Around 79,000 work visas issued in Serbia last year
Serbia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs in the caretaker government, Marko Đurić, stated that around 79,000 work visas were issued last year, assessing that access to the domestic labour market has been significantly facilitated.
He participated in a roundtable in The Hague, which brought together representatives of Dutch companies, where he presented Serbia’s economic results and investment potential, according to a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Although a small country, Serbia is, he added, very open to economic investments and business cooperation. He noted that, despite global developments and crises, Serbia has managed to maintain consistent and stable economic growth. He also highlighted that the country is investing heavily in the IT sector, with IT exports increasing nearly eightfold in recent years.
Serbia is the only country that has access to the European market, where it conducts the largest volume of trade, while also having free trade agreements with China, Egypt, the UAE, and many other countries.
He further stated that Serbia maintains good political and economic relations with South American and African countries and has established a strategic dialogue with the United States.
However, he emphasised that the EU remains Serbia’s most significant foreign trade partner and the primary source of foreign direct investment, with Serbia being the leading trading partner of the EU in the Western Balkans.
Digitalisation of residence and work permits
In a separate statement from the Office for IT and eGovernment, it was announced that in the first year of operation of the Foreigners’ Portal, 41,319 applications for a Unified Permit for temporary residence and work of foreign nationals in Serbia were approved.
“In January 2025 alone, 3,004 unified permits were issued in the form of a biometric document in card format,” said the Director of the Office for IT and eGovernment, Dr Mihailo Jovanović. He added that the establishment of the Foreigners’ Portal has significantly simplified and accelerated the process for foreign nationals wishing to live and work in Serbia.
An application for a unified permit can be submitted either by a foreign national or an employer on their behalf, exclusively online via the Foreigners’ Portal.
If a foreign national submits the application independently, they must have an account on the Electronic Identification Portal (eid.gov.rs). If an employer submits the application, they must have an account on the eGovernment Portal (euprava.gov.rs) as a legal entity, and their legal representative must also have a registered account.
On the Foreigners’ Web Portal, applications can also be submitted for a Type C visa, which allows stays of up to 90 days and is issued for tourism, business, and other travel purposes, permitting single, double, or multiple entries into Serbia.
Additionally, applications can be submitted for a Type D visa, which allows stays from 90 to 180 days and is issued for employment, education, or family reunification purposes.
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