Dealing with Construction Permits in
Serbia
Listed below is detailed summary of the procedures, time and costs to build a warehouse —including obtaining necessary licenses and permits, completing required notifications and inspections and obtaining utility connections.
The information appearing on this page was collected as part of the Doing Business project, which measures and compares regulations relevant to the life cycle of a small- to medium-sized domestic business in 183 economies. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2011.
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Building a warehouse
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Estimated Warehouse Value:
RSD 42,005,842
- City: Belgrade
| No. |
Procedure |
Time to Complete |
Associated Costs |
| 1 |
Request and obtain extract from the urban plan or act on zoning conditions
A request for either of these documents should be submitted to the municipality in the area where the building plot is situated. The extract from the urban plan can be obtained only if an urban plan for the site exists. An excerpt from an urban plan contains all the conditions and data necessary for the development of a conceptual project design and, in particular, construction line and height restrictions, and conditions, in accordance with regulations.
If BuildCo is interested in building a structure in an area for which development of an urban plan is not envisioned, on the request of the interested party, the municipality issues an act on zoning conditions, in accordance with the space plan. However, if the construction site is located within an area for which an urban plan exists (adopted on the basis of old laws), the act on zoning conditions must be issued in conformity with this urban plan, until the new urban plan takes effect. The required plans and documents for connecting to roads and other communal infrastructure must be obtained, at the investor’s expense, from the municipality that has jurisdiction for issuing a building permit for the warehouse.
Agency: Republic Geodesy Institute
|
30 days
|
RSD 60,000
|
| * 2 |
Request and obtain proof of ownership of the construction land
Proof of ownership is provided either by the appropriate municipal court (with a land register extract) or the Republic Geodesy Institute (an extract from the newly established cadastre).
It takes on average upto 10 days for issuance of the land register extract by the appropriate municipal court; the cost is RSD 130. The cadastre extract can be obtained in a day from the Republic Geodesy Institute at a cost from RSD 1,300 to RSD 1,500 (the price depends on the number of pages). Some areas of Belgrade are now updated and incoporated in the cadastral system. However, in the case considered here, only proof of ownership from the municipal court is needed.
Agency: Republic Geodesy Institute
|
6 days
|
RSD 130
|
| 3 |
Request and obtain main construction project clearance from the electric energy authority
The timelimit for issuing the technical project clearances from various authorities is 30 days, concurrently. However, in practice it takes much longer and requires various follow-ups from applicants.
Agency: Electricity Energy Authority
|
45 days
|
RSD 10,000
|
| * 4 |
Request and obtain main construction project clearance from the water and sewerage authority
Preparation of the conditions regarding water and sewerage service costs RSD 70,500; consent (clearance) costs RSD 44,000; and connection to the public network costs RSD 45,000. These figures cover the costs of connection.
The timelimit for issuing the technical project clearances from various authorities is 30 days, concurrently. However, in practice it takes much longer and requires various follow-ups from applicants.
Agency: Water and Sewage Authority
|
60 days
|
RSD 159,500
|
| * 5 |
Request and obtain main construction project clearance from the labor inspection – department for safety at work
The timelimit for issuing the technical project clearances from various authorities is 30 days, concurrently. However, in practice it takes much longer and requires various follow-ups from applicants.
Agency: Department for Safety at Work
|
60 days
|
RSD 2,000
|
| * 6 |
Request and obtain main construction project clearance from the heating authority
The building authority will not approve the project without a clearance from the heating authority.
The timelimit for issuing the technical project clearances from various authorities is 30 days, concurrently. However, in practice it takes much longer and requires various follow-ups from applicants.
Agency: Heating Authority
|
45 days
|
RSD 12,500
|
| * 7 |
Request and obtain main construction project clearance from the telecommunications authority
The telecommunications authority makes a list of conditions after 10 days from when the application was submitted. After that, the company (BuildCo) prepares the relevant drawings and designs according to the specified norms. The overall time has decreased from 60 days to 45 days because of more efficient internal document processing.
The timelimit for issuing the technical project clearances from various authorities is 30 days, concurrently. However, in practice it takes much longer and requires various follow-ups from applicants.
Agency: Telekom Serbia
|
45 days
|
RSD 20,000
|
| * 8 |
Request and obtain main construction project clearance from the traffic authority
According to oral information provided by the traffic authority, this clearance can be obtained within 30 days at a cost of RSD 5,900.
The timelimit for issuing the technical project clearances from various authorities is 30 days, concurrently. However, in practice it takes much longer and requires various follow-ups from applicants.
Agency: Traffic Authority
|
60 days
|
RSD 5,900
|
| 9 |
Request and obtain building permit
Since Dec 31, 2008, by the new Statute of City of Belgrade, municipalities only handle building permits for projects below 800 sqm. This particular reform made the different districts of Belgrade more equal and defined the types of activities that are handled by the City versus the municipal offices. Everything above 800 sqm is now handled by the the City of Belgrade Secretariat for urbanism and construction work (Sekretarijat za urbanizam i građevinske poslove).
