General Recommendations

 

Before travelling abroad, please check whether you have:

  • A valid travel document;
  • Valid visa in the passport (if the visa is required by the respective country);
  • Other documents that may be requested by the border authorities of the country you are traveling to;
  • Certificate of vaccination, if you travel to countries that require vaccination or to tropical or similar destinations;

 

We recommend:

  • to make a copy of the first page of the passport and ID card, as well as not to keep all the documents in one place (this may be important if you happen to lose your passport or have it stolen);
  • to have a health insurance for the period of the total planned stay abroad (this is especially important if, during your trip, you find yourself in the need of emergency medical care);
  • on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia you can find contact information of the diplomatic and consular mission of the Republic of Serbia, the closest to the destination to which you are headed.

 

Please note:

When traveling abroad, in accordance to The Decree of the Government of the Republic of Serbia, the Border Police officers of the Republic of Serbia, in addition to a valid biometric passport or other travel document, may request to present other documents:

  • confirmation of hotel reservation or travel agency voucher;
  • invitation letter from a private or legal entity abroad;
  • Travel Insurance;
  • return transport ticket;
  • proof of possession of sufficient means of subsistence during the stay abroad (money, payment cards, checks);
  • other evidence, summonses or confirmations regarding the purpose of the trip.

The same documents, as well as some others, can be requested for inspection by the border authorities of the countries you are traveling to. The amount of money requested for inspection during border control varies from country to country.

 

Notice if traveling to countries in the Schengen zone

Border police may ask for following

  • Passport has to be issued within the last 10 years and also be valid for at least 3 months after the planned day of return from the country in the Schengen zone
  • Corresponding amount of money for the planned stay or credit card
  • Voucher of the travel agency
  • Hotel reservation or confirmation of a private stay
  • Letter of invitation (claim of a citizen residing in the Schengen zone country) when on private stay
  • Letter of invitation of a company, confirmation of participation at a conference, fair, congress, etc if on a business trip
  • Other data that might be of interest during border crossing and of interest to claim the necessity of travel

Please take notice that persons that could be considered dangerous for public order, national health or state security will not be allowed entrance into countries in the Schengen zone, as well as persons that have been given an entry ban on any basis in any country of the Schengen zone.

 

ADVISE:

Before taking a trip, we advise you to check all the conditions for entering the country you are traveling to, through the official websites of their state bodies or diplomatic and consular missions in Serbia. Special attention should be paid to customs regulations, in order to avoid unintentional malfeasance and subsequent legal actions and sanction. The same applies to traffic safety regulations.

For your information, we are presenting EU rules that refer to the import of goods in passenger traffic for citizens of countries bordering the EU:

  1. Goods exceeding value of 10000 euros must be reported.
  2. Excise goods (alcohol, cigarettes, oil, etc.) can be brought in only by persons older than 17 years and in following amount:

     

Alcohol:

  • 0,5l of Wine 
  • 0,5l of alcohol of up to 22%
  • 2l of beer

Tobacco:

  • 40 cigarettes (if crossing the border on land), or 200 cigarettes (if crossing the border at the airport);
  • 20 cigarillos (if crossing the border on land), or 100 cigarillos (if crossing the border at the airport);
  • 10 cigars (if crossing the border on land), or 50 cigars (if crossing the border at the airport);
  • 50 grams of tobacco (if crossing the border on land), or 250 grams (if crossing the border at the airport).

Medicines can be administered only in quantities sufficient for personal use during the intended stay or transit. Some countries may also ask to present a medical prescriptions.

  1. The value of goods for non-commercial use must not exceed the amount of 300 euros (if crossing the border on land), or 430 euros cigarettes (if crossing the border at the airport). For persons under the age of 15, the value of the goods must not exceed 150 euros.
  2. Pets can enter provided they can be identified through a chip or stamp, have a health certificate and evidence that they have been vaccinated against rabies.
  3. It is prohibited to import meat and milk, as well as meat and dairy products, whose origin is outside the EU.
  4. It is forbidden to import species and products from the Cites list, such as ivory, crocodile skin, corals, etc. More information at www.cites.org

 

You may find additional information regarding entry conditions, health conditions, security, transport, accommodation etc. for each country, in visas and information on countries section of this site.

However, we must emphasize that complete information can only be provided by the authorities of the countries you are traveling to, so we recommend that you be sure to consult their diplomatic and consular missions or official websites before setting off.

Unfortunately, during the trip, it is possible that some unforeseen situations take place and so it is necessary to react properly. Here are some practical tips:

 

In case the person you are traveling with passes away:

• Call an ambulance;

• Call the police to conduct an official inquiry;

• Try to find the passport of the deceased;

• If the passport is for any reason unavailable or destroyed, ensure that relatives or friends provide copies of the deceased's document as soon as possible;

• Within 24 hours of the death, notify the call center of the insurance company where the deceased was insured (this is of great importance to cover the cost of transferring the remains and compensation when the conditions are met);

• Be in contact with the tour operator of the agency which you are travelling with, they are usually very helpful in such situations (if you are travelling with travel agency);

• If the deceased did not have travel insurance or the insurance was not activated in time, such a situation becomes a severe problem for his family. All expenses are borne by the family;

• Notify the nearest diplomatic-consular mission, which will give you the information on the organization of transport, how to contact the funeral home and the necessary documents for the transport of mortal remains.

