Serbia tax incentives for expats and digital nomads in 2026

Last reviewed: November 2026 · Reviewed by Stéphane Gombauld, tax expert, technologist and digital nomad

You are weighing Belgrade or Novi Sad as your next base and want to know which breaks you can really claim. This guide covers the newcomer salary relief, the 90-day exemption, the flat-rate regime and the freelancer models. You get the 2026 figures and what each saves.

Serbia expat and digital nomad incentives in 2026: the key figures

What changed for 2026

• The freelancer standard cost allowances were re-indexed from 1 February 2026: RSD 110,647 and RSD 66,733 a quarter, per the Government notice published by the Tax Administration. At launch in 2023 they were RSD 96,000 and RSD 57,900.
• The monthly non-taxable salary amount rose to RSD 34,221 from January 2026, per PwC (secondary).
• The PIT Law was amended again in Official Gazette no. 80/2026. The consolidated art. 15a now reads RSD 37,369, so check which amount applies to your payroll month. The newcomer relief, the 90-day rule and the flat-rate cap are unchanged.

Is this guide for you?

Read on if you…

• plan to take a job with a Serbian employer, or can be hired through a Serbian entity;
• freelance for foreign clients and want the cheapest legal way to declare from Serbia;
• are under 40, studied or trained abroad, and are thinking of moving back.

Probably not your case if you…

• live mainly from dividends or capital gains. Read the capital gains tax in Serbia guide instead;
• want to run a full company. Compare structures in legal forms of business in Serbia.

Does Serbia have a digital nomad visa?

No dedicated one. The government's foreigners' portal has a page on digital nomads in Serbia. It describes no specific nomad permit and lists no nomad-specific criteria.

What you use instead is the standard route. For longer stays you apply for temporary residence, often as a unified permit (jedinstvena dozvola), which combines residence and work. Whether you can enter visa-free first depends on your passport. Whoever provides your accommodation must register your stay within 24 hours of arrival.

Here's the catch. Immigration status and tax residence are separate questions. The newcomer relief itself requires you to be Serbian tax resident under the centre of vital interests test and any applicable treaty. Your centre of vital interests is where your family, home and main business sit. The tests are in our guide to obtaining Serbian tax residency.

What is the 70% newcomer salary relief and who qualifies?

Art. 15v of the PIT Law cuts the salary tax base by 70% for a "newly settled taxpayer" (novonastanjeni obveznik). In plain terms, you pay salary tax on only 30% of the normal base. The current consolidated text of the PIT Law sets these conditions:

1. Who counts as newly settled. Either you did not mainly live in Serbia in the 24 months before the contract. Or you are under 40 when you sign and mainly lived abroad in the previous 12 months for study or professional training.
2. The job. An employment contract of indefinite duration, for a position needing special expertise.
3. The salary test. The expertise condition is presumed met when the monthly salary is above RSD 439,692, or RSD 293,128 for the under-40 group. These amounts equal three and two average monthly salaries and are republished by the Government each year.
4. The employer. A Serbian resident employer that is not a related party of the employer you worked for before. If you were already Serbian resident for at least three years since 1990, any Serbian employer qualifies.
5. Your residence. You settle in Serbia when hired or within a reasonable time, and you become Serbian tax resident.

The relief lasts five years from the contract date, even if you change employer, as long as the conditions keep being met. It starts with the first salary for the month in which eligibility is proven.

What it is worth

Standard salary tax is 10% on the salary minus the monthly non-taxable amount (RSD 34,221 from January 2026). Employees also pay 19.9% social contributions and employers 15.15%, per PwC's Serbia summary (secondary). The relief in art. 15v targets the salary tax base. Ask payroll how contributions are handled for your contract before you rely on any net figure.

Can I work from Serbia for 90 days without paying tax?

Yes, if you are non-resident and paid from abroad. Art. 9b of the PIT Law exempts a non-resident who spends at most 90 days in Serbia in a 12-month period. That period must start or end in the tax year. The payer must be a non-resident that does not do business in Serbia. It also works if the payer does business in Serbia, provided your service does not feed that Serbian business.

This is the real "digital nomad" rule. Spend a few months in Belgrade, keep working for your foreign employer or clients, and owe nothing to the Tax Administration (Poreska uprava). Cross 90 days in the rolling 12 months and the exemption is gone.

What are my options as a freelancer settling in Serbia?

Once you stay and become resident, three setups are realistic.

1. Freelancer self-taxation (foreign payer, no Serbian entity)

If a foreign client or employer pays you and nobody withholds Serbian tax, you file quarterly through the Tax Administration's freelancer portal. You choose one of two self-taxation options:

Health contributions of 10.3% come on top if you have no health insurance through another basis. Option 1 wins at low income: it has a bigger fixed allowance, while option 2 charges a minimum pension contribution every quarter. Option 2 wins once income grows, as the portal's own examples show.

