Paying foreign suppliers and software subscriptions from a Serbian company

A Belgrade e-commerce company pays a German machinery supplier, a Chinese packaging manufacturer, a Dutch marketing consultant, Meta and Google for ads, and 14 software tools. The bank asks for an invoice behind each transfer. The accountant asks whether the consultant's invoice needs withholding tax. The CFO asks who signed up for the software subscriptions.

Documents for the bank

Serbian banks execute payments abroad on a documented basis. For each transfer they want the invoice, contract or other document showing what the payment is for. For goods, customs documents follow when the goods are imported. Prepare these with the payment order; missing documents are the usual reason a foreign payment is delayed.

Withholding tax on some services

Goods are simple. Some services bought from non-residents are not. Serbian law applies withholding tax to certain payments to foreign entities, including royalties and some services such as market research, consulting, auditing and legal services.

Tax treaties often reduce or remove the tax, provided the supplier gives a certificate of tax residence on the prescribed form before payment. Check each new type of service with your accountant before the first payment, not after.

Software and ads by card

SaaS tools and ad platforms usually charge cards. A single shared company card makes it hard to see who subscribed to what, and cancelling it breaks every subscription at once.

A better setup:

• one virtual card per tool or per team,
• a monthly limit on each card,
• a named owner for each card.

When a tool is no longer needed, its card is frozen without touching the others. See virtual cards for ad spend.

Supplier fraud

The most common loss in supplier payments is an email announcing new bank details. Confirm any change with a contact you already know, by phone, using a number you already hold, and require a second approver for the first payment to new details.

Paying into Serbia: the local rail

Source: National Bank of Serbia: IPS. Checked when this guide was last updated; the scheme's own page has the current figures.

Where Rivet fits

Rivet opens business accounts for registered companies after verification. A company registered in Serbia must check with its bank whether Serbian foreign exchange rules let it hold funds abroad. For companies registered elsewhere and run by Serbian founders, a Rivet business account pays suppliers in 120+ countries, issues Visa company cards with per-card limits, and from the Growth plan adds approvals on payouts. Rivet is not a bank; regulated partner institutions hold the funds.