Banks and Finance - Community Advice

## Accounts in Serbian Banks (2026)

Who is considered a resident for the bank: a person who has lived more than 12 months with a residence permit. Before that you are a non-resident - account functionality is limited (see below).

## How to Open an Account

- Opening is possible only in person at a branch; the online form on the website works only for Serbian citizens.
- The decision is made by the bank's head office, not the branch. A refusal at one branch does not always mean a bank-wide refusal - you can try another branch or write an email.
- An application can be submitted to several banks in parallel - submission is free, you choose from those that approved.
- By law the bank may select its clients and is not obliged to explain the reason for a refusal.

## Who Opens Accounts for Foreigners

- **Personal account**: faster and almost guaranteed - API bank (individuals ≈ 99 %). Also opened by Alta, Poštanska, Adriatic, Yettel, UniCredit, Raiffeisen, AIK, OTP. Some banks require a residence permit or an employment contract.
- **Foreign-currency (EUR) account for a non-resident** is more readily opened by Poštanska, Alta, API, Raiffeisen.
- Less often and usually only with resident status: Banca Intesa, Addiko, Erste.

## Business Account

- Citizens of Russia and Belarus **open** a business account - usually after registering the company in APR. Some banks are cautious and may request additional documents, but workable options exist - in practice the account can indeed be opened.
- A business account is opened only after receiving the company registration documents from APR.
- By law, once you start a business in Serbia you must open a business account; the penalty for not having one is up to 500 000 RSD.

## Restrictions for Non-Residents

- You cannot send transfers (domestic or SWIFT) online - only through a branch.
- You cannot receive domestic transfers in RSD, except official Serbian salary payments and refunds for purchases.
- Incoming SWIFT transfers work for everyone; for amounts above ≈ 10 000 € they may ask for proof of source of funds.
- For non-residents (any amount) and for residents when transferring more than ≈ 5 000 € the bank requests a certificate of no tax debt.

## Limits (guidelines, depend on the bank)

- ATM withdrawal: from ≈ 150 000 RSD per day.
- Withdrawal at a branch: any amount, but over 150 000 RSD requires a justification; over 1 500 000 RSD - notify the bank 3 days in advance.
- Card purchases: ≈ 150 000 RSD per day or 300 000 RSD over 7 days (the limit can be raised upon request).

## Salary from Abroad

Receiving a salary from abroad into an individual's account is not allowed without consequences - you will have to pay ≈ 40-46 % tax on the receipt. For legal income receipt, people open a sole proprietorship and work under a B2B contract.

## Changing Status to Resident

After 12 + months with a residence permit you can change the non-resident status to resident. Then full functionality opens: domestic transfers, online SWIFT, phone-number transfers, currency conversion, transfer from business account to personal account.

## Withdrawing Money with a Foreign Card

- In Serbia, foreign cards can withdraw only dinars (not euros/dollars).
- "Mir" cards do not work; UnionPay (including co-branded "Mir"-UnionPay) works.
- Always decline conversion (DCC) at the ATM - choose withdrawal in dinars, otherwise the exchange rate is worse by ≈ 10 %.

## Transfers and Third-Party Services

- Cryptocurrency cannot be received into a Serbian account (neither personal nor business) - risk of blockage.
- For transfers between Russia and Serbia people usually use P2P exchange and SWIFT in rubles (not from a sanctioned bank).
- Third-party services (with verification nuances for Russian passports): Paysend, PayPal, Wise, Payoneer.