The Serbian Business Registers Agency (SBRA) has been informed that certain companies are contacting newly incorporated business entities and other legal entities registered with the Agency, requesting payment of a "one-time fee" for "automatic registration" in "registers" and "business databases" maintained by those companies. These requests are accompanied by payment slips with a pre-printed amount, which may mislead recipients into believing that they are under a legal obligation to register and pay the specified fee.
In this regard, we emphasize that the Serbian Business Registers Agency does not send pre-prepared payment slips to business entities or other legal entities. Instead, they are themselves required to include proof of payment of the registration/change fee, as part of the registration documentation. These fees are prescribed by the Decision on Fees for Registration Services and Other Services Provided by the Serbian Business Registers Agency (“Official Gazette of the RS”, Nos. 131/22, 107/2024 – harmonized RSD amounts, and 80/25).
In performing its duties, the SBRA is also obligated to protect its electronic databases. The Agency carries out data processing tasks and provides services related to the issuance of registered and recorded data for the needs of state authorities and interested users. Therefore, the Agency will take all legally prescribed measures to protect its rights related to the electronic databases it maintains.
For all the reasons stated above, we warn business entities and other legal entities registered with the Serbian Business Registers Agency that registration in “databases” and/or “registers” maintained by certain legal entities is not a legal obligation. In the event of receiving an invitation to register accompanied by payment slips, recipients should carefully examine the information about the sender, the recipient of the payment, and verify through the Serbian Business Registers Agency’s website who the sender is and what their main activity is (these senders are usually companies). If the company has a website, users are also advised to review its operations through that channel. Only after becoming fully informed about all the terms of the offer, especially bearing in mind that the invitation is not issued by a government authority and that there is no legal obligation to register in these “databases”, can business entities and other legal entities make an informed decision on how to proceed.