Serbian Citizenship by Admission: Requirements and Procedure

Legal review: 5 November 2026.

Admission to Serbian citizenship depends on the statutory ground: permanent settlement, marriage, emigration, Serbian ethnicity or birth in Serbia. The governing legislation is the Law on Citizenship of the Republic of Serbia (Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia, Nos. 135/2004, 90/2007 and 24/2018).

General requirements — Article 14

A foreign national with approved permanent settlement in Serbia may apply if they:

• are at least 18 and have not been deprived of legal capacity;
• have obtained release from foreign citizenship, or provide evidence that release will be granted upon admission to Serbian citizenship;
• have continuously maintained a registered permanent domicile in Serbia for at least three years before applying; and
• submit a written declaration that they consider the Republic of Serbia their state.

Permanent settlement is an immigration status; registered permanent domicile is a separate requirement. Three years of temporary residence or physical presence alone is insufficient.

Release from foreign citizenship and statutory exceptions

The release condition is also satisfied by a stateless person or someone who proves that admission to Serbian citizenship will cause loss of their existing citizenship under that country’s law. If the foreign state prohibits release or imposes conditions the applicant cannot meet, the Law provides for a declaration renouncing foreign citizenship upon acquisition of Serbian citizenship. Renunciation or loss of previous citizenship is not required where it is impossible or cannot reasonably be expected. A declaration is not an unrestricted alternative to release and does not necessarily terminate foreign citizenship under foreign law.

Under Article 15, an applicant meeting the other general requirements may request a certificate confirming that admission will be granted. It is valid for two years and is used to obtain release from foreign citizenship.

Special grounds for admission

Persons born in Serbia — Article 16

A person born in Serbia may be admitted after at least two years of uninterrupted stay in Serbia immediately before applying, together with the prescribed written declaration. Article 16 does not add a requirement for approved permanent settlement or registered permanent domicile. Birth alone does not grant everyone citizenship: Articles 7–12 govern descent; Article 13 protects specified children born or found in Serbia with unknown or stateless parents, parents of unknown citizenship, or where the child is stateless.

Marriage — Article 17

A foreign national who has been in a marital union with a Serbian citizen for at least three years and has approved permanent settlement may be admitted upon submitting the prescribed declaration. This ground does not impose the general Article 14 requirement to obtain release from foreign citizenship.

Emigrants and descendants — Article 18

An emigrant from Serbia and their descendant may be admitted if they are at least 18, have not been deprived of legal capacity and submit the prescribed declaration. An emigrant left Serbia intending to live abroad permanently. Foreign-citizenship release and Serbian residence are not required. A spouse of someone admitted under this ground has a separate route with the prescribed declaration.

Persons of Serbian ethnicity living abroad — Article 23

A person of Serbian ethnicity who does not have a permanent domicile in Serbia is entitled to admission without release from foreign citizenship if they are at least 18, have not been deprived of legal capacity and submit the prescribed declaration. Article 23(2) also covers specified persons born in other former Yugoslav republics, with the relevant citizenship, who stay in Serbia as refugees, expelled or displaced persons, or fled abroad.

The historical ground for members of other peoples or ethnic communities under Article 23(3) is not generally open to new applications. Article 18 of the standalone provisions of the 2007 amendments limited applications under that paragraph to two years from the amendments’ entry into force. This limit does not apply to the ground for persons of Serbian ethnicity under Article 23(1).

Interest of the Republic of Serbia — Article 19

Admission of a foreign national whose admission would serve Serbia’s interest is decided by the Government on a proposal from the competent ministry. General prior-residence and release requirements do not apply to this special ground. Being an adult and retaining legal capacity do not alone justify admission: Serbia’s interest must be established and the competent authority must decide the case.

Admission of minor children — Article 20

Where both parents acquire Serbian citizenship by admission, the Law provides for acquisition by their child under 18. The procedure and the child’s details and documents remain necessary; registration should not be assumed automatic.

Where one parent acquires citizenship by admission, that parent requests admission for the child with the other parent’s consent. This covers children living in Serbia or abroad. A child older than 14 must consent in every Article 20 case, including where both parents acquire citizenship. Family circumstances and representation require individual assessment.

Reacquisition — Article 34

A special procedure is available to a person who was released from Serbian citizenship and acquired foreign citizenship, and to a person whose Serbian citizenship ended by release or renunciation at their parents’ request. It requires an application, age of at least 18, legal capacity not having been withdrawn, and the prescribed declaration. Personal renunciation as an adult does not automatically qualify; alternative grounds require separate assessment.

Applications, documents and foreign public documents

Apply to the competent internal affairs authority for your domicile or place of stay, or through the competent Serbian mission, personally or through a representative where legally permitted. The Ministry of the Interior decides, subject to statutory exceptions including Article 19.

Prepare identity and civil-status information, the declaration, evidence of the chosen ground and fee payment. Settlement approval, marriage, descent or former-citizenship evidence and a child’s consents are relevant only where required. Available official-register information is obtained ex officio under the law; older checklists do not require applicants to obtain every certificate themselves.

For foreign public documents, establish whether a treaty exemption, an Apostille or full legalisation applies. Translations depend on the document and receiving authority; they need not invariably be prepared in Serbia. Consult the Serbian Ministry of Foreign Affairs citizenship guidance and legalisation guidance, together with the competent mission’s current local instructions.

Serbian permission to retain foreign citizenship does not determine the other country’s rules. Check those before applying.

Legal assistance and related articles

Petrović Mojsić & Partners assists with the legal ground, documentation and representation. See our detailed article on release from Serbian citizenship and guide to release, renunciation and admission, or use our contact page.

Author: Attorney at Law Damir Petrović. This article provides general information and does not replace advice on an individual case.