Serbia was one of the first countries in the region to introduce fully mandatory e-invoicing for all VAT-registered businesses. Since 1 January 2023, all B2B invoices must be processed through the central SEF platform (Sistema Elektronskih Faktura). Invoices sent outside the SEF are fiscally invalid.

Serbia is not an EU member state but a candidate member state. The country therefore does not follow the European ViDA regulation or the EN 16931 standard, but has set up its own national system.

Serbia uses a clearance model. This means that every invoice must be submitted to and approved by the central government platform SEF before the invoice is considered valid. The system is accessible at efaktura.gov.rs.

The process:

1. The supplier submits the invoice to the SEF platform in UBL 2.1 format
2. The SEF validates the invoice and registers it
3. The invoice is made available to the recipient via the SEF portal
4. The recipient accepts or rejects the invoice within the platform

Invoices sent outside the SEF (for example by email or PDF) have no fiscal validity. The SEF is therefore not just an exchange platform, but also the official invoice register.

The obligation applies to all VAT-registered businesses in Serbia, including:

• Domestic B2B transactions
• Supplies to the Serbian government (B2G)
• VAT representatives and permanent establishments of foreign businesses in Serbia

Foreign businesses that have a VAT registration or permanent establishment in Serbia must also invoice via the SEF.

The SEF accepts invoices in UBL 2.1 with a national Serbian profile. This profile contains Serbia-specific fields and validation rules. It is not the same as the European Peppol BIS 3.0 profile: the structure is comparable, but the validation rules and mandatory fields differ.

Serbia does not use the Peppol network. All invoice exchange runs through the SEF platform. For businesses invoicing Serbian customers from the EU, this means you cannot use a Peppol route. The invoice must be submitted via the SEF, directly or through a local intermediary.

If you invoice Serbian businesses or have a VAT registration in Serbia, you need to take the SEF into account. The key considerations:

• Invoices must be submitted via the SEF to be fiscally valid
• The format is UBL 2.1 with the Serbian national profile
• Peppol is not an option; you need a direct connection to the SEF or a local intermediary
• Foreign businesses with a Serbian VAT registration also fall under the obligation

• Advice and orientation: eConnect can advise you on the requirements of the Serbian SEF platform and the steps needed to invoice Serbian recipients compliantly.
• Format expertise: the PSB supports UBL 2.1 as a base format. For the specific Serbian profile requirements, eConnect can handle the mapping and validation.
• Partner network: for direct SEF integration, eConnect works with local partners who can act as intermediaries.

Note: Serbia is not an EU member state and falls outside the Peppol network. Invoicing Serbian customers requires a different route than the standard Peppol exchange.

Want to know how to invoice Serbian businesses? Contact our team.

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