GENERAL ABOUT THE VISA REGIME
In general, about the rights of foreigners and amendments of the Law on Foreigners and of the Law on Employment of Foreigners there were already words in one of the previous blogs where we talked about the legal position of foreigners in Serbia. Here we will say something more about the visa regime (obtaining visas) in general and the visa regime in the Republic of Serbia, as one of the first steps in the entire procedure of obtaining a residence and work permit for foreign citizens in the Republic of Serbia.
Izdaju se u dve osnovne forme:
- in the form of a stamp or sticker in the passport
- in the form of a separate form that must be submitted for inspection upon entering the country
Rok važenja vize je istaknut na samom dokumentu, i zavisi od politike izdavanja viza različitih država. Neke države zahtevaju posedovanje vize i za sam ulazak u zemlju. Sa druge strane, postoje države koje dozvoljavaju kratkoročna zadržavanja bez vize, dok je za duži boravak ona potrebna.
Types of visas recognized by the visa regimes of the largest number of countries are:
- Travel - shortens a tourist or business trip to a foreign country.
- Boravišna – u cilju stvaranja uslova za rad u određenoj državi. Uglavnom je u pitanju period preko 90 danabez prekida, ali ne više od 180 dana po kalendarskoj godini.
- Tranzitna – Putnici su u obavezi da se raspitaju za vizni režim države u koju putuju i za vizni režim država kroz koje putuju.
- Grupna – je vrsta vize koja se ne izdaje za pojedinačna lica, već kao zaseban dokument koji važi za više članova jedne grupe.
- Diplomatska i službena – se izdaju samo za nosioce diplomatskog pasoša, službenog pasoša i pasoša Ujedinjenih Nacija

VISA REGIME IN THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA
The first question for everyone who wants to visit or stay in Serbia is whether they need a visa, and if so, which one?
The answer to this question is provided by the Law on Aliens, which lists three types of visas:
- A visa (airport transit)
- C visa (short stay)
- D visa (long stay)
VISA A (airport transit visa)
A foreigner who does not leave the international transit area of an airport or airplane during a layover between two flights does not need this type of visa.
The Government of the Republic of Serbia may determine that citizens of certain countries, if the reasons for the security of the Republic of Serbia and its citizens require it, must have an airport transit visa.
Airport transit visas are not obtained by foreigners who do not need a visa to enter the Republic of Serbia, foreigners who have a valid visa to enter the Republic of Serbia or a residence permit, family members of citizens of the Republic of Serbia, holders of diplomatic and official passports, as well as aircraft crew members, in accordance with the Convention on International Civil Aviation.
Ova vrsta vize se izdaje sa rokom važenja do 6 meseci i omogućava jedan ili više prelazaka kroz međunarodni tranzitni prostor aerodroma bez mogućnosti ulaska na teritoriju Republike Srbije.
VISA C (short stay visa)
Viza za kraći boravak je odobrenje za ulazak u Republiku Srbiju. Osim toga, ona je odobrenje i za tranzit preko teritorije Republike Srbije ili boravak na teritoriji Republike Srbije do 90 dana u bilo kom periodu od 180 dana, računajući od dana prvog ulaska.
This visa is issued for all travel purposes (eg for business trips or conferences), except for those for which a long-stay visa is issued or a temporary stay is granted.
Viza za kraći boravak ne može biti osnov za podnošenje zahteva za privremeni boravak u Republici Srbiji.
It is issued for one, two or more entries into the Republic of Serbia.
The validity period of a short-stay visa cannot exceed five years.
Poslednjim izmenama Zakona o strancima, ukinuta je tranzitna viza (viza B), koja se izdavala za jedno, dva ili više putovanja preko Republike Srbije sa rokom važenja do šest meseci, dok vreme boravka za jedan tranzit ne može biti duži od pet dana. Ova viza sada potpada pod vizu C, odnosno vizu za kraći boravak.
