Release from Serbian Citizenship: Documents and Practice

Legal review: 5 November 2026. This practical supplement accompanies our main article on release from Serbian citizenship. The original Serbian article was published in 2019; experiences in individual cases from that period do not establish general requirements for current applications.

Check whether release is actually required

Release is often sought for naturalisation abroad, but the other country’s current rules must be checked first. Germany has generally accepted multiple nationality since 27 June 2024. Austria generally requires applicants for Austrian naturalisation to give up their previous nationality, subject to applicable exceptions and the competent authority’s assessment. Eligibility for release under Serbian law does not itself establish that release is needed for a foreign procedure.

Prepare documents for the individual case

The starting points are identity, birth and Serbian citizenship particulars, and existing foreign citizenship or evidence of future acquisition. The authorities also examine statutory obligations, relevant family property obligations towards persons living in Serbia, military obligations and relevant criminal proceedings or imprisonment in Serbia. There is no universal checklist of certificates that every applicant must personally obtain.

Information held in official records is obtained under applicable procedural rules. For example, the Serbian Embassy in Berlin provides for official retrieval of Serbian birth and citizenship records where applicants do not hold them. Additional evidence depends on the circumstances and receiving authority. Check current forms, appointments and fees with that authority. An account of practice in 2019 cannot establish today’s fee or processing time.

Foreign documents and translations

Determine separately whether each foreign document is exempt from legalisation, requires an Apostille or requires full diplomatic or consular legalisation. The issuing country, document type and applicable treaty matter. Multilingual civil-status extracts may qualify for a convention exemption. A translation may be prepared in Serbia or abroad if applicable authentication requirements are met. An Apostille is not required on every foreign document.

Applications involving children

A parent applying for their own release may include a child under 18. The other parent’s consent and the consent of a child over 14 are required. Where parents are divorced, the application is filed by the parent entrusted with the child’s care by a final judgment. If the other parent refuses consent, has an unknown domicile or has been deprived of legal capacity or parental rights, Article 30 requires the competent guardianship authority’s opinion on the child’s interests. A custody judgment alone does not automatically remove the need for consent.

Service of the decision and nationality safeguards

Serbian citizenship ends when the release decision is served, under the rules on compulsory personal service. Coordinate the foreign assurance’s validity, service and the remaining foreign naturalisation steps. It would be incorrect to promise that an applicant can never become stateless.

If foreign citizenship is not acquired within one year from the date the release decision was made and the person remains stateless, Article 32 provides for annulment on their written application. That application must be submitted within three months after the one-year period expires. Restoration is not automatic. Any later admission or reacquisition of Serbian citizenship requires examination of the appropriate legal ground.

Petrović Mojsić & Partners assists with the legal basis, evidence and procedural steps. Our citizenship guide explains the distinctions between release, renunciation and admission.

Official sources

Serbian MFA: citizenship; Serbian MFA: document legalisation and translations; Serbian Embassy in Berlin; German citizenship rules; Austrian nationality rules.

The governing legislation is the Serbian Citizenship Act (Official Gazette of RS, Nos. 135/2004, 90/2007 and 24/2018). For an assessment of your documents and procedure, use our contact page.

Original Serbian article: Attorney at Law Dušan Vujičić. Legal review and English update: Attorney at Law Damir Petrović · Petrović Mojsić & Partners.