Serbia Gambling Law

• Welcome!

  The law office Stanivukovic was founded in 1988 by Goran D. Stanivukovic, Attorney at Law. The office is situated in Novi Sad, the second largest city of the Republic of Serbia, approximately 70 km north of Belgrade. The activities of the office are conducted throughout the territory of the Republic of Serbia.

  With seven lawyers and a strong team of research and administrative staff, the Law office Stanivukovic renders advices and services of the highest quality tailored to the individual needs of each of its clients in all legal matters. Over the previous few years activities of the office have been directed at developing market entry strategies for potential foreign investors and advisory aimed at searching a positive framework for a successful privatization of national companies.

  Our office dedicates particular attention to ensure the best combination of quality and efficiency by applying contemporary methods, teamwork and expertise, with the maximum level of secrecy for our clients in accordance to the legal framework.

  Check more on our areas of practice in section 'Practice areas'.

• Practice Areas

  • General commercial law
  • Mergers and acquisitions
  • Privatization
  • Concessions
  • Foreign investments
  • Competition law
  • Securities
  • International commercial law
  • Bankruptcy and liquidation
  • Private international law
  • Labor law
  • Tax law
  • Family law
  

  • Inheritance law
  • Intellectual property law
  • Real estate
  • Rehabilitation and restitution
  • Contracts
  • Tort law
  • Consumer law
  • Arbitration
  • Alternative dispute resolution
  • Human rights
  • Immigration law
  • Judicial, administrative and other procedures
  

• Attorneys

  Goran Stanivukovic

  stanivukovic@lawoffice.rs
  Date of birth: 1962
  

  Education:
  - 1991 Academy of American and International Law, Dallas, Texas, specialist studies of company law
  - 1982-1986 Law Faculty of Novi Sad, Graduated lawyer
  

  Work experience:
  - 1988–today Attorney at Law
  

  Foreign languages:
  - English

  Radivoje Jovic

  jovic@lawoffice.rs
  Date of birth: 1962
  

  Education:
  - 1982-1987 Law Faculty of Novi Sad, Graduated lawyer
  

  Work experience:
  - 1990–today Attorney at Law
  

  Foreign languages:
  - English
  - French
  - Russian
  

  Dorde Jeftic, LL.M.

  jeftic@lawoffice.rs
  Date of birth: 1967
  

  Education:
  - 1994-1995 Law Faculty in Heidelberg, Germany, LL.M.
  - 1986-1991 Law Faculty of Novi Sad, Graduated lawyer
  

  Work experience:
  - 1998-today Attorney at Law
  - 1997-1998 BanCor Consulting Group, Novi Sad – Executive Director
  

  Foreign languages:
  - German
  - English
  

  Dusan Pavlica

  pavlica@lawoffice.rs
  Date of birth: 1935
  

  Education:
  - 1956-1961 Law Faculty of Belgrade, Graduated lawyer
  

  Work experience:
  - 1972-today Attorney at Law
  - 1962-1972 Zitarska industrija Backa Topola, lawyer
  

  Sinisa Novkovic, PhD

  novkovic@lawoffice.rs
  Date of birth: 1983
  

  Education:
  - 2008-2015 Law Faculty of Novi Sad, PhD
  - 2006-2007 Law Faculty of Novi Sad, LL.M.
  - 2002-2006 Law Faculty of Novi Sad, Graduated lawyer
  

  Work experience:
  - 2008-today Attorney at Law
  

  Foreign languages:
  - English
  

  Sinisa Colevic

  colevic@lawoffice.rs
  Date of birth: 1985
  

  Education:
  - 2004-2009 Law Faculty of Novi Sad, Graduated lawyer
  

  Work experience:
  - 2011–today Attorney at Law
  

  Foreign languages:
  - English
  - German
  

  Sanja Dragic, LL.M.

  dragic@lawoffice.rs
  Date of birth: 1984
  

  Education:
  - 2009-2011 Lund University Faculty of Law, in cooperation with Raoul Wallenberg Institute, LL.M. in International Human Rights Law
  - 2008-2009 Law Faculty of Novi Sad, LL.M.
  - 2003-2008 Law Faculty of Novi Sad, Graduated lawyer
  

  Work experience:
  - 2012–today Attorney at Law
  - January - April 2011 Registry of the European Court of Human Rights, Legal Division – trainee
  

