Electronic Signature and e-Uprava for Foreigners

In Serbia an entrepreneur simply cannot do without a qualified electronic signature: it is used to file the application with the APR, to sign tax returns in ePorezi, to register employees in CROSO, to issue invoices in the system of electronic invoices and to open access to the company’s official electronic mailbox. The paper equivalents for most of these actions have either been abolished or are so inconvenient that nobody uses them.

For a Serbian citizen, the signature is the chip in their passport or ID card. For a foreigner the path is a little longer: first you need a foreigner registration number, then a certificate from one of the accredited authorities. We go through the steps, the choice of carriers and the services for which the signature will be needed from the very first month.

What a qualified electronic signature is

The Act on the Electronic Document, Electronic Identification and Trust Services puts a qualified electronic signature on the same footing as a handwritten one. A document signed with it has full legal force: a contract, a return, an application to a state body. Signature certificates are issued by accredited certification authorities and are tied to a specific person — the director, the sole proprietor, the accountant — not to the company.

An important consequence follows: the signature belongs to a natural person, and the director’s single signature is used both for their company and for their personal affairs on e-Uprava. If the company changes director, the new director needs their own signature — the old one is not transferable.

Step 1. The foreigner registration number (EBS)

For Serbian citizens the signature is tied to their personal number, the JMBG. A foreigner does not have one, and its role is played by the foreigner registration number — evidencioni broj za strance, EBS. The Ministry of the Interior issues it on application: you will need a passport and, as a rule, proof of your address of stay. The number is issued free of charge and permanently, and does not depend on holding a residence permit.

The EBS is useful for more than the signature: banks, the tax authority and e-Uprava all ask for it when you create an account. It is worth arranging among your first tasks after arrival — together with the registration of stay.

Step 2. Choosing a certification authority and a carrier

For a foreigner without a residence permit, the practical choice is the Post of Serbia or a commercial authority. Issuance is done in person: an application, a passport, the EBS, and payment at the authority’s tariff. The certificate is usually issued within a few days; it is valid for several years and can then be renewed. The carrier works with any computer once you install the drivers and intermediate certificates that the authority publishes.

Where the signature is mandatory

• APR: electronic registration of the company and of changes, filing of annual financial statements, the register of beneficial owners.
• ePorezi: logging in to the tax account, filing every return, viewing the state of the taxpayer’s account.
• SEF: registering the company in the system of electronic invoices, issuing and accepting invoices, electronic VAT (PDV) records.
• CROSO: registering and deregistering employees.
• e-Uprava: access to the company’s single electronic mailbox, the portal for foreigners, certificates and extracts.
• Banks: some banks accept an electronic signature for remote operations and agreements.
• Contracts with clients and contractors: signing without paper and couriers.

In practice the first three items require a signature within the first two weeks after the company is registered — worth bearing in mind when you plan your trip. For how the full process is arranged, see the article on registering a DOO with the APR.

Powers of attorney: delegating to your accountant

The director does not have to sign every return personally. In ePorezi an authorized person is appointed using the PEP form: the accountant gains access to the company’s account with their own signature and files returns on the company’s behalf. Equivalent authorizations are configured in SEF and on e-Uprava. The director keeps access and sees everything that has been filed. This is how most foreign-owned companies work: the director’s signature is needed to register the authorizations and for actions at the APR, and the rest sits with the accountant. What such support includes is described on the page on accounting for Serbian companies.

Authorizations are best issued with some slack on the expiry date and revoked on the very day the cooperation with the accountant ends: as long as a power of attorney is in force, returns they file count as filed by the company. Once a year it is worth opening the list of authorized persons in ePorezi and making sure no former contractors are still on it — the check takes a minute and removes a whole class of risk.

The electronic mailbox: the one thing you cannot ignore

The single electronic mailbox (eSanduče) on e-Uprava is the official channel through which state bodies deliver decisions and notices to companies and sole proprietors. The tax authority sends decisions and summonses there, inspectorates send notices of inspections, and the APR sends documents relating to registration actions. A document is deemed delivered under the portal’s rules whether or not you have opened it, and from that moment the deadlines for responding and appealing start to run.

• Activate the mailbox right after registration and switch on email notifications.
• Give your accountant or lawyer access so that letters do not sit unread while you are away.
• Check the mailbox at least once a week — the deadlines for appealing decisions are short.
• Keep the decisions you download: you will need them when renewing a residence permit and in disputes.

How to store and use the signature safely

A qualified signature is legally equal to your handwritten one, so handing the carrier and the PIN to your accountant is the same as giving them the right to sign any document in your name. Powers of attorney and the PEP form exist for delegation; the carrier stays with its owner. If the card or token is lost, the certificate has to be revoked immediately through the authority that issued it: until it is revoked, any document signed with it counts as signed by you.

• Sign PDFs in programs that support Serbian certificates: the authorities publish a list and the settings for the common editors.
• Verify a counterparty’s signature before performing a contract — a validator is available on the e-Uprava portal.
• A company may additionally obtain a qualified electronic seal (elektronski pečat) in its own name; for small companies it is not mandatory.
• Keep a backup of the drivers and intermediate certificates: when you change computers, setup then takes minutes rather than days.

Common problems and how to solve them

An electronic signature is not a complication but the first tool that makes Serbian bureaucracy remote: with it you can register a company, file reports and sign contracts from anywhere in the world. If you are setting up a DOO or a sole proprietorship with support, check whether help with the EBS and the certificate is included — it halves those first weeks. In difficult cases, where the director cannot travel, the sequence of steps is worth agreeing with lawyers.