Technical Instructions When Choosing Business Name for Company in Serbia

When establishing a firm in Serbia, besides defined rules, you can often meet many irregularities when choosing a company’s name, whether it is the case of a legal person or an entrepreneur. For example, suppose you are in the formation of your first firm or a starter in business. In that case, we advise you to respect all the legal rules related to choosing a business name and a title which are obligatory for everyone having a business in Serbia. Those are:

• The business name must contain a title, a legal form, and the place of the company’s main office. It can contain other elements if that is written by law following the legal form;
• The business name can not offend morals, can not contain abusive words, and can not provoke prejudices about legal form or the company’s business;
• The business name can be written in the Serbian language, whether Cyrillic or Latin. Concretely, if the Memorandum of association or decision is written in Cyrillic, then the business name must be written in Cyrillic in the registrational application;
• The same rules are applied both for small and capital letters because the business name must be identically written in the registrational application;
• The company’s business name can contain the word ‘Serbia,’ the name of a territorial unit or autonomous province of the Republic of Serbia, as well as derivatives or any other forms which remind of those words. This is only possible with the approval of the authorities;
• The business name can contain the name of a foreign country or an international organization also with the approval of the authorities of that country;
• The business name can contain the personal name of a physical person, but also with the approval;
• The business name of a legal person can be a translation of a full or shortened business name in the language of a national minority or foreign language. (The name is not translated). If the company uses the translation of the business name, then it must register it;
• The company can have the name in another foreign language; it can use foreign words or characters as well as Arabic and Roman numerals (This possibility exists only for the title, not on the full business name of the company);
• The business name can not be the same or similar to another company’s name so that it would not confuse the identity with other companies, or the registration application will be rejected.

For example, when setting up a company in Serbia, in practice, there is often a case that a future founder writes a registration application for setting up a company without consulting a competent person about filling out the application or choosing a business name to cut his starting expenses.

Besides the name and title he decides for, he also adds’ Serbia.’ However, the business name and the title can not contain the word ‘Serbia,’ so the application is rejected. This mistake happens because they do not consult a competent person or have a detailed checkup on what is allowed in the title and what is not.

After a few days, you get notified about rejecting the application from the Business Registers Agency. Then, to register the company in Belgrade, you must pay the company’s registration expense again.

1. Steps Before Company Registration in Serbia

Technical Instructions and Rules When Choosing the Business Name

There are clear rules in the Business register agency which must be respected for the application to be regular and approved. Those are:

• The company’s title must contain at least three characters (do not count numbers or symbols. , -, & or similar);
• If you add the founder’s initials or two other letters or numbers, write a combination of existing titles, or divide that word with a hyphen or space, that application will not be approved.
• If the title used words in Serbian or English written differently but with the same or similar pronunciation, and a company with that name exists, the application would not be approved.
• Suppose in the title we use a word that explains the company’s activity (which is written differently but has the same or similar pronunciation), for example, commerce, trade, group, company, export, import, engineering, or similar. In that case, they are considered words that make the difference concerning the existing title.
• If you apply for a title that contains a word that directs to activity and in the register, there is already a company with the title which contains the word derived from the main one (trans-transport, invest – investment or similar), the application would not be possible.

How to Check the Availability of the Name?

Before you register the business name and start your business in Serbia, there is a possibility of checking whether the title is available. You can do that on the site of the Business Register Agency through insight in the base of the central register.

READ MORE: HOW TO SELECT LEGAL FORM WHILE ESTABLISHING A FIRM IN SERBIA >>

Also, on the agency’s site, you can book the title. The reservation is made by sending an application with proof that you have paid a tax of 1000 dinars. In five days, the BRA confirms that you reserved the title, and if all the criteria are met, then it is guaranteed to the applicant that the name will be booked for 60 days.

The reservation can be convenient for many reasons:

• You can get the answer very quickly whether the title is acceptable or not
• It saves the time of going and waiting at a counter
• The chance to repeat the procedure of setting up and registering the title decreases

2. Steps After Company Formation in Serbia

Protect the Company’s Business Name

According to the Companies Law, every legal person has the right to protect their business name. The business name is a company symbol, so the legal person has the right to differentiate from the competition and protect itself. The business name and the title can be protected in the following ways:

• Registering the stamp
• Legal actions in extreme situations

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The stamp registration is done by applying to the Intellectual property office and represents the best and safest way to protect the business name. In that case, it represents the intellectual property of the company.

Legal action can be an alternative solution in certain situations. For example, suppose a wrong evaluation happens, and the company registration with the same or similar name is approved (like the name of another legal person who has been registered and practices the activity). In that case, there is confusion about whether it is the same company. The damaged company, in this case, can ask other companies to change the name or to pay specific compensation.

Before registering the company, you must go through all the enlisted steps to avoid mistakes or double expenses. We advise you to find a reliable accounting agency on time that will keep books for your future company and then consult an experienced accountant with all the questions you need competent and straightforward answers.

READ MORE: LIST OF ACCOUNTING SERVICES THAT YOUR COMPANY WILL NEED FOR OPERATION IN SERBIA >>

Before you set up your company, finding an accounting agency to take care of your legal person is significant. The accountant will be able to consult you every moment and advise you on all the questions and doubts about setting up the company and choosing the title and the business name.

A competent and reliable accounting company can offer you a wide specter of legal services necessary for the activities of your firm or company at every moment.