Business entities not to need stamps in payment operations from October 1

Beginning with October 1, business entities in Serbia will no longer need to use stamps in authorizing payment orders in payment operations in the country and abroad, for opening new accounts, specimen signatures, bills of exchange and other documents.

The National Bank of Serbia announced that it had adopted amendments to by-laws in the field of payment operations, thereby specifying the regulations related to the non-bindingness of use of stamps by business entities.

Although, as said, the National Bank of Serbia practically abolished the mandatory use of stamps by business entities in payment operations back in 2014, by adopting the Law on Payment Services and the accompanying by-laws, it was apparent that, in the banking practice, the use of stamps by business entities in everyday operations, when they were not using the advantages of electronic and mobile banking, still predominated, for example, in authorizing payment orders at the counter.

In order to enhance and harmonize the practice of banks and remove all uncertainties between business entities and entrepreneurs, the adopted decisions clearly emphasize that banks mustn’t refuse to provide payment services due to the client’s refusal to use a stamp in their dealings with the bank.

As pointed out, beginning with October 1, business entities that have had open accounts and used stamps to authorize payment orders in the country and abroad may simply file a written request to the bank for not using the stamp anymore and the bank is obliged to secure the filing of signed payment orders without the client’s obligation to authorize them with a stamp and without a need for an annex to the contract the very next day.

From October 1, legal persons and entrepreneurs opening new accounts are not obliged to authorize requests for opening accounts, specimen signature cards, payment orders, bills of exchange and other documents related to payment operations, unless they explicitly request to do so from the bank.

The adopted decisions, it is added, also contribute to the meeting of one of the tasks the government has defined in its program, for whose carrying out an inter-institutional Working Group for abolishing the mandatory use of stamps and issuing paper invoices was formed, including representatives of the NBS. The main goals include the reduction of costs in the business sector and improving Serbia’s position on the World Bank’s Doing Business list.

At the same time, the NBS encourages business entities to use the options and advantages of electronic banking to a full extent.

Narodna banka Srbije Beograd

NBS

bindingness of use of stamps by business entities

non bindingness of use of stamps by business entities

payment operations

Law on Payment Services

authorizing payment services

use of stamps

Working Group for abolishing the mandatory use of stamps and issuing paper invoices

Doing Business list