From today until the end of February, Eesti Pank will join other central banks of the euro area in exchanging Croatian kuna banknotes for euros at the central rate with no charge to offer support for Croatia as it joins the euro area.

On 1 January 2023 Croatia joined the euro area and from that date the euro was adopted in place of the Croatian kuna at the exchange rate of 1 euro = 7.53450 HRK. Eesti Pank will exchange kunas at the central exchange rate and with no service fee in the museum of Eesti Pank during its opening hours. The daily limit per person and per transaction is 8000 Croatian kunas. Croatian coins will not be exchanged in Eesti Pank.

“The central banks of the euro area allow people to exchange the national currencies of new members for euros for two months after the new members join, at no cost and at the central rate. Estonia was given the same sort of support when we joined the euro area and so were Latvia and Lithuania. From March it will only be possible to exchange kunas at the central rate in Croatia”, said Rait Roosve, Head of the Cash and Infrastructure Department at Eesti Pank.

Kuna banknotes and coins can be exchanged at the central rate in post offices, commercial banks and the Financial Agency in Croatia until the end of 2023. A maximum of 100 kuna banknotes and 100 kuna coins can be exchanged free of charge in each transaction. Commercial banks may charge a fee for exchanging a larger number of banknotes or coins.

From January 2024, Croatia’s national central bank will take over the exchange services for kuna banknotes without any limit of time, and will exchange coins until 31 December 2025. The exchange service at the central bank will be free of charge.

The Croatian kuna and the euro will circulate in parallel and both can be used for payment for the first two weeks of the year to smooth the transition, but from 15 January 2023 the euro will be the only legal tender in Croatia.

Estonian kroon notes and coins can still be exchanged in the Eesti Pank museum at the rate of 1 euro = 15.6466 kroons. This service is free.

The Eesti Pank Museum is open from Tuesdays to Fridays 12-17 and on Saturdays at 11-16.

Additional information:
Shop of the museum of Eesti Pank: 668 0650
Eesti Pank information line: 668 0719