If you “recome to work in Belgrade, you’ll need a temporary or permanent residence visa, and you’re allowed to work-unless you have a legal exception, such as diplomacy, international organizations, or certain international projects as a volunteer.
All work permits are issued by the Serbian National Employment Service (located in Gundulićev Venac office 23-25). The process is simple-submit the required documents and answer some other questions (if any). According to the Serbian law on the employment of foreigners, there are types of work permits.
Personal work permit
This type of permit can only be processed if you have a permanent residence visa. It’s ^ grant is limited and does not apply to all foreigners, because it usually belongs to special categories, such as American asylum, refugee, temporary protection, family reunion, etc.
It’s “unlikely, you will need to apply for this kind of personal work permit.
Work Permit
If you have a temporary residence visa, you can apply for one of the following types of work permit:
a) Work permit for employment purposes: This type of work permit is obtained by your Serbian employer and should meet certain conditions (your employer cannot find a Serbian national with the same qualifications).
b) Work permit for special employment situations: This type of work permit is obtained by your Serbian employer or yourself, if you meet the requirements of an independent professional*. The maximum validity period of the work permit is one year.
*Independent professionals are self-employed persons or entrepreneurs registered abroad who are engaged in registered activities in Serbia according to agreements with Serbian employers or Serbian clients.
needed file:
- Identity document from Serbian employer or client
- Proof of registration as an independent professional in the country of origin
- Copy of valid passport
- Temporary visa
- Agreement with Serbian employer or client, including contract duration
- Diploma, or an appropriate educational certificate issued by an accredited academic institution, and a certified translation
- Professional experience certificate or statement and its certified translation
- Proof of expenses (approximately 100 Euros)
Self-employed work permit
This work permit is issued to foreigners who want to engage in business activities in Serbia after registering with the Serbian Business Registration Office. Freelancers will fall under this type of work permit. It has the same validity period as the temporary residence visa (can be extended for up to one year).
needed file:
- Copy of valid passport
- Temporary visa
- Description of the type, duration and number of activities to be carried out in Serbia
- Proof of proper qualifications to carry out relevant activities
- Proof of the right of Serbia to use business premises for relevant activities
- Proof of possession of equipment to carry out relevant activities
- Statement on the number and structure of foreigners planning to enter Serbia
- Proof of expenses (approximately 100 Euros)
useful information
Residence permits are processed by the Ministry of the Interior, while work permits are processed by the National Employment Service.
As mentioned above, you should first have a temporary or permanent residence visa before you can apply for a work permit.
You can fill out a work permit application at the National Employment Service (NES) branch of the municipality that has a temporary or permanent residence visa.
List of all NES branches
Generally, the procedure for obtaining a work permit should not exceed one month.
Before launching any of these applications, we recommend that you always first double-check the details and steps with the relevant authorities.
