73nBasic Bank Account in Serbia
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Texts of laws and NBS decisions · versions as of November 2026

Laws

Below are the key provisions with short quotes. Links to the full official texts are at the end of the page.

On this page
  1. The right to an account
  2. What's included and what it costs
  3. Deadline and refusal
  4. Resident and non-resident
  5. Documents the bank may require
  6. Complaints
  7. If the bank cites its “freedom to choose clients”
  8. Official texts

The right to an account

«…banka je dužna da potrošaču koji ima zakonit boravak u Republici Srbiji a nema otvoren platni račun – na njegov zahtev omogući otvaranje i korišćenje platnog računa sa osnovnim uslugama.»

čl. 73n st. 1 ZPU — Law on Payment Services (Zakon o platnim uslugama), Sl. glasnik 139/2014, 44/2018, 64/2024. The account is held in dinars (čl. 73n st. 3 ZPU). The proviso at the start of the article keeps the checks under the anti-money-laundering law in place.

Legal stay (zakonit boravak) means a foreigner's stay in line with the Law on Foreigners (čl. 2 t. 41 ZPU). The Law on Foreigners also counts short-term stay as legal stay: visa-free for up to 90 days in any 180, or on a visa (čl. 39 ZS). The law does not require a residence permit.

No account. An account used only for repaying a loan, and a dedicated account for state payments, do not count (t. 2 Odluke NBS 89/2022). If you have an account with another bank, this bank may refuse, but not if you declare in writing that you are closing it and bring the other bank's notice (čl. 73nj st. 2–3 ZPU). If you have an account with the same bank, you can switch to the basic account by closing the others.

What's included and what it costs

  • No more than 150 RSD per month (t. 3 Odluke NBS 89/2022).
  • Opening, maintaining and closing the account; cash at the bank's branches and ATMs; transfers, standing orders, direct debits, IPS instant payments; online and mobile banking; a debit card; an unlimited number of transactions (t. 4–5 Odluke NBS 89/2022, čl. 73o ZPU).
  • The bank cannot make opening the account conditional on buying an overdraft, a credit card or other services (čl. 73p st. 2 ZPU). It cannot design the package to discourage you from using it, or take measures that make it harder to get the account (t. 8 Odluke NBS 89/2022).
  • Any discrimination is prohibited, including on grounds of nationality, place of residence and language (čl. 73b ZPU).

Deadline and refusal

«…bez odlaganja, a najkasnije u roku od deset poslovnih dana od dana prijema urednog zahteva.»

čl. 73nj st. 1 ZPU. If it refuses, the bank must inform you of the refusal and the reasons without delay, in writing and free of charge, “osim ako je to obaveštavanje zabranjeno propisom” (unless such notice is prohibited by law) (čl. 73nj st. 5 ZPU). In every case it must inform you of your right to file a prigovor (complaint to the bank) and a pritužba (complaint to the NBS) (čl. 73nj st. 6 ZPU). For violations, the NBS fines the bank 50 000–800 000 RSD (čl. 215 t. 76–85 ZPU).

When the bank cites “AML”. The anti-money-laundering law forbids telling the client only a narrow set of facts: that a report about them was sent to the Administration for the Prevention of Money Laundering, that a transaction was suspended, that monitoring was ordered, or that proceedings were opened (čl. 90 ZSPNFT). A refusal because the bank did not get information on the purpose of the account and the source of the money (čl. 7 st. 2 ZSPNFT) may be disclosed. That is why the application states the purpose and the source of funds up front.

Resident and non-resident

A foreigner becomes a resident after living in Serbia for more than a year on a residence permit or a work visa (čl. 2 ZDP). The government portal Welcome to Serbia says that in the first year of stay a foreigner is considered a non-resident; after a year, you must notify the bank, and it will reopen the account as a resident account. For a non-resident, the bank opens a non-resident dinar or foreign-currency account (t. 14 Odluke NBS o deviznim računima).

Documents the bank may require

  • Without a residence permit: passport; a document showing your place of residence or stay over the last year; the identification number from your country of citizenship, if such a number exists (t. 14 Odluke NBS, Sl. glasnik 63/2026). For the Single Register of Accounts, the bank sends the NBS your passport number and this ID number; if there is no such number or it cannot be determined from the document, it sends your date and place of birth instead (t. 6 Odluke NBS o Jedinstvenom registru računa, Sl. glasnik 54/2026).
  • With a residence permit or permanent residence: the EBS (foreigner's registration number) as well. The rule says expressly that the EBS is given for a foreigner who has been issued a residence permit or granted permanent residence.
  • For residents: a personal ID document with a photo and other documents required by law (t. 15 Odluke NBS o tekućim računima).
  • Under AML rules the bank may ask about the purpose of the account and, depending on the risk, the source of funds (čl. 7 ZSPNFT). It cannot require you to put a stamp (seal) on the documents (t. 6a Odluke NBS o deviznim računima).
  • The decision on the register applies from 27.06.2026, and the account-opening rules from 18.07.2026. Banks must bring existing accounts into line within six months (by the end of December 2026 and by 18.01.2027 respectively). After a written request, they may temporarily block transactions until the data is provided.

Complaints

  • Prigovor (čl. 59 ZZKFU): in writing, and e-mail also counts as written form (čl. 2 t. 36–37 ZZKFU); within 6 months; answer within 15 days, extendable by 15 days only with written notice; free of charge. The bank must accept the complaint at any branch and give you a confirmation, and must immediately confirm an electronic complaint with its contents, date and time (t. 6–7 Odluke NBS 51/2025).
  • Pritužba to the NBS (čl. 60 ZZKFU): within 6 months after the answer or after the answer deadline has passed, and not earlier. The NBS has 3 months, extendable by up to 6 more months in complex cases. File it by post or through the NBS website (t. 12 Odluke NBS 51/2025). The NBS can order the bank to remedy the violation and can fine it (čl. 62, 72 ZZKFU).
  • Mediation at the NBS (čl. 61 ZZKFU): free and voluntary, up to 60 days, but the bank must agree. To get an account, a complaint is usually more effective.
  • Commissioner for the Protection of Equality (Poverenik za zaštitu ravnopravnosti) — for discrimination based on citizenship (čl. 35 ZZD). Court — at any time (čl. 66 ZZKFU).

If the bank cites its “freedom to choose clients”

The Law on Banks says a bank is free to choose its clients (čl. 41 ZB). But for the basic account a special rule applies that expressly obliges the bank to open it (čl. 73n ZPU). The government portal Welcome to Serbia states plainly that banks cannot refuse for discriminatory reasons, such as citizenship, and must give the reasons for a refusal in writing if the client asks.

Official texts

The full Serbian texts are kept on this site: they were downloaded from the official portal Pravno-informacioni sistem RS on 06.11.2026 and checked against the quotes on this page. References like “čl. 73n ZPU” across the site link straight to the article. The official publication is the “Službeni glasnik RS”; the free government portal is Pravno-informacioni sistem RS.

NBS decisions (on the basic account, on non-resident accounts, on the Single Register of Accounts, on complaint handling) are published in the “Službeni glasnik RS” and on nbs.rs. Their texts are on this site too: all laws and decisions.