Business bank account for your Serbian company

Why the account comes first

A Serbian company cannot operate in practice without a current account at a Serbian bank. Payments between companies in Serbia go through bank accounts, taxes and contributions are paid from the account, and salaries are paid to employees through it.

The share capital of a DOO is also paid in through the account. The legal minimum capital is symbolic (RSD 100), but if the founders committed a larger amount in the founding act, that amount must be paid in as stated.

• Paying in the share capital
• Receiving payments from clients
• Paying taxes, contributions and salaries
• Paying suppliers and rent
• Company payment cards and e-banking
• Payments in foreign currency with partners abroad

The usual bank file

Banks use their own forms, but the supporting documents are largely the same from bank to bank.

If a founder is a foreign company, the bank will also ask for its register extract and ownership documents, with an apostille and a certified Serbian translation by a court interpreter. Banks generally want recent extracts, so time these documents with the bank meeting in mind.

• Decision on registration issued by the APR and a current register extract
• Founding act and, if any, the articles or shareholders' agreement
• Ownership structure up to the natural persons who own or control the company
• Passports of the director and of each beneficial owner
• Description of the business, main clients and suppliers, and expected turnover
• Details of the persons authorized to use the account

Beneficial owners and the Central Register

A beneficial owner is the natural person who, directly or indirectly, owns or controls the company. Serbian companies must record their beneficial owners in the Central Register of Beneficial Owners within 15 days of registration with the APR.

Banks compare that record with the documents in your file and with what you tell them at the meeting. Names, dates of birth, ownership percentages and the description of control must match. A mismatch, even a typing error in a name, is a frequent reason for delay.

If the ownership changes later, the register must be updated as well. Banks check this during the business relationship, not only at opening.

What the bank wants to understand

Beyond documents, the bank assesses the business itself. It wants to know what the company will do, with whom, in which countries and with what volume of payments. A new company with foreign owners and no history in Serbia is reviewed carefully, so the description of the business matters.

A useful description is concrete: the products or services, the first clients or contracts, where the money will come from at the start, and an estimate of monthly turnover. Supporting documents, such as a signed contract, an offer, an office lease or a website, make the description credible.

Most banks ask the director to come to the branch for identification and to sign the account documents. If the director lives abroad, plan the trip so that the APR registration and the beneficial owner entry are complete before the meeting.

Step by step, and common mistakes

Common mistakes are an unclear description of the business, ownership data that differ between the APR, the Central Register and the bank forms, a director who cannot explain the business at the meeting, and corporate documents from abroad that are outdated or not apostilled. A registered address the company cannot document can also lead to questions.

• Register the company with the APR and receive the registration decision
• Record the beneficial owners in the Central Register
• Prepare the bank file and the description of the business
• Book a meeting and attend with the director
• Sign the account documents and set up e-banking
• Pay in the share capital as stated in the founding act

When to involve a lawyer

It helps to prepare the company documents and the bank file together, because the bank reads them side by side. Our office registers the company, records the beneficial owners, prepares the bank file, explains your business model to the bank clearly and consistently, and can attend the meeting with your director. The decision on the account always remains with the bank.

Frequently asked questions