Travellers driving between Croatia and northern Bosnia now have a smoother ride: the new Gradiška–Novi Varoš border crossing is fully operational, according to Bosnia and Herzegovina's Indirect Taxation Authority. The crossing sits beside a new bridge over the River Sava and cost more than €20 million to build, with the EU co-financing the project.
The hold-up was bureaucratic rather than logistical. The crossing had been running on a provisional basis since 19 May 2026, with customs officers and police temporarily transferred from the old crossing in the centre of Gradiška. But because amendments to the tax authority's internal staffing rules hadn't been approved, the site never had a permanent setup — and without that, it couldn't issue customs documentation or operate at full capacity.
The paperwork finally went through on 7 October, and the authority confirmed the following week that everything needed for a permanent, fully staffed crossing is now in place. The dispute behind the delay was unusually colourful: a governing board member had withheld his approval as leverage in a row over VAT revenue distribution between Bosnia's two entities, with the Federation claiming roughly €100 million from Republika Srpska. His term expired, the remaining members pushed the amendments through, and he's now threatening to sue them — though that no longer affects the crossing itself.
There's context for why this matters. The old Gradiška–Stara Gradiška crossing ran right through the town centre and was one of the main routes for freight and passenger traffic between the two countries. Part of its approach bridge collapsed, which made opening the new facility urgent. The old crossing remains closed for now, with the tax authority saying it will resume operations there once bridge repairs are complete.
For road-trippers, this is good news in practical terms. The old crossing was notorious for summer queues, and a modern facility with a new bridge should ease congestion on one of the busiest links between the Croatian motorway network and Bosnia's northern region. It's a handy route if you're driving from Zagreb towards Banja Luka, or heading down to Bosnia beyond it. Expect things to run more predictably — though as with any Balkan border in peak season, crossing earlier in the day is still a smart move.
The opening also means the new crossing can finally handle customs paperwork at full capacity, which should matter for anyone driving a hire car across the border (always check the car is cleared for cross-border travel) or heading through with a camper. Once the old crossing reopens after repairs, there will be two working crossings at Gradiška — a rare bit of redundancy on this corridor.
Story via Croatia Week.