When applying for this visa, you need to provide proof of the following facts:
- Reasons for travel;
- A sufficient amount of financial resources to cover accommodation and other expenses or any other evidence related to accommodation;
- A sufficient amount of financial resources that are available during the planned stay and return to the country from which the applicant comes;
- Other facts that can be used to verify the applicant's intention to leave the country before the visa expires.
VISA D (long stay visa)
It is an authorization to enter and stay in the territory of the Republic of Serbia for a period of 90 to 180 days.
A foreigner who, in accordance with the visa regime, needs a visa to enter the Republic of Serbia and who intends to apply for a temporary residence permit in the Republic of Serbia shall obtain a visa for a longer stay. This also applies accordingly to a foreigner who intends to apply for a single permit.
A foreigner, who has been issued a visa for a longer stay based on employment, exercises the right to employment in accordance with the regulations governing the employment of foreigners.
It should also be emphasized that the basis for submitting a request for a longer stay must be identical to the basis for issuing a temporary residence permit. For example. if visa D was issued on the basis of employment with a Serbian employer, it is not possible to submit a request for temporary residence of foreigners in Serbia on the basis of family reunification.
GENERAL CONDITIONS FOR OBTAINING A VISA IN SERBIA
When applying for a visa, a foreigner submits:
1) completed visa application form,
2) travel document - passport, whereby the passport must be valid for at least 90 days starting from the date of visa issuance,
3) photo (dimensions 3.5×4.5cm),
4) proof of the paid visa fee,
5) evidence of the purpose and reasons for staying in the Republic of Serbia,
6) pozivno pismo:
a) za privatnu posetu – pozivno pismo mora biti overeno kod javnog beležnika u Republici Srbiji;
b) za poslovnu posetu – pozivno pismo šalje privredno društvo basic in the Republic of Serbia;
c) za turističku posetu – potvrda turističke agencije o plaćenom aranžmanu (npr. vaučer),
7) odgovarajuće i važeće putno zdravstveno osiguranje – Podnosilac zahteva za vizu mora da priloži dokaz da za vreme boravka u Republici Srbiji ima odgovarajuće putno zdravstveno osiguranje. Ono mora da pokriva troškove koji mogu nastati u vezi sa hitnom medicinskom pomoći, hitnim bolničkim lečenjem, vraćanjem u državu porekla iz zdravstvenih razloga ili u slučaju smrti.
When submitting an application for the issuance of a short-stay visa, the applicant is obliged to submit the following evidence:
1) about the purpose of the trip;
2) on the sufficient amount of financial resources for accommodation costs or other evidence related to accommodation;
3) on the amount of funds available for maintenance during the intended stay and for returning to the country of origin or place of habitual residence;
4) other evidence based on which the intention of the applicant to leave the Republic of Serbia before the expiration of the requested visa can be verified.
SUBMISSION OF REQUESTS AND DECISION ON REQUEST
Vizu izdaje diplomatsko-konzularno predstavništvo. Zahtev za vizu po pravilu razmatra i o njemu odlučuje diplomatsko-konzularno predstavništvo na čijem konzularnom području podnosilac zahteva zakonito boravi.
Izuzetno, diplomatsko-konzularno predstavništvo razmatra i odlučuje o zahtevu koji je podneo stranac, koji se zakonito nalazi na njegovom konzularnom području. Ovo sve ako stranac nema boravak u toj državi, u slučaju kada priloži dokaze o hitnosti putovanja u Republiku Srbiju za koje mu je potrebna viza (npr. potreba za lečenjem u Republici Srbiji).
U državama u kojima Republika Srbija nema diplomatsko-konzularno predstavništvo, međunarodnim ugovorom se može odrediti uzajamno zastupanje u postupku izdavanja viza.
A decision on the visa application is made within 15 days from the date of submission of the application. This period can be extended up to 30 days if there are justified reasons for this.
Rok važenja viza i trajanje boravka navedenom u vizi se ne sme premašiti. Može se produžiti samo iz profesionalnih razloga ili više sile.