2. Flat-rate sole trader (paušalac)

You register as an entrepreneur (preduzetnik) and ask for lump-sum taxation. The base is set from average wages, your activity and your location, not your actual profit. Art. 40 of the PIT Law caps turnover at RSD 6,000,000 and excludes VAT-registered businesses. Some activities are excluded, such as trade, catering, financial intermediation and real estate. You apply by 31 October for the following year, electronically.

3. Your own company

Above the flat-rate cap, a limited company (d.o.o.) often makes sense. See corporate income taxes in Serbia.

Which other breaks can newcomers use?

• Under-40 annual tax relief. Serbia charges an annual income tax of 10% on the slice between three and six average annual salaries. The part above six pays 15%. If you are under 40 on 31 December, you first deduct another three average annual salaries. Details in personal tax deductions and benefits of Serbia.
• Crypto reinvestment. Crypto proceeds invested in a company's share capital can be exempt from capital gains tax. See cryptocurrency taxes in Serbia.

Common mistakes (and what they cost)

• Treating 90 days as a calendar-year allowance. The count runs over any 12 months starting or ending in the tax year. Cost: the whole stay's income becomes taxable once you pass 90 days.
• Signing a fixed-term contract. Art. 15v needs an indefinite contract. Cost: the full 70% base cut, for up to five years.
• Moving to a related employer. A job with a company related to your previous employer does not qualify, unless you meet the 1990 residence exception. Cost: the relief.
• Letting turnover pass RSD 6,000,000. You lose flat-rate eligibility. Cost: taxation on real profit with full bookkeeping.
• Skipping the quarterly freelancer return. Undeclared foreign income draws back tax, interest and misdemeanour liability. See tax fraud regulations of Serbia.

Frequently asked questions

Does Serbia have a digital nomad visa in 2026?

No dedicated one. The government's foreigners' portal has a digital nomads page but describes no specific permit. Longer stays use temporary residence, often through the unified residence and work permit. For short stays, the 90-day income tax exemption for non-residents paid from abroad does the job a nomad visa does elsewhere.

How much tax does a foreigner pay on a salary in Serbia?

Salary tax is 10% on gross salary minus the monthly non-taxable amount, RSD 34,221 from January 2026. Employees also pay 19.9% social contributions and employers 15.15%. A qualifying newcomer under art. 15v pays salary tax on a base cut by 70% for five years, as long as the salary stays above the threshold.

What salary do I need for the Serbian newcomer relief?

A monthly salary above RSD 439,692 in the general case. The bar is RSD 293,128 if you are under 40 and spent the previous 12 months mainly abroad studying or training. The amounts are tied to the average Serbian salary and republished each year, so check the current figure before you sign.

Can I keep working for my foreign employer while living in Serbia?

Yes. As a resident paid from abroad without Serbian withholding, you declare the income yourself each quarter through the freelancer portal. You pick option 1 or option 2. As a non-resident staying at most 90 days in 12 months, the income is exempt under art. 9b.

What is the flat-rate regime in Serbia?

A lump-sum regime for sole traders. Tax is based on average wages, your activity and location rather than actual profit. Turnover must stay under RSD 6,000,000, you cannot be VAT-registered, and some activities are excluded. You apply by 31 October for the following year.

Is the newcomer relief available to returning Serbians?

Yes. Anyone who did not mainly live in Serbia in the previous 24 months can qualify. People under 40 who mainly lived abroad in the previous 12 months for study or training qualify at the lower RSD 293,128 threshold. The 70% cut and five-year duration are the same.

Related guides

• Tax incentives for expats and digital nomads in Austria – compare Austria's inbound expert relief.
• Tax breaks for expats and digital nomads in Malta – compare Malta's nomad permit and special regimes.
• How to obtain tax residency in Serbia – when you become resident.
• Personal tax deductions and benefits of Serbia – allowances and the under-40 relief.
• Legal forms of business in Serbia – sole trader versus d.o.o.
• Tax landscape overview of Serbia – every Serbian tax on one page.
• All country tax guides

Sources

• Law on Personal Income Tax, consolidated text (arts. 9b, 12a, 15a, 15v, 40–42) – Paragraf Lex
• Indexed dinar amounts of the PIT Law from 1 February 2026 – Tax Administration of Serbia
• Two self-taxation options for freelancers – Tax Administration of Serbia
• Freelancer portal – Tax Administration of Serbia
• Digital nomads in Serbia – Government of Serbia, Welcome to Serbia portal
• Serbia – Individual – Significant developments – PwC (secondary)
• Serbia – Individual – Taxes on personal income – PwC (secondary)
• Serbia – Corporate – Other taxes – PwC (secondary)

This guide is general information, not personalised tax advice. See how we research and review.