As foreign citizens often come to us with requests for translation of documentation and generally asking about rules related to the employment of foreigners, here are some changes of the law concerning foreigners in Serbia, but please note, for detailed interpretation of new regulations, we advise you to contact a lawyer.
Chamber of Commerce of Serbia has presented on January 29, 2024, amendments to the Foreigners Law and the Law on the Employment of Foreigners, discussing the procedure of regulating the citizenship and employment of foreigners in the Republic of Serbia and a new portal for foreigners.
Foreigners in Serbia
The number of foreigners in Serbia has increased by 43% – the majority represented by foreigners in temporary residence for employment purposes.
In the beginning of 2022, there were 33,000 foreigners in Serbia. During the same year the number doubled to 60,000 foreigners.
At the end of 2023 in Serbia there were 80,000 foreigners (with temporary residence) and 10,000 permanently settled.
What are the changes to the law?
Due to the increased number of foreigners in Serbia, digitalization of services was needed, so the request for residence is now submitted electronically, more precisely through the portal, which was launched on February 1, 2024.
The temporary residence had previously been granted for a period of one year until now, whereas now the duration has been extended to up to 3 years, with a possible extension of another 3 years. The application for extension is now being submitted exclusively electronically, even if the foreigner is not in Serbia.
The so-called “unified permit” is introduced, which combines residence and work permit. Previously, the application for residence had to be submitted in person through the Ministry of the interior offices, and after approval, the application for a work permit had to be submitted to the National Employment Agency.
Foreigners can also now take up full time employment indefinitely (an amendment to the law came into force in August 2023), whereas previously they could only stay employed as long as their Visa/work permit lasted.
Personal visas based on employment are no longer possible, but the employer submits an application for the residence of foreigners. In this way, the employer is the only point of communication between the state and the foreigner.
The employer will be able to apply for a single permit and visa D (for employment) for one or more people at the same time (group application is limited to 50 foreigners). The employer should have an account on the eGovernment portal in order to apply and may also add an authorized person to the portal who will be a representative of the legal entity, in charge of foreigners.
Everything will be done through the portal for foreigners, which will be connected to eGovernment.
A temporary residence permit, i.e. a unified permit, will be issued in the form of a card, on a form including the type of permit (biometrically personalized document), with all the necessary data (photo, fingerprint, signature).
The price of a unified permit will be 20,000 RSD +1,800 RSD for a biometric ID card.
Contact us for translations of necessary documentation for your employees.
