Republika Srpska incentives for small businesses and craftspeople: who can apply

Not every business can get the competitiveness incentives of the Republika Srpska Ministry of Economy and Entrepreneurship (Ministarstvo privrede i preduzetništva). The call is open only to companies and sole traders in listed manufacturing, craft and service activities, and the promotion call is mainly for chambers, associations and development agencies. Food production, farming, accommodation and catering are not on the list.

In short

• In 2026 the ministry published two calls: one for improving the competitiveness of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and one for their promotion. Both were published on 11 March 2026, stayed open for 21 days and closed on 1 April 2026.
• For the competitiveness call your main activity must be on the list in the regulation: textiles, clothing, leather, wood processing, furniture, metal products, other manufacturing, repairs, photography, hairdressing and beauty services and similar.
• The incentive is paid as a reimbursement: you pay for the investment yourself, finish it by 31 October, and receive the money after a check.
• The ministry co-finances up to 70% of accepted investment, up to 80% in underdeveloped and very underdeveloped municipalities, and up to 100% for traditional crafts. The exact rate is set after the call, based on the number of applications and the money available.
• For traditional crafts the investment must be at least 1,000 KM, and at most 5,000 KM is accepted, excluding VAT.

Who it applies to

Competitiveness call

Under the Regulation on the procedure for granting incentives to improve SME competitiveness (Uredba o postupku dodjele podsticaja za poboljšanje konkurentnosti MSP), the applicant must:

• have its seat in Republika Srpska and be registered by 30 June of the previous year (for the 2026 call, by 30 June 2025);
• by the same date be classified in one of these main activities: textiles, clothing, leather and leather goods, wood processing (not furniture), paper and printing, rubber and plastics, non-metallic mineral products (for example ceramics and stone working), metal products, electronics, electrical equipment, machinery and vehicles, furniture, other manufacturing, repair and installation of machinery;
• or have one of these service activities: repair of motor vehicles, photography, repair of computers, phones, household appliances, shoes, furniture, watches and jewellery, dry cleaning, hairdressing and beauty treatment, body care and other personal services;
• have no unpaid direct taxes that are due;
• not ask for money for an investment already supported from the Republika Srpska or municipal budget.

You can get the incentive for only one purpose per year. A business that already received a reservation of promotion or investment incentives in the same year cannot also get this one. Another company in which a member of your household holds 25% or more of the capital cannot apply for the same purpose.

For preserving traditional crafts, a company or sole trader must meet the same conditions and also hold traditional craft status (status tradicionalnog zanata). Local development agencies, institutions, chambers and associations can also apply for this purpose, and associations and cooperatives must also hold traditional craft status. How to register as a sole trader is explained in the article on registering a sole trader or company in Republika Srpska.

Food and drink production, farming, accommodation and restaurants are not on the activity list. Agricultural and tourism incentives exist for them, described in the articles on the 2026 farm incentive rulebook, support for on-farm processing and tourism funding in Republika Srpska.

Enterprise size

The Law on Development of Small and Medium Enterprises (Zakon o razvoju malih i srednjih preduzeća, Art. 5 and 6) sets these classes:

• micro enterprise: fewer than 10 workers and annual revenue or business assets below 3,911,600 KM;
• small enterprise: fewer than 50 workers and revenue or assets below 19,558,000 KM;
• medium enterprise: 50 to 249 workers and revenue below 97,790,000 KM or assets below 84,099,400 KM.

The enterprise must be independent: other businesses may hold at most 25% of its share capital or of its business decisions. If the co-owner is an investment fund or a municipality, the limit is 50%. Staff numbers and financial data come from the latest annual financial statement. These thresholds come from the consolidated text of the law with amendments up to 2024. The law was amended again in November 2025 (Službeni glasnik RS, no. 100/25), so check with the ministry that the thresholds are still the same.

Promotion call

A single company cannot get money for its own stand at a fair. For a joint stand of at least three SMEs at a fair abroad, the applicant is a local development agency, institution, association or chamber. Companies whose main activity is organising meetings and fairs can also apply to organise a fair, and social enterprises can apply to organise a conference. The promotion must concern manufacturing, crafts and entrepreneurship. Food processing counts as manufacturing, so a food producer can take part in a joint stand organised by its association or chamber.

What is financed

For each purpose the regulation sets a minimum investment and a maximum accepted value, all excluding VAT. You pay any part of the investment above the maximum yourself.

