Intracompany Transferees, Other Foreign Workers Subject to New Work Permit Categories

Serbia has introduced a new work permit system that creates three new work permit categories. Most foreign nationals, including certain intracompany transferees, must obtain work and residency permits after arrival in Serbia. The former law only required work permits for foreign nationals under Serbian employment contracts. 

The new work permit categories are as follows:

• Work Permit for Special Cases of Employment: For intracompany transferees, employees transferring within a company, self-employed individuals and entrepreneurs under contract with a Serbian employer. Intracompany transferees must have been employed with a foreign employer for at least one year as a manager, specialist or director, and must sign a contract with a Serbian employer. Trainees may be eligible for this type of work permit in exceptional cases.
• Self-Employment Work Permit: For foreign nationals who are sole or controlling shareholders in a Serbian company. Quotas may be introduced for this category in the future.
• Employment Permit: For foreign nationals not falling into one of the other categories. Employers must complete a labor market test and must meet other qualifications.

Employers must register foreign workers in one of these categories with the Social Security and Pension fund. 

Exemptions 

Foreign nationals who reside in Serbia for less than 90 days within a six-month period, and who fall into one of the following groups, are exempt from work permit requirements:

• Shareholders, representatives or members of corporations who have not entered into an employment relationship;
• Intracompany transferees who are signatories of a contract for the purchase of goods, the lease of machines or their installation, delivery or repair, or a combination thereof; or
• Intracompany transferees in Serbia for training.

What This Means for Employers and Foreign Nationals 

Intracompany transferees, who were not required to have work permits prior to the new law, and other foreign nationals subject to the new law, must apply for the appropriate work permit in Serbia. 

Employers should ensure application documents are submitted in a timely manner to avoid onboarding delays. 

This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen or send an email to [email protected]. 

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