The current law (until a new one is adopted) on foreigners (hereinafter referred to as the Law) sets out the conditions under which a foreigner may enter and stay in the Republic of Serbia. As a rule, he does so with a valid passport in which a visa or residence permit is entered, unless otherwise provided by law or an international agreement. Accordingly, the Republic of Serbia has a visa regime with some countries, and has abolished it with others.
A visa (types A, C and D) is an official permission to enter, stay or transit, which is issued to foreigners before their arrival in the territory of the Republic of Serbia. However, it should be noted that the mere possession of a visa does not guarantee an unconditional permission to enter the Republic of Serbia. A visa is issued by a diplomatic or consular mission, unless otherwise provided by law.
An application for a visa is considered and accepted by the diplomatic and consular mission in whose consular territory the applicant legally resides, except in cases established by law when the trip is urgent.
An application for a visa must be submitted in person on the prescribed form no earlier than three months before the start of the intended trip. Evidence of compliance with the conditions for issuing visas (A, C and D) is provided for in Article 26 of the Law.
Visa D (long-stay visa) is an official permit to enter and stay on the territory of the Republic of Serbia for a period of 90 to 180 days.
If a foreigner requires a visa to enter Serbia, then in order to obtain a residence permit in Serbia, he will first need to obtain a D visa for a long-term stay in the country.
A foreigner who has received a long-term visa based on employment is granted the opportunity to exercise the right to employment in accordance with the rules governing the employment of foreign citizens. When the expiration of the long-term visa obtained based on employment approaches, the foreigner may apply for approval of temporary residence (TRP) based on employment, if his/her business activity in the Republic of Serbia lasts longer than the validity of the D visa.
According to paragraph 1 of Article 39, the law distinguishes between the grounds for the stay of foreigners on the territory of the Republic of Serbia, namely: short-term stay; stay on the basis of a long-term visa; temporary stay (TRP) and permanent residence (PR).
A residence permit may be issued to a foreigner who plans to stay in Serbia for more than 90 days, including on the basis of employment. A residence permit in Serbia is currently issued for a period of up to one year, and it can be extended for the same period depending on the reason for stay and the availability of appropriate grounds for extension.
In rare cases, a residence permit for employment may be issued to a foreigner who plans to stay in Serbia for less than 90 days, but such work requires a work permit in accordance with the adopted rules on the employment of foreign citizens.
The process of applying for a temporary residence permit and the relevant time limits are regulated by the provisions of Article 41 of the Law, and the possibility of submitting a combined application for a temporary residence permit and a work permit is regulated by Article 41a of the Law.
From the above provisions of the Law it follows that there are differences between a long-term visa (D visa) and a residence permit, but there are also similarities between them. The differences between a D visa and a residence permit are not only formal (a visa is an approval of entry, and a boravak is a permit for temporary residence), but also significant, as can be seen from the analysis of the content of the Law.
Visas primarily regulate the regime of entry into the Republic of Serbia of foreigners who require a visa for such entry, while residence permits primarily regulate the regime of stay of foreigners in the Republic of Serbia, mainly those already present, who intend to stay longer for certain reasons (on various grounds).
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