Does my spouse get the right to work?

If you are a foreigner living here, yes: according to the government's guidance, an adult who gets residence by joining an adult foreigner also gets the right to work, without a separate permit. If you are a Serbian citizen, ask us and we confirm it for your case.

What does it cost for a spouse and two children?

Our fees are €450 for the spouse and €300 for each child, €1,050 for the three. The state charges each of them 28,098 RSD, about €240 a person, or less if you are a Serbian citizen, since the approval fee is then halved. Translation of the marriage and birth certificates comes on top, per page.

Is a partner we are not married to treated like a spouse?

The law includes a partner you live with outside marriage. Without a marriage certificate the relationship has to be shown in other ways, so expect a heavier file.

Can my parents join me?

Only in exceptional cases, such as a parent who depends on you and has no one to care for them at home. The exception is narrow, so ask before you plan on it.

How long are their permits granted for?

Until your own permit expires, at most. Renew everyone's together, before yours runs out.

Serbia Family Reunification | Visa and Residence for Spouse and Children

Total cost calculator

Choose what you need and see the whole bill: our fees, the state's and the translator's, line by line and added up.

What do you need?

A spouse, and children if any, joining someone who lives in Serbia.

Your passport · Decides whether a D visa comes first

Include

Pages to translate

4

Every foreign document needs a court-certified translation: birth and marriage certificates, diplomas, bank statements.

Children joining

0

To get started

≈ €806

Our fees: €450
State fees: ≈ €24028,098 RSD
Translation: €116

Line by line

Family reunification, spouseOur fee: €450
Temporary residence, state fees, per personState430 RSD application · 23,450 RSD approval · 2,190 RSD card · 2,028 RSD card production: 28,098 RSD≈ €240
Court-certified translationTranslator4 × €29: €116

Then every month

Nothing recurring for this one.

Our fees are fixed, and accounting is a floor. State fees are in dinars, shown in euros at 117 to the euro, and were checked on 11 October 2026. Translation is per page of 1,800 characters.

Not included: health insurance, which depends on your age.

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Who can join you

The Law on Foreigners counts the people below as close family. The person they join must be a Serbian citizen, or a foreigner holding temporary residence, permanent residence or asylum in Serbia.

A spouse, or a partner you live with outside marriage
Unmarried children under 18: born in or outside marriage, adopted, or stepchildren
A parent of a minor child
Other relatives only in exceptional cases, such as someone who depends on you and has no one to care for them at home

One application per person

There is no family file. Each family member applies separately, pays their own state fees and gets their own residence card, so a family of four is four applications, filed together.

Each file proves the same three things: the family tie, the means to live here, and a place to live. Close family of a Serbian citizen are spared the proof of funds and health insurance; everyone else provides both.

The order things happen in

The slow part is the paperwork from home, so it starts first, while your own status is being settled.

1
Your status comes first
Your citizenship or residence permit is the ground. If you are applying yourself, your family's applications follow once yours is approved.
2
Certificates from home
Marriage and birth certificates, apostilled in the country that issued them, then translated here by a court translator.
3
A D visa where a passport needs one
Family members whose passport needs a visa for Serbia get a D visa for family reunification at the consulate first. Visa-free passports apply from inside Serbia.
4
Applications and biometrics
One application each on the government portal, then fingerprints and a photo at the police station. The police may ask to see you together.
5
Cards, then renewals together
Each permit runs until yours expires, so renew everyone's at the same time.

Work and permanent residence

According to the government's guidance, an adult who gets residence by joining an adult foreigner here also gets the right to work in Serbia, with no permit of their own. For the family of a Serbian citizen we confirm it case by case.

Years on family reunification are temporary residence like any other, so they count towards permanent residence in the same way.

When you join a Serbian citizen

The state charges half the approval fee, and there is no proof of funds or health insurance to file. What the file rests on is the certificate: the marriage certificate for a spouse, the birth certificate for a child.

Documents required

A passport for each family member, valid beyond the stay applied for
Marriage certificate, apostilled and translated by a Serbian court translator
Birth certificate for each child, apostilled and translated
Your residence permit, or your Serbian ID if you are a citizen
Proof of funds: payslips, an income statement or a bank statement
Health insurance for each family member
Proof of accommodation, a lease or a property record, and the white card
A photo and the paid state fees

What it costs

Family reunification, spouse	€450
Family reunification, per child	€300
D visa filePer person, only where a passport needs a visa for Serbia	€150
Court-certified translationPer page: the marriage and birth certificates	€29
Government feesPer person, itemised below	at cost

Filing guarantee: if an application is returned or refused because of an error on our side, we correct it and refile without charging our fee again. Approval is the authority's decision, and no honest firm can guarantee it.

Government fees

What the state charges for this, on top of our fee. You pay it yourself, or we pay it for you at cost, with the receipts.

Application feeWith every residence or unified permit application, paid on the government portal	430 RSD≈ €4
Temporary residenceTariff no. 37, for the approval	23,450 RSD≈ €200
Temporary residence, family of a Serbian citizenHalf the standard fee, for a spouse, partner or relative of a Serbian citizen	11,725 RSD≈ €100
Residence cardTariff no. 37, for issuing the card	2,190 RSD≈ €19
Card productionMinistry of the Interior, for producing the card, since 12 September 2026	2,028 RSD≈ €17
White card (address registration)No fee at the police station	Free
Temporary residence, in total	28,098 RSD≈ €240

Checked against the tariff on 11 October 2026. The state re-indexes these amounts every July. Euro figures are approximate, at 117 dinars to the euro. Citizens of North Macedonia, Mongolia, Cyprus and Belarus pay only the application fee for residence, under bilateral agreements.

Frequently asked questions

Yes, as soon as you hold residence or citizenship here. Each of them applies separately on family reunification, and the applications are filed together.

When this is not the right route for you

The person your family would join has no Serbian residence or citizenship yet. There is nothing to join until they do.
You want relatives other than a spouse, partner or children under 18 to come, and there is no dependency that would make an exception.
You expect the family's permits to outlast yours. They end with it.