During the hiring process, it came down to 4 magnificently talented Croatian women including Marija. Her genuine kindness for others and desire to protect vulnerable communities made her stand out, and in the end, was the definitive reason she earned the role.

Marija has written more than 330 guides and articles about Croatia's bureaucracy, culture, language, healthcare system, and daily life. The bureaucratic guides, for which Expat in Croatia is known, typically require dozens of hours of research including many calls and emails to the government to get the facts just right, which takes a tremendous amount of patience, strength, and attention to detail. Marija now leads Expat in Croatia's content strategy and manages a content department of editors, writers, researchers and contributors.

Marija joined Expat in Croatia in its infancy, when it was solely a blog with zero monetization and an uncertain future. Over the last 5 years, Expat in Croatia has grown exponentially into a company that helps thousands of people every year obtain residence, gain citizenship and build their lives in Croatia, with as much simplicity as reality will allow.

Even though she has been working behind the scenes, Marija's fingerprints are visible in everything we do. She made the success of Expat in Croatia possible. She never hesitates to do what is right and functions as our guiding light at every step of the way. Our entire team is grateful to work by her side and we wish to congratulate her on this next step in her journey.

Marija Tkalec is from Bedekovčina in Hrvatsko zagorje. She adores music, hiking, and any opportunity to be in nature. Prior to Expat in Croatia, she was a music journalist.