73nBasic Bank Account in Serbia
Telegram

Bank account in Serbia for foreigners · platni račun sa osnovnim uslugama

The bank must open a dinar account for you

Anyone who is legally staying in Serbia and has no account with a Serbian bank has the right to demand a basic account. The law does not require a residence permit for this. The bank must decide within 10 working days and can refuse only in writing. This site gives you the steps, the addresses of all banks, and ready-made applications and complaints in Serbian.

News and changes in bank rules: our Telegram channel @OtvoriRacunRS

≤ 150 RSDper month, including a debit card and e-banking
10 working daysfor the bank's decision after it receives your application
15 + 15 daysfor the bank to answer your complaint (prigovor)
3 + 6 monthsNBS deadline for a complaint (pritužba) and its maximum extension
Alta banka is closed. On 30.10.2026 the NBS (National Bank of Serbia) revoked its license, and on 03.11.2026 bankruptcy proceedings were opened. Deposits up to 50 000 EUR are paid out by the Deposit Insurance Agency (AOD) through Banka Poštanska štedionica. If your only account was with Alta, you now have no account, and you have the right to a basic account at another bank. How to get your money
New rules for foreigners since 18.07.2026. The bank may ask for your EBS (foreigner's registration number), but only if you have a residence permit or permanent residence. It may also ask for your passport number and the identification number from your country of citizenship. If there is no such number, or it is not shown in your document, your date and place of birth are given instead (NBS decisions, Sl. glasnik 54/2026 and 63/2026). A bank cannot demand an EBS from someone without a residence permit. More

1. Who you are

This decides which account the bank opens and which template you use. You have the right to a basic account in all three cases.

Account: non-resident dinar current account Template: Account application — NEREZIDENT
Account: non-resident or regular, as the bank decides Template: Account application — NEREZIDENT
Account: regular dinar current account Template: Account application — REZIDENT

2. Step by step

  1. Application to the bank (zahtev)

    Bring two copies to a branch and ask them to mark yours as received. If they refuse, send the same application by registered mail with return receipt and also send it by e-mail. Name the product exactly: platni račun sa osnovnim uslugama.

    Bank's deadline: 10 working days · čl. 73nj st. 1 ZPU

  2. Wait for the answer

    The bank either opens the account or tells you in writing, free of charge, that it refuses, why, and that you have the right to complain. A verbal refusal at the branch is not a lawful refusal. Write down the date, the time and the employee's name.

    Bank's duties when it refuses · čl. 73nj st. 5–6 ZPU

  3. Complaint to the bank (prigovor)

    If you get a refusal, or the bank stays silent for 10 working days, file a prigovor. The best channel is e-mail or the form on the bank's website: the bank must immediately send you a confirmation with the text of the complaint, the date and the time. You have 6 months to file.

    Bank's answer: 15 days; another 15 only with written notice · čl. 59 ZZKFU · t. 7–8 Odluke NBS 51/2025

  4. Complaint to the National Bank of Serbia (pritužba)

    If you are not satisfied with the answer, or it did not come on time, file a pritužba through the NBS online form or by post. The NBS will not accept it before the bank's deadline to answer the prigovor has passed. You have 6 months to file.

    NBS deadline: 3 months, up to 6 more in complex cases · čl. 60 ZZKFU

  5. If you were refused because of your citizenship

    In parallel, file a complaint with the Commissioner for the Protection of Equality (Poverenik za zaštitu ravnopravnosti). It is free. You need evidence: the written answer, a note of the date, time and employee's name, a witness, a photo of a notice in the branch.

    čl. 73b ZPU · čl. 35 ZZD

You can go to court at any time: you don't have to complain to the bank or the NBS before suing (čl. 66 ZZKFU).

3. Deadline calculator

The date of receipt is the date of the receipt stamp, the date of the e-mail confirmation, or the delivery date on the return receipt (povratnica).

EventDateLegal basis
Last day for the bank's decisionMon, 23 November 202610 working days, čl. 73nj st. 1 ZPU
From this day you can file a prigovor if there is no answerTue, 24 November 2026čl. 59 ZZKFU
Deadline for the prigovorMon, 24 May 20276 months from when you learned of the violation

Working days exclude Saturdays, Sundays and Serbian public holidays: 1–2 and 7 January, 15–16 February, Orthodox Easter from Friday to Monday, 1–2 May, 11 November, plus the day off carried over when a public holiday falls on a Sunday. A deadline in days or months that ends on a non-working day moves to the next working day. This is a guide only: if there is a dispute, allow a margin.