Registering a sole trader or company in Republika Srpska: steps, time, cost

This article explains two different registration routes in Republika Srpska: the sole trader (preduzetnik, s.p.) and the company. It concerns farmers, food producers, households and restaurants that want to operate officially. Note: the APIF one-stop shop is for companies, not for sole traders. Registering as a sole trader does not replace registration of an agricultural holding or the permits for accommodation or catering; ask the competent municipal or city office about those.

In short

• A sole trader files a request with the registration office of the municipality or city, which must decide within 2 working days of a proper request (Art. 51, Law on Independent Entrepreneurs).
• A company (e.g. d.o.o.) files its application with the Agencija za posredničke, informatičke i finansijske usluge (APIF, Agency for Intermediary, IT and Financial Services) at one of 11 one-stop offices, including Trebinje. The court and the tax authority each decide within 2 days.
• APIF charges 40.00 KM to process a company founding application, 15.00 KM to reserve a business name and 15.00 KM for a certificate or extract from the Central Register of Entrepreneurs. The price list marks VAT only for some services, and these items are not marked. Confirm the final amount at the APIF counter.
• You must start work within 30 days of receiving the registration decision.

Who it applies to

Anyone who wants to carry on an activity for profit (selling products, accommodation, catering) and company founders.

General conditions for a sole trader (Art. 32): adult, valid ID card, no overdue unpaid tax obligations, no unpaid fines or costs for economic or financial misdemeanours, and no court ban on that activity. The office checks these electronically, so a tax debt or an unpaid fine means refusal. Special conditions for the activity (health fitness, qualifications, premises and equipment, e.g. for accommodation or food) are generally not checked at registration but later by the inspectorate.

A sole trader must state the type of occupation:

• Main: you are not employed (students, pensioners and other adults also register as main). You may take part-time employment elsewhere.
• Supplementary (dopunsko): you are employed by another employer; you work in the business at most half of the weekly full working time, by your own labour only, with no employees and no help from household members under Art. 12(3).
• Additional (dodatno): you are employed, a student, a pensioner or a person with disability; you must engage at least one worker (employment or supplementary work).

You do not attach proof of employment status to the request; the inspectorate checks it later.

What to do

Sole trader

1. Optionally check and reserve the business name (availability check on the APIF website; reservation carries a fee).
2. Submit the request on the prescribed form to the registration office of the municipality or city where you will operate, in person, by post or electronically. Include an e-mail address. For rented premises, have the owner's written consent.
3. Pay the administrative fee. In Trebinje the city administrative fee for founding is 30 KM; in another municipality confirm the amount at the counter.
4. Within 2 working days you receive the decision; the office obtains your tax ID (JIB) through the system and sends the decision to APIF, the Tax Administration and the inspectorate.
5. The inspectorate checks the conditions within 45 days of the decision; start work within 30 days.

Company (d.o.o.)

1. Prepare the founding act, the decision on the representative, notarised signatures, ID, the bank confirmation of the paid-in capital and the application.
2. Submit to APIF (or electronically with a qualified e-signature). Any APIF office works, regardless of the company seat.
3. APIF forwards the application to the registry court and the tax authority; the JIB is assigned the same day and at most within 2 days, and the court decides within 2 days.

Confirm the exact document list for your company type and court fees with APIF.

Deadlines and amounts

• Decision on a sole trader request: 2 working days (4 working days after the end of objective circumstances that prevent handling the request).
• Start of work: 30 days from the decision.
• APIF: 40.00 KM company founding application, 15.00 KM name reservation, 15.00 KM certificate or extract from the Central Register of Entrepreneurs. The price list marks VAT only for some services, and these items are not marked. Confirm the final amount at the APIF counter.
• Grad Trebinje, city administrative fee for a sole trader: 30 KM for founding, 20 KM for a change of registered data, 10 KM for ending the activity (City of Trebinje guide).
• Court fees and notary: amounts not confirmed here, ask the competent body.

Where to go

• Sole trader in Trebinje: Grad Trebinje, Department for Tourism, Environmental Protection and Entrepreneurship (Odjeljenje za turizam, zaštitu životne sredine i preduzetništvo), Entrepreneurship Office (Kancelarija za preduzetništvo), Vuka Karadžića 2, 89101 Trebinje, tel. 059/273-460 or 059/260-742, grad@trebinje.rs.ba. Entrepreneurship Office, business registration guides, electronic procedures for entrepreneurs.
• Company: APIF, Trebinje business unit (Poslovna jedinica Trebinje), Kralja Petra Karađorđevića 15, Trebinje, tel. 059/220-235. General information on the business register: 051/308-079 and 051/217-527. Check opening hours by phone or at apif.net.

Laws and sources

• APIF decision on fees (Upravni odbor APIF no. UO-XLIV-1876/25 of 16.09.2025; consent of the Government of Republika Srpska published in Službeni glasnik RS no. 6/26)
• Law on Independent Entrepreneurs (Zakon o samostalnim preduzetnicima, Službeni glasnik RS no. 98/24)
• Law on Registration of Business Entities in Republika Srpska (Zakon o registraciji poslovnih subjekata u Republici Srpskoj, Službeni glasnik RS no. 67/13, 15/16, 84/19 and 1/26)
• APIF, Registar poslovnih subjekata