Serbia Postpones Preliminary VAT Return Requirement to January 2027

• On 3 December 2025, the Serbian Parliament passed amendments to the VAT Law. The amendments were published in the Official Gazette on 4 December 2025 and took effect on 12 December 2025, with most provisions applying from 1 April 2026. [vatcalc.com], [kpmg.com]
• As part of this reform, the pre-filled (preliminary) VAT return requirement was delayed by one year. It will now apply for:
  • The January 2027 tax period for monthly filers
  • The January–March 2027 period for quarterly filers [vatcalc.com], [kpmg.com]

What Is a Preliminary VAT Return?

• A preliminary or pre-filled VAT return means that the tax authority populates your VAT return with data—typically from the SEF e-invoicing system—and the taxpayer reviews, confirms, or corrects it before final submission. Serbia had planned to abolish the old POPDV form and replace it with this new process. [sovos.com], [fiscal-req…ements.com]

Reasons for the Delay

• The extra year allows businesses and system owners more time to:
  • Adapt and test IT infrastructure
  • Manage data integration between VAT reporting and SEF e-invoicing
  • Familiarize users and internal processes with the new VAT procedures [vatcalc.com], [kpmg.com]

⚙️ Other Key VAT Law Changes (From 2027 Onward)

• Error correction flexibility: Starting 1 January 2027, errors from prior periods (under-declared output VAT or over-claimed input VAT) may be corrected directly in the current return, avoiding the need for amended filings. [vatcalc.com], [kpmg.com], [assets.kpmg.com]
• Broader VAT debtor definition: The amendments include:
  • VAT incorrectly stated on internal invoices
  • Investment gold transactions between VAT-registered parties—where the recipient becomes the debtor. [vatcalc.com], [kpmg.com], [assets.kpmg.com]
• Mandatory SEF invoicing: Internal invoices, including self-billing and advance payments, must now be prepared in the SEF electronic invoicing system for users of the system. [vatcalc.com], [kpmg.com]

Briefing document & Podcast: Serbia – E-Invoicing, E-Reporting, E-Transport – VATupdate