A request for a building permit should be submitted to the Secretariat for Urbanism and Construction Affairs of Belgrade City Municipality in charge of the territory on which the building plot is situated, along with the following documentation:
- Extracts from the urban plan issued within 6 months before the filing of the request for a building permit.
- Preliminary design project plan that conforms to the urban plan mentioned above.
- Evidence of the ownership status or rental status of the building plot.
Although, the law stipulates the time limit of 15 days, the Construction Department of Municipality of Belgrade takes on average anywhere between 2-6 months, and sometimes even more.
Agency: Secretariat for Urbanism and Construction Affairs of Belgrade City Municipality
|
90 days
|
RSD 450
|
| * 10 |
Request and obtain technical control of the main project
A duly licensed company other than the one that furnished the main construction project plan must verify whether the main construction project has been made in accordance with the law and with the technical standards, and whether it has all necessary clearances described in Procedures 3–9. The main construction project must be certified and stamped to that effect.
Agency: Licensed Company
|
10 days
|
RSD 92,071
|
| 11 |
Notify and obtain approval for commencement of works from municipality and pay city building land tax
The start of construction activities must be reported to the municipality at least 8 days before commencement. The notification must be accompanied by all necessary documentation described in Procedures 1–10 above, including the main construction project design and description of the equipment to be used, to be certified by the municipality within eight days of submission. After this certification has been obtained, construction may commence.
The company must pay the land usage tax that is charged by the City Building Directorate and varies from EUR 50 to EUR 60 per sq. m. of the building plot. Construction activities cannot begin before this fee is paid. Proof of payment of this fee (if not agreed otherwise with the City Building Directorate) is submitted to the municipality along with the other documents mentioned above, which are submitted as attachments to the notification to the municipality.
The cost depends on the city suburb in which the facility is built. Prices of land tax differ from one suburb to the other. Assuming a cost of EUR 50 (RSD 4,136) per square meter, the total cost in this case would be RSD 4,136 x 1,300.6 sq. m. = RSD 5,379,281.
In practice it may take anywhere around 10 days to undertake all necessary steps to complete this procedure.
Agency: Urbanism and Construction Department
|
1 day
|
RSD 5,379,281
|
| 12 |
Nominate expert supervisor of the work
Expert supervision of the construction must be provided during the entire period of construction by a licensed independent engineer. This person cannot be affiliated with BuildCo. The expert supervisor visits the site once a week on average.
Agency: Expert supervisor - independent
|
1 day
|
RSD 455,000
|
| 13 |
Request and obtain consent regarding the connection of the plot of land to the nearest public road
BuildCo must undertake this procedure should it require access to or use of the nearest public road.
Agency: Public Roads Authority
|
30 days
|
RSD 61,000
|
| * 14 |
Request and obtain consent regarding regulations on environmental protection
Agency: Srbijavode
|
30 days
|
RSD 80,000
|
| * 15 |
Request and obtain water and sewerage connection
Agency: JP Vodovod-Kanalizacija d.o.o
|
10 days
|
RSD 159,500
|
| * 16 |
Request and obtain phone connection
Agency: Telekom Srbija a.d.
|
7 days
|
RSD 12,000
|
| 17 |
Request technical examination of the building from municipality commission
After all construction work has been completed, a municipal commission examines whether the constructed building complies with the issued building permit, all applicable laws and regulations, and technical standards. The municipality issues the use permit within 7 days after the commission responsible for the technical examination reports that the building is suitable for use.
The municipal commission does not issue the use permit if the building is not in compliance with technical standards and technical documentation. Instead, it orders BuildCo to correct all irregularities and, after re-examining the building, it issues the use permit. If the irregularities cannot be fixed and use of the building is dangerous, the commission orders the demolition of the building.
The City of Belgrade's administrative tax (the cost to complete this procedure) is now RSD 120.
Agency: Urbanism and Construction Department
|
1 day
|
RSD 120
|
| 18 |
Receive technical examination of the building from municipality commission and obtain use permit
BuildCo must submit a formal request along with the building and the use permits. If there is a cadastral register in the area where the warehouse is constructed, the company should register the building at the cadastral registry. Otherwise, the building should be registered in the land books. Article 125 of the Law on Planning and Construction provides for a time limit of 7 days for this permit to be issued following the issuance of technical examination. However, there is no time-limit for the commission to perform technical examination. In practice, therefore it may take upto 6 months for the commission to convene and issue its decision.
Agency: Urbanism and Construction Department
|
15 days
|
RSD 25,686
|
| 19 |
Register the building
BuildCo must submit a formal request along with the building permit and the use permit. If there is a cadastral register in the area where the warehouse was constructed, the company should register the building in the cadastral registry. Otherwise, the building should be registered in the land books.
Agency: Republic Geodesy Institute
|
45 days
|
RSD 4,000
|
* Takes place simultaneously with another procedure.