Foreign director of a Serbian company: managing from abroad or moving here
A foreigner can own a Serbian d.o.o. and be its director without living in Serbia. What changes if you want to live and work here, how the bank sees it, and when a second director or a procurator makes sense.
Short answer: yes, you can be the only director of your Serbian company and live abroad. You need a residence permit only if you move to Serbia, and since 2024 that is one single permit for residence and work. If you can't be reachable for every signature, the company can appoint a second director or give a prokura to someone you trust in Serbia.
What a director does in a Serbian d.o.o.
The director (direktor) is the company's legal representative. He or she signs contracts, bank documents and filings, and answers for the company's obligations to the tax office and APR. If a filing is missed, the fine goes to the company and, separately, to the director as the responsible person. That is worth knowing before you agree to be the director of someone else's company.
The director can be employed by the company, or engaged without employment under a separate contract on the director's rights and duties. The choice changes the monthly costs and matters for residence, so we decide it with you before registration. See what a Serbian company costs to run.
Managing the company from abroad
- Registration is done by power of attorney. You sign at a notary at home, add the apostille and send the original. See the registration timeline.
- The bank account usually needs one visit by the director for identification and signatures. After that, e-banking works from anywhere. The bank decides on the account; our part is the file. See bank accounts for non-residents.
- Day-to-day runs through your accountant in Serbia: invoices, payroll, tax returns. Decisions you sign as director can be scanned, with originals sent by courier when an office wants them.
- The registered address receives official mail for the company. With a virtual office the mail is scanned and forwarded to you. See registered address options.
One thing to check at home: a Serbian d.o.o. stays a Serbian tax resident because it is registered here. Your own country, though, may look at where the company is really managed from. If you sign everything from Berlin or Dubai, ask an adviser there whether that creates a tax question for you.
If you move to Serbia and work in the company
Visa-free foreigners can stay in Serbia up to 90 days in any 180. To live here and work in your own company you need temporary residence. Since 2024 Serbia issues a single permit that covers residence and work, so a director who works in his own company no longer runs two separate procedures. If your passport needs a visa for Serbia, Visa D comes first, applied for at a Serbian embassy.
The police look at whether the company really works and whether you actually live at the address you give. The steps are in residence through your own company, and what changed in 2024 is in single permit and 3-year residence.
Tell us your citizenship, where you live now and whether you plan to move to Serbia. You get the route and the full cost in writing. The first written reply is free.
A second director or a procurator
When the director lives far away, signatures become the bottleneck. There are two common answers.
- A second director. The company can have more than one director. APR registers whether each can sign alone or only together with the other. Joint signing gives you control, but it also means you still sign everything.
- A procurator (prokurista). A prokura is registered with APR and lets a trusted person act for the company in ordinary business: contracts, the bank, the authorities. A procurator cannot sell or mortgage the company's real estate without a special authorisation and cannot pass the prokura on. The company can revoke it at any time.
Either way, choose a person you would trust with the company's bank account, because that is what you are doing. A local person who signs for the company usually needs to be paid and engaged under a proper contract, so add that to the budget.
Our prices
Registration, the virtual office, Visa D and the residence permit are on the price list. Changes in APR, such as a new director or a prokura, are quoted in writing before we start.
General information, not legal advice. Residence rules depend on your citizenship and current police practice; tax questions in your home country need an adviser there. Banks decide on accounts on their own, and nobody can guarantee a permit.
Frequently asked questions
Can a foreigner be the director of a Serbian d.o.o.?
Yes. The director can be a foreign national who does not live in Serbia. APR registers a foreign director on the basis of a passport, and no Serbian co-director is required.
Can I run my Serbian company from abroad?
Yes. Many owners do, with an accountant in Serbia, e-banking and documents signed and sent by courier. Expect at least one trip for the bank, and check with an adviser at home whether managing the company from your country has tax consequences there.
Do I need a work permit to be the director of my own company?
Not while you live abroad and only manage it from there. If you move to Serbia and work in the company, you need a residence permit. Since 2024 this is a single permit that covers both residence and work.
Do I have to come to the bank in person?
At most Serbian banks, yes, once. The director is identified in person and signs the account documents. Some banks accept other arrangements; the bank decides.
What is a procurator (prokurista)?
A person the company authorises, by a registered prokura, to act for it in day-to-day business. A procurator cannot sell or mortgage the company's real estate without a special authorisation, and cannot pass the prokura on to someone else.
Tell us what you are planning
A few lines are enough. Every message is read by our lawyer, and the first written reply is free.
- You send the form. WhatsApp opens with your message already written. This website stores nothing.
- We reply, usually the same business day. If something is missing we ask four things: citizenship, where you live and pay tax now, what the business or income is, and when you want to start.
- You get a written plan with fixed fees before any work begins. If we think a bank is unlikely to say yes, or Serbia is the wrong choice for you, you hear it then.
Belgrade, Monday to Friday, 9:00 to 18:00 CET