In the Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia no. 6/2024 from January 26, 2024, three by-laws have been published, governing the procedures pertaining to the regulation of the status of foreigners in Serbia.
Namely, the following by-laws have been passed:
The rulebooks governing the issuance of the unified permit (for temporary residence and work of foreigners) and the approval of temporary residence came into force on February 1, 2024, while the rulebook governing the electronic submission of the request for permanent residence became effective on January 27, 2024.
Below is an overview of the most significant provisions of each of the above-listed by-laws.
Rulebook on Issuing the Unified Permit for Temporary Residence and Work of a Foreigner
The most significant novelty introduced by this regulation is that the request for issuing the unified permit for temporary residence and work of a foreigner in Serbia can be submitted exclusively electronically.
This request can be filed by:
The request can also be filed from abroad. In addition, employers can submit a request for issuing the unified permit individually or collectively (for a larger number of individuals), based on the same grounds.
After successful registration (to the appropriate portal), an applicant shall be assigned a Unique Electronic Mailbox (so-called “eSanduče”), through which notifications and instructions for further activities shall be delivered to them.
The prescribed documentation is attached to the request, and it (partially) depends on the grounds for issuing the unified permit. All evidence is submitted in the form of an electronic document in its original form or as a digitized document.In addition, the evidence which is not issued by the competent authorities of the Republic of Serbia or in Serbian language need to be submitted with a translation of an official court interpreter.
When submitting the request for issuing the unified permit based on employment, an employer is obliged to initiate a so-called labor market test. The respective request is submitted simultaneously with the request for issuing the unified permit, whereby it can also be submitted (on “eUprava” portal) at the earliest 60 days before and at the latest on the day of submitting of the request for issuing the unified permit. Based on the conducted labor market test and submitted evidence, the National Employment Service shall assess compliance with conditions, by using the evaluation “fulfilled”, which includes the period for which the subject evaluation is valid, or the evaluation “not fulfilled”, with providing reasons for why the conditions have not been met in the specific case. This information shall then be forwarded to the competent authority within the Ministry of Internal Affairs (Administration for Foreigners).
If all conditions have been fulfilled in the specific case, the process shall result in issuance of the unified permit card, which shall be delivered to the foreigner personally. This is preceded by verifying the foreigner's identity (by the acting police officer), as well as taking their biometric data and checking whether the prescribed fees, i.e., charges have been paid.
Rulebook on the Approval of Temporary Residence
The request for approval or renewal of previously approved temporary residence permit is now also filed solely through electronic means, i.e., by filling out an online application form, available on “Portal za strance”.
The request is submitted by a foreigner, based on one of the grounds prescribed by the Law on Foreigners.
As with the request for issuing the unified permit, the evidence accompanying this request is also attached in the form of an electronic document in its original form or as a digitized document, whereby documents that are not issued by the competent authorities of the Republic of Serbia or in Serbian language need to be submitted with a translation of an official court interpreter. The request also includes a proof that the foreigner has means to support themselves during the planned stay in the Republic of Serbia, as well as a proof of health insurance covering the territory of the Republic of Serbia (the rulebook specifies what is considered an appropriate proof).
If conditions for approving the temporary residence have been met, the foreigner is obliged to personally visit the premises of the competent authority (Administration for Foreign Citizens), to provide biometric data and receive a confirmation on the initiated process of issuing the temporary residence permit (in form of a card). Prior to collecting biometric data, a police officer shall verify the foreigner's identity based on their foreign travel document or ID (if applicable), and inspect whether the prescribed fees, i.e., charges have been paid.
In case the temporary residence is approved, the permit card shall be delivered to the foreigner in person.
Rulebook on Electronic Submission of the Request for Permanent Residence
Finally, electronic submission is also envisaged with regards to the submission of a request for permanent residence in the Republic of Serbia, i.e., through the registered account of the foreigner created on “Portal za strance”, by selecting the appropriate service, i.e., filling out the online request form, after which the foreigner is assigned a Unique Electronic Mailbox (previously mentioned “eSanduče”).
As a reminder, in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia no. 118 dated December 28, 2023, a new Rulebook on the Approval of Permanent Residence was published. It came into force on January 5, 2024, introducing significant changes to the procedure of approval of the permanent residence to foreigners in Serbia.