PASSPORT / REISEPASS / PASSEPORT

As of Monday, 3rd June 2019, the submission of the request for a new passport of the Republic of Serbia in the Embassy of the Republic of Serbia in Bern will not be possible without a previously scheduled appointment. Appointments can be scheduled each working day, from Monday to Friday (except on holidays), from 09-16 hours on the following telephone number: + 41 (0) 31 352 6353.

During the stay abroad, passports may serve as a proof of identity and citizenship of the Republic of Serbia of their holders. A passport can be used exclusively by the person to whose name it has been issued.

Please keep good care of your passports when traveling abroad. In case of a loss or damage, contact the nearest diplomatic mission or consular post of the Republic of Serbia as soon as possible.

It may be a good idea to make a copy of your biometric passport before departure, so that in the case it has been stolen or otherwise lost, you will have the necessary information to obtain a new one, report loss of the passport to the police, or obtain a travel document (laissez-passer / putni list).

Biometric passports of the Republic of Serbia are issued by the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Serbia.

In order to submit a request for the passport, a personal presence as well as the presence of a parent for an underage child is required.

The following documents should be submitted in order to get passport:

1. Identification document: an earlier issued Serbian biometric passport, a blue Yugoslavian passport or identity card;
2. Swiss residence permit (if it is in renewal procedure, then you should bring a certificate from the competent Swiss authority that the extension process has been undertaken). Dual citizens can show Swiss ID card or the Swiss passport.

Underage persons, regardless of age, shall get individual passports. They cannot be entered in their parents' passports. In addition to the documents listed above, both parents must appear in person to apply for a passport for a minor child. Certified written parental consent shall be required for a parent not able to appear in person. Certification by a Swiss notary is accepted, but in that case it is necessary to obtain an "apostille " stamp. Parental consent shall also be required for a parent who is a foreign national. Parents must bring their own passports and residence permits.

If a request for a passport for a child of divorced parents is submitted, where only one of the parents who is the child's legal guardian is present, it is necessary to show a divorce decision that clearly states that the applicant for the passport is a child’s guardian. It is also necessary to translate this part of the text of the court decision to Serbian language by an authorized court interpreter.

Citizens of the Republic of Serbia, born in one of the other republics of the former Yugoslavia (Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia, Macedonia, Montenegro), will not be able to submit a request for a new biometric passport of the Republic of Serbia if they have not been previously registered in birth registers that are kept in the Republic of Serbia. If you find yourself in this category of persons, please urgently and before submitting a request for a new biometric passport of the Republic of Serbia, initiate an appropriate administrative procedure in the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Public Administration and Local Self-Government and regulate this obligation. For more information, you can contact the Consular Section of the Embassy of the Republic of Serbia in Bern.

The applications will be processed within a 60-days legal deadline.

Diplomatic-consular missions shall not accept the applications for biometric passports for:
a) Children born abroad until their birth has been duly registered in civil registry books in Serbia, as well as their residence in Serbia and after they are assigned a JMBG (Personal identification number).
b) Persons who concluded marriage in front of a foreign authority and apply for a new passport with a changed family name unless the change of family name has been duly registered in civil registry books in Serbia.

Passports bearing the inscription "Federal Republic of Yugoslavia" (blue passports) ceased to be valid on 31 December 2011.

When picking up a finished biometric passport in the Embassy, personal presence of the requesting person is obligatory. It is necessary to bring along a confirmation of submission of the request for the passport (issued in the Embassy on the day that you have made a request) and an old passport (for its cancellation).

Underage children (less than 18 years of age), who did not give fingerprints, may be absent during the pickup of the finished passport. Underage person, who has given the fingerprints, must be present for the pickup of a new biometric travel document. The attendance of at least one parent who was present at the time of filing the application and who has signed the request for an underage person is obligatory.

Please take good care of the confirmation of the submitted passport request, since it contains the number that allows you to check on our website if your passport is ready for pickup.

TRAVEL DOCUMENT / REISEBESTÄTIGUNG / LAISSEZ-PASSER

If you have lost your passport, report the disappearance to the police in the country where the loss has occurred and request the written confirmation / report. With this confirmation, please contact the nearest diplomatic mission or consular post of the Republic of Serbia, which will undertake the procedure of determination of your identity and citizenship status and issue a travel document called „Putni list“ for return to the Republic of Serbia.

„Putni list“ is a travel document issued by diplomatic and consular missions in case of loss of passport, and serves its holder to return to Serbia. „Putni list“ ensures one trip, in one direction - to the Republic of Serbia. Upon returning to Serbia, it is necessary to apply for a new passport.

Adult persons should bring the following documents in order to get „Putni list“:

1. Document proving the citizenship of the Republic of Serbia – a certificate of citizenship of the Republic of Serbia (original, not older than one year) or a biometric ID card of the Republic of Serbia;
2. Document proving the identity – ID card or driver's license of the Republic of Serbia;
3. Police report confirming the loss of passport (Verlustanzeige) not older than 3 months;
4. Writen statement about the circumstances which led to the loss of the passport (received at the Embassy);
5. Filled out request for issuing a „Putni list“ (received at the Embassy);
6. Two colour photos, passport size (3.5 x 4.5 cm).

When submitting a request for a „Putni list“ for an underage person, it is obligatory for both parents with passports or ID cards of the Republic of Serbia to be present. If one of the parents is a foreigner, it is necessary to bring the ID card or passport of the country which he is a citizen of.

For the issuance of „Putni list“ for a newborn child, it is necessary to prior/at the same time, perform child's birth registration. You can find the list of the necessary documentation on our website in the section Consular services/Child's birth notification. The presence of both parents with passports or ID cards of the Republic of Serbia is obligatory, as well as the original Swiss birth certificate, not older than 6 months (in German, this form is called Auszug aus dem Geburtsregister, in French Extrait de l'acte de naissance, in the Italian Estratto dell'atto di nascita) and 2 color photos of a child, passport size (3.5 x 4.5 cm).

Please note: in the photo, no other person must be seen, only the face of the child; the child's eyes must be open. Please pay attention to the fact that child's birth notification is a prerequisite for obtaining a passport in Serbia. Otherwise, you won’t be able to return the child back to Switzerland because the travel document (laissez-passer / putni list) serves for one-way travel - to the Republic of Serbia. In order to return to Switzerland, you must apply for passport in Serbia.