What changed in Serbia

A Dutch state pension keeps being paid while living in Serbia, under the inherited 1979 convention

Pension

Crypto capital gains use the same PPDG-3R self-assessment as any other capital gain

Crypto tax and legal status

Whether frequent trading counts as business income instead of capital gains is not explicitly settled

Crypto tax and legal status

Reinvest crypto sale proceeds into a Serbian company within 90 days and halve the capital gains tax

Crypto tax and legal status

Selling digital assets at a profit is taxed as a capital gain at 15 percent

Crypto tax and legal status

Serbia has a dedicated digital assets law, not a legal gray area like most of the region

Crypto tax and legal status

Owning Serbian real estate is a standalone basis for temporary residence

Residency routes

Whether Serbia applies CFC-style rules to an individual controlling a foreign company is unresolved

Moving your company

Forming a Serbian d.o.o. is a practical residence and business route, but budget for real running costs

Moving your company

Getting profit out to the Netherlands costs 5 or 15 percent withholding, not the 20 percent domestic rate

Moving your company

An ordinary remote employee is unlikely to create a permanent establishment for their employer

Permanent establishment risk

Running your company from a Serbian kitchen table can make the company itself Serbian-resident

Permanent establishment risk

Corporate income tax is a flat 15 percent, with no municipal add-on

Moving your company

A short remote stay for a Dutch employer generally does not pull in Serbian labor law

Employment law

Real local employment brings full Serbian labor law protections, and obligations, with it

Employment law

Plan around private health insurance, most residence permit applications expect proof of cover

Healthcare coverage

Whether the 1979 convention actually coordinates healthcare, not just pensions, is genuinely unclear

Healthcare coverage

Contribution bases run from 35.05 percent to 500 percent of the average Serbian salary

Social security

The pausalac's monthly assessment already bundles income tax and social contributions together

Social security

Local Serbian employment carries a combined 19.9 percent employee contribution rate

Social security

Without EU A1 machinery, a Dutch employer needs the 1979 convention's own coverage certificate instead

Social security

A 1979 Yugoslav-era social security convention with the Netherlands is still in force today

Social security

Capital gains, including crypto, are self-reported on form PPDG-3R within 120 days of quarter end

Personal income tax

High earners face a second, progressive annual tax on top of the flat rates

Personal income tax

Income that does not fit a specific category defaults to 20 percent as other income

Personal income tax

Royalties are taxed at 20 percent after a standard cost deduction of 34 to 50 percent

Personal income tax

Interest on dinar savings and government bonds is tax-free, other interest is not

Personal income tax

Dividends to a resident individual are taxed at 15 percent

Personal income tax

Hold an asset for more than 10 consecutive years and the capital gain becomes exempt for residents

Personal income tax

Capital gains are taxed at a flat 15 percent

Personal income tax

VAT registration kicks in at RSD 8,000,000, a different ceiling from the pausalac cap, measured differently too

Personal income tax

The pausalac ceiling is RSD 6,000,000 a year, and several activities are excluded outright

Personal income tax

When the dominant client is foreign, you become responsible for calculating and paying the extra tax yourself

Personal income tax

One dominant client can get a pausalac legally recharacterized as an employee, the 2020 independence test

Personal income tax

The flat-rate pausalac regime is the single biggest tax lever for a freelancer moving to Serbia

Personal income tax

Employment income is a flat 10 percent, with the non-taxable amount raised to RSD 34,221 from January 2026

Personal income tax

How Serbia formally closes out your tax residency on departure is not clearly documented

Tax residency

The Netherlands-Serbia tax treaty settles it if both countries claim you as resident

Tax residency

A non-resident is only taxed on Serbian-source income

Tax residency

Your center of business and vital interests can make you resident even under 183 days

Tax residency

183 days in a 12-month period spanning the tax year makes you a Serbian tax resident

Tax residency

Quiet remote work on a plain 90-day stay sits in an untested legal gray area

Right to work

Local employment runs through a single combined residence-and-work permit

Right to work

Residence permits now run up to 3 years, not the 1 year that older guides still quote

Right to work

There is no dedicated digital nomad visa, the real route is the flat-rate entrepreneur permit

Right to work

Your host has to register your address with the police, and a private host often does not know that

Immigration and visa

Past 90 days without a residence permit, lawful presence simply ends

Immigration and visa

Visa-free entry to Serbia for up to 90 days in any 180-day period

Immigration and visa