Offenders complete 320,000 hours of community service in a year

In 2025, individuals under probation in Croatia collectively contributed over 321,000 hours to community service, according to a report recently accepted by the government. This work is typically assigned as an alternative to incarceration, particularly for sentences exceeding six months, or as a substitute for monetary fines. In nearly 83% of cases, community service was imposed instead of a prison term longer than six months.

The Probation Service processed 742 cases related to community service last year. The largest number of new cases, 155 (23%), were received by the Zagreb I office, followed by Varaždin with 92 cases (13.6%). These individuals performed their service in a variety of public institutions, including hospitals, facilities for the mentally ill, nursing homes, schools, kindergartens, museums, libraries, volunteer fire departments, utility companies, and government bodies.

Community service was most frequently ordered for theft offenses, followed by threats and public order crimes, such as illegal entry or stay in Croatia. The Probation Service also handled 111 court rulings mandating compulsory psychosocial treatment and 41 prosecutor's orders for psychosocial therapy, often related to domestic violence or other forms of aggressive behavior.

Despite efforts to implement these measures, the overall completion rate for probation programs stands at approximately 60%. The report cites several reasons for this incomplete execution, including offenders being unsuitable for rehabilitation programs due to alcoholism or mental health issues, and some individuals being unreachable by the probation service. Additionally, some offenders begin but do not complete their programs, while others reside in areas with poor transport links to probation offices or external service providers.

The Probation Service plans to develop new methods for executing its tasks, enhance treatment programs for offenders, integrate new technologies, and continuously strengthen the professional competencies of its staff. While most probation offices have the institutional capacity to carry out these measures, some areas like Gospić and Vukovar lack specialists trained in psychosocial treatment for perpetrators of violence, a gap the service aims to address.