Country guide
Serbia for nomads: dinar cards, cash and 15% crypto tax
By DmytroLast checked
- Currency
- RSD
- Crypto tax
- 15% on gains; 50% relief if reinvested
- Tax residence test
- 183 days in 12 months, or home / centre of interests
- Remote-work stay
- Temporary residence needed after 90 days
Short answer
Serbia uses the dinar (RSD) rather than the euro, so pay in dinars and change euros at an exchange office (menjačnica) when you need cash. Crypto gains are taxed at 15%, each quarter’s digital-asset income needs a PPDG-3R return within 120 days, and a stay of more than 90 days from entry needs temporary residence approval.
Crypto card availability
Serbia splits supervision: the National Bank of Serbia oversees virtual currencies and the Securities Commission oversees digital tokens. Check that your provider appears in the right register for the service it offers.
Paying on the trip
Serbia is outside the eurozone, so spending from a euro balance means a conversion each time.
Belgrade is card-friendly, while markets, taxis and smaller towns still expect cash in dinars.
Euros are widely held and exchanged, and many residents keep both currencies.
Banks and cards
Non-residents can apply for dinar and foreign-currency accounts. The Welcome to Serbia portal lists an identity document and evidence of temporary or permanent residence during the preceding year, and each bank adds its own checks and tariff.
Prepaid cards may be refused for hotel and car-rental deposits, so bring a debit or credit card with room for the hold.
Currency, ATMs and cash
At a menjačnica, compare the buying rate on the board before you hand over cash.
Crypto rules
The 15% rate applies to the gain as the law defines it, not to gross proceeds. Mining and pay received in crypto fall under other income rules.
The tax calendar on ePorezi, the Tax Administration’s portal, sets the PPDG-3R deadline for every quarter with a digital-asset transfer that can create a gain or a loss. You file the return yourself.
Reinvesting sale proceeds in a qualifying way can cut the capital-gains tax by 50%, through a 90-day investment route or a 12-month refund route. Partial reinvestment gives proportional relief, and a capital reduction by the company in the investment year or the following two years can revoke it.
Tax and residency
You can become resident through a home or a centre of business and vital interests in Serbia, or by spending at least 183 days in any 12-month period that begins or ends in the tax year. Count rolling periods, not only the calendar year.
Service income is taxed separately from crypto gains, under Serbia’s freelancer or lump-sum (paušal) entrepreneur regimes.
A bilateral agreement or a long-stay D visa can allow more than 90 days; temporary residence approval covers a stay beyond what they allow.
Checklist
- Decide whether to register as a freelancer or paušal entrepreneur for your service income.
- Get your bank’s document list, checks and tariff before you rely on a dinar or euro account.
- Set up ePorezi access and put each quarter’s PPDG-3R deadline in your calendar.
- Keep acquisition costs for every crypto lot.
- File your temporary residence request on the eForeigner portal before your permitted stay ends.
Sources
- Personal Income Tax Law applicable from 1 January 2026 — Serbian Tax Administration
- ePorezi portal: Tax calendar — Serbian Tax Administration
- Opening bank accounts for residents and non-residents — Welcome to Serbia government portal
- Frequently asked questions — eForeigner portal, Welcome to Serbia
- Digitalna imovina (Digital assets) — National Bank of Serbia
Tax, visa and residence rules depend on your situation, so confirm them with the official authority. How we compare