only for a licensed end user, and valid for six months. The site also needs its own approval or registration, and an acceptance test before handover. Lead aprons and other protective equipment can go on the same quote.
Sea freight goes into Rijeka, through Rijeka Gateway or Adriatic Gate, or into Ploče, and air freight into Zagreb Airport. Our delivery stops at the point you nominate, and customs clearance and the final leg to your site are your responsibility.
The importer files it in HRAIS2, directly or through a customs representative approved by the Customs Administration and established in Croatia. We provide the commercial invoice, packing list, certificate of origin, HS codes, and CE documents.
We will. Most catalogue lines can go out as one unit, down to a single medical instrument. Where a manufacturer sets a minimum order quantity, you hear from us straight away. Tell us about the ferry crossing and any narrow streets on the island, and we will ask for packing that suits the trip.
Several things matter: manufacturer stock, whether the unit is new or refurbished, where it ships from, whether an X-ray import permit applies, and whether it travels by sea, road, or air. The lead time and route appear on every quote, and we send email updates until arrival.