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I am an Indian passport holder with a German residence permit. I travelled to Croatia last week by bus. When I entered Croatia from Slovenia, the Croatian border police stamped my passport. But when I was returning from Croatia there was no border police check, so I do not have an exit stamp from Croatia.

When I asked the Slovenian border officer while returning, he said "You have a German Residence Permit, so you don't need an Entry or exit stamp." But now I am left with Croatian entry stamp.

What consequences could I be facing? I am flying to Kenya for a conference this month, will this stamp cause me any problem?

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  • Why the downvote?
    – phoog
    Sep 3, 2016 at 14:10
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    @pnuts is overspecificity really reason for a downvote? Sure, the asker could have said "a non-Schengen country" instead of "Kenya," but so what? As to the information from the border officer, the asker can legitimately question whether the information is correct. It would not be the first time a border officer has given incorrect information. Plus, what authority does the Slovenian border guard have to speak on matters of Croatian procedure?
    – phoog
    Sep 5, 2016 at 23:18

3 Answers 3

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No, it shouldn't be a problem.

What you describe is normal procedure. Of course, Kenyan border officials can ask you questions if they're suspicious about something, but most likely they are not even interested in what other countries have stamped your passport.

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I am not a EU resident but have entered Croatia twice on Schengen multiple entry visa. First I entered Croatia from Montenegro and exit Croatia through Slovenia border and I received both entry and exit Croatian stamp on my passport.

On my second visit to Croatia, I entered Croatia from Bosnia. My passport was stamped by Croatian immigration. However on my last exit, Croatia didn't affix exit stamp my passport when I entered Slovenia again. I was not aware until I found out when I was in Slovenia. It was in November 2014, after that I entered multiple times the Schengen area and other countries without any difficulty.

Should you worry regarding missing exit stamp? NO

Simply you could provide the Kenyan immigration that Slovenia border officer said I do not need an exit stamp because of being a German resident.

I am still skeptical about if you don't need a stamp on your passport because of German residence, why they placed an entry stamp first.

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    Probably because Croatia is not yet part of the Schengen open borders scheme, although it is heading that way. Sep 4, 2016 at 1:21
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Some Schengen countries (such as Sweden and France) stamp passports of residence permit holders, while others (such as Germany, Switzerland and Slovenia) do not.

There is no reason why the Kenyans should care about foreign stamps - their job is to make sure you comply with their requirements.

The only potential problem would be if visiting Croatia again (as only a 90-day stay in a 180-day period is allowed)- it would then look like you overstayed if you don't get another stamp within 90 days.

So if you're visiting Croatia again anytime soon, I suggest you politely ask the next border official you come across (of any country) to stamp your passport.

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