Amendments To The Law On Foreigners And Law On Employment Of Foreigners

• Law Firm: Eurofast
• Subject Matter: Employment and HR, Employee Rights/ Labour Relations
• Author: Aleksandar Maljkovic
• Published date: 22 August 2023

On July 26, 2023 the National Assembly of Serbia has adopted the long awaited changes in terms of Law on Foreigners and Law on employment of Foreigners. Most amendments will enter into force as of February 1, 2024, while some will be applicable as of August 4, 2023.

The new rules mostly affect the residence permits and introduce the term "Single Permit", which will be a new form of permit that will cover both work and residence permit.

Furthermore, Authorities have announced that the entire procedure will take place online on a new portal that will be presented by the end of 2023.

Key changes and developments that are applicable as of February 1, 2024:

• A Single Permit will be issued to the Foreigners in a single procedure, that will be conducted before one sole authority, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Serbia.
• A new type of ID will be issued to the holders of Single Permit, which is a physical biometric document while the previous permits had the form of a sticker in the passport.
• The dependents of holders of the single permit who obtain residence authorization for family union purposes will be eligible to undertake work in Serbia. At the moment, however, the dependents of work permit and temporary residence permit holders who obtain residence authorization for family union purposes cannot undertake work in Serbia.
• The applications for the issuance of the Single Permit will be processed within 15 days (previously the entire procedure of the residence and work permit lasted approx. 60 days) What is more individuals will be given the chance to start working in Serbia from the day they submit their Single...