 

In case of injury or need for emergency medical care:

• Within 24 hours from the moment the accident occurred, inform the call center of the insurance company through which the injured person was insured (this is important to cover the costs of treatment and hospitalization, as well as transportation of the injured-treated person back to the Republic of Serbia, when conditions are met);

• If it turns out that the injured person or person on medical treatment has to stay in hospital and by doing so will exceed the expiration date of a granted visa or the stay in hospital will be longer than the period in which a visa-free stay is possible (eg illness or injury occurred on the 85th day of stay in the Schengen area, and it is possible to stay without a visa for up to 90 days), it is necessary to visit the police (department for foreigners) with the proper medical documentation of the sick-injured person (before visa or visa-free regime expires) and apply for a visa extension or prolonging of residence permit due to new circumstances. This is important because, if the visa is exceeded or the visa-free stay is violated, the injured will be fined, not a small amount of money and possibly banned from re-entering the country in question. Unfortunately, the administration is relentless and this should definitely be taken into account;

• In the case of a minor child, young children or the elderly, it is likely that the presence of a parent or close relative will be required during the treatment. In this situation, above mentioned procedure applies on them as well (on the basis of medical documentation, request an extension of the visa or residence permit for a parent or close relative). Proof of kinship must be submitted when filing such a request;

• Be in contact with the tour operator of the agency which you are travelling with, they are usually very helpful in such situations (if you are travelling with travel agency);

• If the injured did not have travel insurance or the insurance was not activated in time, such a situation becomes a severe problem for his family. All expenses are borne by the family;

• Notify the nearest diplomatic-consular mission, which will give you the address of the police (department for foreigners) and other practical advice.

 

In case of natural disasters, riots, declaration of a state of emergency in the country of destination, outbreaks of war and similar undesirable events:

Assuming that all members of your family who you are travelling with are alive as well as that you have travel documents with you, you need to contact a nearest diplomatic and consular mission of Republic of Serbia as soon as possible, in order to get instructions for further action on how to evacuate from the endangered zone in the fastest and easiest manner:

  • If there is no diplomatic-consular mission of Republic of Serbia in the endangered zone of the destination country, call the phone number of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which is available 24/7 or send an e-mail to the contact e-mail address of the Ministry established for this purpose where you will get information for further action
  • Unless the entire territory of the country of your destination is endangered, do your best to, if possible, leave the endangered area and move to safer parts of the country
  • Contact your tour operator, if you are traveling via a travel agency. The agency is obliged to organize an efficient evacuation, if such is possible at all.
  • In case a death has occurred during an emergency situation, or injuries, proceed as previously described in the chapters relating to these situations
  • In case of a loss or disappearance of the travel document in such emergency situations contact the nearest diplomatic and consular mission of R. Serbia, in order to overcome the situation that has occurred. This situation can be very difficult for your status which is why once again we remind you how important it is that when evacuating or urgently leaving a certain territory you have any identification document with you, for at least one adult family member (e.g. keep passports separate from ID cards, it may happen that the passports are at the reception of a hotel that has been demolished or set on fire, which is why it is good in such cases to have at least an ID card or driver's license).

 

In case of theft or loss of documents and money:

It is not possible to continue the trip or return to Serbia without a valid document. Therefore, if you happen to be robbed or you lose your documents, payment cards and/or money, you need to:

  • Inform the closest police station and ask them to issue you a report on the loss or theft. Please note that in a number of countries they will not issue such document, if you do not know the number of passport, ID card or driver's license, so it is useful to have a photocopy of the document or at least know the number of the document whose disappearance or theft you are reporting;
  • After acquiring the report, you need to go to the nearest diplomatic-consular mission of the Republic of Serbia. There you will be issued with a travel document for your return to Serbia (travel pass), once the procedure to establish your identity and citizenship has been duly completed (it would be helpful to have an ID or driver’s license as a proof of identity). We remind you that you cannot travel to other countries with this kid of travel document, you can only return to Serbia;
  • Please note that certain countries will require a visa for this kind of travel document. In most countries with which we have a visa-free regime, it does not apply to travel pass.  That said, it is necessary to obtain visas for the countries through which you will transit;
  • Report the theft to your bank and cancel the lost/stolen payment cards. Do this as soon as you notice their disappearance, being late can cost you greatly;
  • Do not worry, if you do not have the assets and money to return home. There is a way for your family or friends to pay the money to the account of the diplomatic and consular mission, which will pay you on hand. Instruct your relatives or friends to contact the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Belgrade where they will be given detailed information on how to deliver the money to you.