  Foreign languages:
  - English
  - French
  

• References

  • ALPOS D.D., Sentjur, Slovenia
  • ARAGO Rt., Budapest, Hungary
  • AVON POLYMER PRODUCTS LIMITED, Bradford on Avon, England
  • AVON SPENCER MOULTON, Malesherbes, France
  • BANINI AD Kikinda, Serbia
  • BEOHEMIJA DOO Beograd, Serbia
  • BETONUT, Budapest, Hungary
  • BRIGL & BERGMEISTER - PAPIRNICA VEVCE, Ljubljana, Slovenia
  • BUDACASH, Budapest, Hungary
  • CENTROPROIZVOD Surcin, Serbia
  • COMPAGNIE MEDICALI RIUNITE S.r.l, Pordenone, Italy
  • CONSOLIS SAS, Paris, France
  • COPECHIM, Paris, France
  • COSUN U.A., The Netherlands
  • DAD DRAXELMEIER doo, Zrenjanin, Serbia
  • DDOR Novi Sad ado, Novi Sad, Serbia
  • DONCAFE GROUP, Belgrade, Serbia
  • ECOTEQ doo, Belgrade, Serbia
  • ELOPAK TRADING A.G. Switzerland
  • FABRIKA ULJA BANAT AD Nova Crnja, Serbia
  • FONDIARIA - SAI, Milan, Italy
  • GEBRS. VAN STOLK, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
  • H.T.H. BENELUX B.V., Baarn, The Netherlands

  • HUNGARIA-Kozraktarozasi Zrt., Budapest, Hungary
  • HUNGUEST HOTELS Budapest, Hungary
  • ICOPAL SK, Slovakia
  • IMPOL d.d. Slovenska Bistrica, Slovenia
  • INSTITUT ZA RATARSTVO I POVRTARSTVO, Novi Sad, Serbia
  • INTEREXPO, Ptuj, Slovenia
  • ISOVOLTA A.G., Austria
  • JADRAN, Sezana, Slovenia
  • KATHREIN-WERKE KG, Rosenheim, Germany
  • KOMPAS, Ljubljana, Slovenia
  • LIONSEEDS, Italy
  • MELLON TECHNOLOGIES, Greece
  • MERKUR d.d. Ljubljana, Slovenia
  • NEOPLANTA ad, Novi Sad, Srbija
  • NGO CINS, Rome, Italy
  • NOKIA INTERNATIONAL OY, Finland
  • S.F.I.R. Societa Fondaria Industriale Romagnola S.p.A, Cesena, Italy
  • SAFARI INTERNATIONAL S.r.l., Rome, Italy
  • STET Societa Finanziaria Telefonica S.p.A., Italy
  • SZEGEDI PAPRIKA, Szeged, Hungary
  • TELECOM ITALIA S.p.A., Italy
  • VALKARTON, Logatec, Slovenia
  • VOEST ALPINE INTERTRADING, Linz Austria

• Contact

  We are located in the vicinity of the court building in Novi Sad, Sremska street no. 4. Our offices are on the second floor.

  If you entered the city from the North side (from the Belgrade-Subotica high-way), drive all the way to the railway station building, and then turn left on Bulevar oslobodenja. Turn left once again on the fourth traffic light and you will enter Maksima Gorkog street. On the first crossing turn left once more to Sremska street. We are there, in the first building on the left side of the street, on the corner of Sremska street and Carica Milica square.

  If you entered the city from the South-East side, by crossing one of the bridges on the Danube river, continue driving on the road going by the river bank, until you come to a crossing where you will turn to Maksima Gorkog street. On the fifth crossing, after the gas station, turn right. We are there, in the first building on the left side of the street, on the corner of Sremska street and Carica Milica square.

  Map

  
  Law office Stanivukovic
  Sremska 4/II, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia
  tel/fax:
  +381 21 4720 412
  +381 21 4720 899
  +381 21 4720 008
  

1. Serbia Gambling Law Philippines
2. Serbia Gambling Law 2020
3. Serbia Gambling Law Changes
4. Serbia Gambling Laws

Serbia offers many choices for sports bettors, although the legality may be questionable at times. It is one of the six independent counties formed after the breakup of Yugoslavia. Serbia is landlocked country, positioned where Central Europe crosses into Southeastern Europe. Prior to 2008 Kosovo also formed part of Serbia, although now it is now recognized as an independent country by the majority of UN member states.

ICLG - Gambling Laws and Regulations - covers common issues in gambling laws and regulations – including relevant authorities and legislation, application for a licence, licence restrictions, digital media, enforcement and liability – in 37 jurisdictions. Published: ICLG.com Practice Areas Gambling Serbia. This is a discussion on Online gambling is illegal in Serbia??! Within the online poker forums, in the Poker Rooms section; Hello. I played poker in 888 room and now i can't make deposit, and i.