Competitiveness call:

• Digital transformation (software for business management, customer relations, stock and documents, CAD/CAM, artificial intelligence): at least 10,000 KM, up to 30,000 KM accepted. A digital transformation strategy alone: 1,000 to 2,000 KM. Computers, printers, website building and widely used software such as Microsoft Office are not accepted.
• Equipment: machines, tools, devices and instruments up to five years old, plus heat pumps, LED lighting in production plants and energy monitoring systems: at least 2,000 KM, up to 50,000 KM accepted. Tractors, trucks and other vehicles, building works and air conditioners are not accepted.
• Preserving traditional crafts (training and promotion of crafts, publications, equipment, tools and materials for making products): at least 1,000 KM, up to 5,000 KM accepted.
• The regulation also covers introducing ISO standards, business and technical innovation and expert services, with separate amounts.

Promotion call:

• Joint stand at a fair abroad: at least 20,000 KM, up to 50,000 KM accepted. Here co-financing can reach 100%.
• Organising a fair: at least 7,000 KM, up to 30,000 KM accepted.
• Organising a conference: at least 3,000 KM, up to 20,000 KM accepted.

Example: a carpenter in a developed municipality buys a machine for 20,000 KM excluding VAT. If the rate for that year is 70%, the incentive is 14,000 KM. The rate can be lower when there are many applications, but it is the same for all applicants in the same category and for the same purpose.

What to do

1. Check the code of your main activity and your registration date in your registration decision. If the activity is not on the list, the competitiveness call is not for you.
2. Follow the public calls on the ministry page and in the daily newspaper Glas Srpske. A call stays open for 21 days from publication in Glas Srpske, so prepare your documents in advance.
3. Collect quotes or pro-forma invoices. For digitalisation and equipment the investment may include at most three items.
4. Send the request for reservation of the incentive (zahtjev za rezervaciju podsticaja), with the forms and documents listed in the call, by post or in person to: Ministarstvo privrede i preduzetništva, Trg Republike Srpske 1, 78000 Banja Luka, marked as the call specifies and with the note "NE OTVARATI" (do not open).
5. Buy only within the accepted period: for competitiveness from 1 January to 31 October of the call year, for promotion from 1 November of the previous year to 31 October. Pay through a bank, to a company or sole trader. Cash, offsetting, invoices under 500 KM, VAT, purchases from private individuals and purchases from a firm that holds 25% or more of yours, in which you hold 25% or more, or which has the same owner as yours are not accepted. Traditional crafts are the exception: for equipment, tools and materials, purchases from individuals, in cash and under 500 KM are accepted.
6. Once the ministry publishes the list of applicants with a reservation, you must fully complete the investment by 31 October: equipment paid, delivered and installed. Then send the payment request with invoices, bank statements, fiscal receipts, photos and the customs declaration if the goods were imported.

Deadlines

• The 2026 calls were published on 11 March and closed on 1 April 2026.
• The list of applicants with a competitiveness reservation was published on 29 June 2026. They must complete their investment by 31 October 2026.
• The date of the next call has not been announced.

Other ministry calls

The Law on Incentives in the Economy of Republika Srpska (Zakon o podsticajima u privredi Republike Srpske, Službeni glasnik RS, no. 29/26) entered into force on 15 April 2026. It covers incentives for investment, for wage increases and for investments of special significance. The 2026 investment call is finished, and the Government accepted a report on awarding a total of 23 million KM. The deadline for wage-increase incentive requests was 18 September 2026. The deadline for the free programme supporting the use of artificial intelligence in 10 manufacturing SMEs was 17 September 2026.

Where to go

• Ministarstvo privrede i preduzetništva Republike Srpske (Ministry of Economy and Entrepreneurship), Trg Republike Srpske 1, Banja Luka: phone 051/338-909 and 051/338-994, ministry page. Ask them also which development category your municipality belongs to under the Decision on the development level of local self-government units (Odluka o stepenu razvijenosti jedinica lokalne samouprave).
• For a joint stand at a fair abroad, ask the Chamber of Commerce of Republika Srpska (Privredna komora Republike Srpske) or your association.
• In Trebinje and other East Herzegovina municipalities you can ask the economy department of the city or municipal administration about preparing an application.

Laws and sources

• Regulation on the procedure for granting incentives to improve SME competitiveness (Službeni glasnik RS, no. 107/25)
• Regulation on the procedure for granting incentives for SME promotion (Službeni glasnik RS, no. 107/25)
• Public call for incentives to improve SME competitiveness in 2026
• Public call for SME promotion incentives in 2026
• Law on Development of Small and Medium Enterprises (Službeni glasnik RS, no. 50/13, 56/13 - corr., 84/19, 115/24 and 100/25), the ministry's unofficial consolidated text with amendments up to no. 115/24
• Law on Incentives in the Economy of Republika Srpska (Službeni glasnik RS, no. 29/26), as cited in the ministry's 2026 call for investment incentives