The European Union formally accepts Croatia as the 20th member of the Eurozone. Croatia will adopt the bloc’s currency on January 1, 2023.

The enlargement of the eurozone is an ongoing process within the European Union (EU). All member states of the European Union, except Denmark which negotiated an opt-out from the provisions, are obliged to adopt the euro as their sole currency once they meet all the criteria.

The European Council, the grouping of 27 EU governments, adopted three legal acts required to allow Croatia – an EU member since 2013 – to introduce the euro on Jan. 1. One of those acts set the conversion rate for entry at one euro to 7.53450 Croatian kuna, with Croatia now having a few months to prepare the practicalities for the currency switch. To adopt the euro, Croatia had to fulfil criteria of price and exchange rate stability, sound public finances and moderate long-term interest rates, all measured against EU benchmarks. European Union finance ministers on Tuesday formally approved Croatia becoming the 20th member of the euro common currency at the start of 2023.