Serbia is a jurisdiction with a developed economy, infrastructure and favorable investment environment. Among other things, this also applies to taxation. Legal entities in the country will provide an opportunity for effective structuring of economic activity. Company registration in Serbia will also not be associated with significant transaction costs for registration and maintenance of the legal entity. The visa-free regime with the EU allows the country to easily attract foreign investors, but in addition, this country has other advantages.
Advantages of Jurisdiction
Registering a company in Serbia opens up the following advantages for business:
Advantageous location in the European region;
Developed economy and banking sector;
Low costs for establishing and administering a Serbian legal entity;
Easy procedure for foreign investors to obtain a residence permit;
Low prices for hiring local labor;
One of the lowest corporate taxes in the European region, and the VAT number is issued immediately after the establishment of the legal entity.
Basic forms of legal presence
If you intend to start a business in Serbia, it is possible to realize the business task in one of several options:
The
Limited Liability Company (DOO) is the most common Serbian legal entity among local entrepreneurs and non-residents. The liability of the founders and participants of this type is limited to the amount of the investment made in the company (share that each one owns). The establishment of this type of Serbian legal entity requires a share capital of about 1 Euro minimum (100 Serbian dinars) and it is allowed to make contributions in cash and non-monetary equivalent. This type of Serbian legal entity can be established even by one participant. The transfer of shares to a third party is possible only after sending an acquisition offer to the other participants in the company.
A joint stock company (AD) is a Serbian legal entity that issues shares and can offer them to shareholders and third parties. As a rule, shares can be freely alienated, including by third parties. For incorporation, a share capital of approximately 25,000 Euro (3,000,000 Serbian dinars) is required. AD may issue several classes of shares. Stricter reporting and auditing rules apply to JSCs. The instrument is suitable for attracting external financing.
Branch is an option to register a branch of a company in Serbia for a foreign legal entity that intends to carry out the same activities in Serbia as abroad. This is a simple option for foreign legal entities who intend to test local markets before investing significant amounts of money in the country.
Legislation and Regulatory Environment
Serbia offers equal opportunities for all interested persons to start and run a business. Foreign citizens and legal entities can start a business, being allowed to act through a proxy. The registration process is not burdened with significant formalities and does not require significant material costs for company registration. Companies need to keep books and submit regular reports, so it pays to take care of accounting support. Non-residents receiving income in the country pay taxes to the Serbian treasury.
Registration procedure
It is possible to open a company in Serbia after passing several stages of establishment:
Determining the types of business activities for future work.
Choosing a company name for the Serbian company. Save the selected name (optional).
Collection of information about the founders and beneficiaries of the legal entity.
Establishment of legal relations with the management of the future legal entity.
Registration of the legal entity's official address at a Serbian address.
Preparation of founding documents for the Serbian legal entity.
Opening a fundraising bank account to invest pre-incorporation share capital.
Formation of the package of documents and its submission to the registrar. A specific package of documents is included based on the background of the business case. Company founders will need to provide copies of their passports (if private applicants) or a statement/certificate of registration when setting up a business on behalf of a legal entity. A power of attorney must also be issued to the person authorized to sign documents and perform registration procedures. All documents submitted to the registrar must be translated into Serbian (an authorized officer of the court or notarization office is required), notarized and apostilled. The application is filled in two copies. It must contain the full name of the organization (in the case of a sole proprietorship - the name of the applicant), address and legal form. The standard registration package for a legal entity must include the following:
>> application for registration according to the prescribed form (indicating the address of the legal entity, the legal document and other data);
>> copies of the passports of the individuals who are the founders of the legal entity, or extracts from the register of legal entities in the country of registration, if the founders are legal entities;
>> articles of association and/or founding agreement;
>> the decision to create the legal entity, as well as to appoint its management;
>> certificate from the bank for depositing funds on account of the payment of the share capital;
>> power of attorney for the representative.
Payment of registration fees.
Registration for social security purposes.
Opening a bank account.
Obtaining additional permits and licenses required for certain regulated activities.
If you plan to start a company in Serbia, you should take the registration documents seriously. Any omissions in the documentation may lead to refusal of registration of a legal entity. The lawyers of "Smart Startup UK" are ready to help with the collection and correct formation of all documents for establishing a company and accompany the procedure at all stages.
Tax system of Serbia
If you intend to open a company in Serbia, consider your options with the following aspects of taxation in the jurisdiction in mind:
Corporate tax - 15%
Total income tax -20%
VAT - 20%
Withholding tax (for non-residents) - (1) dividends - 20%, (2) interest - 20%, (3) royalty - 20%
Capital gains tax - (1) Corporate - 15% (2) Individual - 15%
To open a business in Serbia how "Smart Startup UK" lawyers can help!
If you intend to start the process of registering a company in Serbia, Smart Startup UK lawyers are ready to accompany the process, including:
evaluate the background of the business case;
choose the most profitable option for opening a company in Serbia;
collects information and documents for establishing a legal entity;
negotiates with representatives of local authorities;
opening bank accounts;
accompany the activity of the Serbian legal entity until the termination of the activity. Provide an introduction to your business case for detailed advice and suggestions.
CREATE A COMPANY
Checking and saving the name of the company in the register of legal entities
Registration of a company in the form of a DOO, including state fees in the SBRA
Contribution to authorized capital
Articles of Association
Registration of a company in the Central Register of Beneficiaries
Statutory documents of the company
Assistance in opening a corporate bank account in the payment system
Assistance in opening a corporate bank account in: OTP banka Srbija, API Bank
Company stamp
Apostilled and translated company documents
Obtaining a VAT number
Assistance in obtaining a residence permit
Free consultation
Help with online trading and opening an account at viva.com for online trading
Accounting services - 12 months
Annual renewal (payable from the second year)
*Within 35 days
IMPORTANT! We can provide you with the initial share capital (if the amount is over EUR 5,000) for the registration of your company in the form of a loan from our company.
Please, if you are interested, make an inquiry to us.
What is the procedure!
1. You submit a request for company registration using the request form.
2. We check if the registration company name is free and eligible for registration.
3. Choose a bank that suits your company's needs from a list of Smart Startup UK partner banks provided.
4. We send you a proforma payment invoice to pay to our bank account + the initial capital amount of your company.
5. You receive all necessary company documents for verification.
6. You receive details of your newly opened bank account.
7. In the specified period (for Serbia it is 35 days), you receive all the services included in the package.
8. You can manage through our platform all the services included in the package, as our team works 24/7 and you can get help from us within up to 30 minutes. We have built an internal ticketing system for our customers through which we process your every support request.
All services like management, accounting, request to open bank accounts, licensing, filing tax returns, paying taxes and more are done through your account on our platform, it makes it easy managing your business!