In this guide to online sports betting you can first find a quick overview of how the industry has developed in Serbia. Then the online betting is looked at along with the taxation laws applied to the public. Following this you can see how the different sites accommodate Serbian players before finishing off with thoughts on how sports betting in Serbia might change in the future.

Serbia Gambling Law Philippines

Early Regulation and Changes in Serbia

After the Yugoslav states separated in the 1990s, Serbia continued to keep the 1964 laws applied to all forms of gambling. This meant operators had to first gain a license from the government which quickly led to gambling becoming a state run operation. Despite a casino opening in Belgrade in the late 1960s, the majority of operators were only allowed to offer a football forecasting game from dedicated kiosks and shops, which were also focused on the capital.

In the aftermath of the 1990s wars a lot of Serbia was left devastated both politically and structurally. In this environment sports betting and other forms of gambling attracted a strong criminal element and illegal bookmakers were easy to find. It was not until 2004, as the state moved to a more democratic government, that they were able to address this.

The Games Of Chance Act came into effect in 2005 ^[1] and allowed all forms of gambling to become regulated and opened up the door for private companies. Prior to this there were 300 legal betting shops in Serbia, a number which rose to 1,728 after the 2004 legislation and gaming taxes and fees provided €155m in revenue to the Serbian government in the three years to 2008 ^[2].

Despite the increase of legal sports betting operations the concentration still falls in and around Belgrade, and the unregulated operations are still rife throughout the rest of the country. The largest legal operator is the Meridan Group which operates many of the Belgrade shops and has launched their own online bookie after becoming licensed by Malta in 2008.

Legislation Introduced and Access to Gambling Sites Blocked

While the rise in online betting sites grew throughout the 2000s, it was not until 2011 that Serbia addressed the online betting industry with legislation^[3]. Until that point any company could provide betting in Serbia without breaking any laws and without paying any taxes to the government. The legislation laid out the rules for operating an online business within its jurisdiction including taxes and charges along with the stipulation any company providing online games had to have servers with Serbia’s borders.

This was followed up a few months later when ISPs were instructed to block access to 70 gambling sites ^[4]. These included large industry names like Bwin.Party, 888, Betfair, Skybet and William Hill. This caused initial worries in the industry although it soon became apparent that the ISPs did not enforce the block, despite initial threats of prosecution, as they felt the order had no legal grounds. Some companies did pull out of their own accord due to legitimacy concerns elsewhere in the world, the fact the Serb market was not big enough to risk operating there or due to software deals they have with PlayTech, who also supply software to the Serbia’s State Lottery and their betting sites.

Overall the effects were far milder than expected as there has been no follow up to enforce these rules by the government. Furthermore there are no laws in place to prevent citizens using international betting sites so you can still access the majority of sites with no interference. Ensure the betting sites you choose are respectable and licensed if you choose to do this.

Serbian Gambling Taxes

Serbia Gambling Law 2020

There has been no indication from the state that they intend to tax profits individuals make from gambling. Even if this was to change, with many companies operating a grey market, with no clear enforcement by Serbia, it seems unlikely the systems would be in place to correctly tax the public.

You Can Access Foreign Online Sportsbooks But Euros Are the Best Option

Apart from the few state licensed operators there are some operators providing sports betting in the Serb language as well as customer support, although not a large number. The vast majority of sites however offer the major European languages and Russian. It is a similar story with trying to use the Dinar and in most cases when you deposit your funds will have to be exchanged and stored in Euros. This is a slight inconvenience as fees are normally deducted for currency conversions and you have to wager in Euros.

Deposits can be made using Serbian credit and debit cards, including those with Visa and MasterCard branding. E-Wallets such as Neteller and Skrill also provide a quick online method and by having your wallet in Euros, it can cut out some of the currency exchanges when moving funds between sites.

Possible Regulations to Come in Serbia

There were suggestions that Serbia may look to further regulate the online market in 2014 – although there has been no sign of this yet. As it is things seem set to continue as they are for now with a handful of state regulated sites among many international choices. This also makes sense when you consider that Serbia is attempting to join the EU soon, where it may be forced to allow EU licensed sites to operate regardless of anything implemented now.

Serbia Gambling Law Changes

References

Serbia Gambling Laws

[1]Serbia– A Regulatory Report – Chapter 2 – Gambling Compliance
[2]Serbia– A Regulatory Report – Chapter 3 – Gambling Compliance
[3]Serbia Creates Brand New and Well-Regulated Laws Concerning Online Gambling – JAKTA
[4]Serbia Orders Blocking of 70 Sites – Calvin Ayre