Apostille, Notary or Legalisation for Serbia: Check by Country

What you send to set up a company from abroad

If the founder is an individual, registration with the Serbian Business Registers Agency needs a copy of the passport and a power of attorney with a certified signature. The founder can also sign the founding act personally, but the signature must still be certified by a notary under the same rules. A Serbian embassy certifies signatures on a power of attorney but not contracts, so the founding act of a company with several founders cannot be certified there.

If the founder is a foreign company, it files an extract from the register of its home country. The extract is a foreign public document too, so the same rule applies as for a power of attorney from that country (apostille, legalisation or translation only), and a court interpreter translates it. The power of attorney is signed by the company's legal representative and certified like any document from that country.

copy of the passport of the founder and the director
power of attorney with a certified signature, as shown by the tool above
for a foreign company: register extract, with apostille or legalisation as shown by the tool, and the decision to set up the company
translation of all foreign documents by a Serbian court interpreter

Order matters

Notary first, then the apostille or legalisation, and the translation last. The apostille is part of the document and is translated with it.

If you have the translation made abroad, it must be certified and legalised just like the original. It is usually simpler and cheaper to have it done by a court interpreter in Serbia.

Country list

Notary is enough (bilateral treaty with Serbia)

Austria
Belarus
Bosnia & Herzegovina
Bulgaria
Croatia
Cyprus
Czechia
Greece
Hungary
Italy
Mongolia
Montenegro
North Macedonia
Poland
Romania
Russia
Slovakia
Slovenia
Ukraine

Apostille required (Hague Convention)

Albania
Algeria
Andorra
Antigua & Barbuda
Argentina
Armenia
Australia
Azerbaijan
Bahamas
Bahrain
Bangladesh
Barbados
Belgium
Belize
Bolivia
Botswana
Brazil
Brunei
Burundi
Canada
Cape Verde
Chile
China
Colombia
Cook Islands
Costa Rica
Denmark
Dominica
Dominican Republic
Ecuador
El Salvador
Estonia
Eswatini
Fiji
Finland
France
Georgia
Germany
Grenada
Guatemala
Guyana
Honduras
Hong Kong (China)
Iceland
India
Indonesia
Ireland
Israel
Jamaica
Japan
Kazakhstan
Kyrgyzstan
Latvia
Lesotho
Liberia
Liechtenstein
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Macao (China)
Malawi
Malta
Marshall Islands
Mauritius
Mexico
Moldova
Monaco
Morocco
Namibia
Netherlands
New Zealand
Nicaragua
Niue
Norway
Oman
Pakistan
Palau
Panama
Paraguay
Peru
Philippines
Portugal
Rwanda
Samoa
San Marino
São Tomé & Príncipe
Saudi Arabia
Senegal
Seychelles
Singapore
South Africa
South Korea
Spain
St. Kitts & Nevis
St. Lucia
St. Vincent & Grenadines
Suriname
Sweden
Switzerland
Tajikistan
Tonga
Trinidad & Tobago
Tunisia
Türkiye
United Kingdom
United States (USA)
Uruguay
Uzbekistan
Vanuatu
Venezuela
Vietnam

Full legalisation required (Hague Convention not in force)

Afghanistan
Angola
Benin
Bhutan
Burkina Faso
Cambodia
Cameroon
Central African Republic
Chad
Comoros
Congo - Brazzaville
Congo - Kinshasa
Côte d’Ivoire
Cuba
Djibouti
Egypt
Equatorial Guinea
Eritrea
Ethiopia
Gabon
Gambia
Ghana
Guinea
Guinea-Bissau
Haiti
Iran
Iraq
Jordan
Kenya
Kiribati
Kuwait
Laos
Lebanon
Libya
Madagascar
Malaysia
Maldives
Mali
Mauritania
Micronesia
Mozambique
Myanmar (Burma)
Nauru
Nepal
Niger
Nigeria
North Korea
Papua New Guinea
Qatar
Sierra Leone
Solomon Islands
Somalia
South Sudan
Sri Lanka
Sudan
Syria
Tanzania
Thailand (apostille from 28 Feb 2027)
Timor-Leste
Togo
Turkmenistan
Tuvalu
Uganda
United Arab Emirates
Yemen
Zambia
Zimbabwe

FAQ

Does Serbia issue the apostille?

No. The apostille is issued by the country where the document was made or certified. For a power of attorney signed in Germany it is a German authority, and for one signed in the US it is the state where the notary works.

Can I sign the power of attorney at a Serbian embassy?

Yes. Serbian embassies and consulates certify signatures on powers of attorney, and that certification counts in Serbia as a domestic one, with no apostille or legalisation. In countries that require full legalisation this is often the fastest route.

Do I have to come to Serbia to register a company?

Not for registration, which runs on a power of attorney. Banks often ask the director to come in person to open the company account, so we plan that separately.

What if my document is already translated in my country?

A translation made abroad must be certified and legalised just like the original. If it is not, we have it translated by a court interpreter in Serbia.

Does the same apply to a power of attorney for property or inheritance?

Yes, the apostille and legalisation rules are the same for all public documents. But a power of attorney to sell or buy property must meet the form required for the contract itself, so a Serbian notary may ask for more than a plain signature certification. Send us a draft before you sign.

Sources: list of parties to the Hague Apostille Convention (HCCH, status as of 30 June 2026) and the list of bilateral treaties on exemption from legalisation published by the Serbian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Checked 25 October 2026. This overview is general information and not advice for your specific case.

Foreign clients →Corporate law →

Notary, apostille or legalisation: what your document needs for Serbia

What you need