Protected areas in Republika Srpska: what you may do with guests and who manages them

Anyone who takes guests into a national park, nature park or another protected area needs to know two things: who manages the place, and what is not allowed without consent. The rules are in the 2024 Law on Nature Protection and, for national parks, also in the 2010 Law on National Parks, which the new law still refers to.

In short

• The Law on Nature Protection (Službeni glasnik RS no. 49/24) has applied since 19 June 2024 and replaced the earlier law (no. 20/14).
• Anyone may visit protected areas on equal terms. The manager can ban or limit visits that would endanger the area or visitor safety.
• Filming and temporary structures need the manager's consent, and in a national park so does scientific research. Works that may affect the protected site and do not go through an environmental impact assessment need an expert opinion from the Republički zavod za zaštitu kulturno-istorijskog i prirodnog nasljeđa (Republic Institute for the Protection of Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage, "the Zavod").
• Tourist, catering and sales activity in a national park is governed by the house rules, and a fee for it is paid to the manager.
• Sutjeska National Park lies in the municipalities of Foča, Gacko and Kalinovik. The manager of a protected area must provide trained guides for tourist visits.

Who it applies to

Hosts, guides, excursion organisers and anyone who works in a protected area or brings groups there. The law does not count people who live or own land in the area, officials on duty or people doing business with the manager as visitors, so they do not pay the visitor fee.

What to do

1. Before a trip, find out who manages the area and what category it is: national park, nature park, natural monument or reserve. The manager is named in the act of protection. A national park is run by a public institution founded by the Republic.
2. Find out which house rules (pravilnik o unutrašnjem redu) apply. In a national park they are issued by the minister responsible for the environment after an opinion from the Zavod (art. 14, Law on National Parks). They cover visitor movement and stay, vehicle parking, collecting herbs, mushrooms and forest fruits, and tourist and catering activity. In other protected areas the manager adopts them with the consent of the Ministarstvo za prostorno uređenje, građevinarstvo i ekologiju (Ministry of Spatial Planning, Construction and Ecology) or the municipality (art. 70, Law on Nature Protection). The park office can tell you what currently applies.
3. For commercial filming, a stall, a tent or any other temporary structure, get the manager's consent before you arrive.
4. Notify the manager in writing of any planned works in a protected area (a trail, a fence, a building). The manager must tell you what is possible and what the next steps are. If the project needs an environmental impact assessment, that procedure applies. If it does not, but the works may affect the protected site, get an expert opinion from the Zavod on nature protection conditions and measures. In a national park, construction must follow the spatial plan and the management plan and needs a building permit.
5. Do not use plant protection products in a protected area. Exceptions, only to control quarantine and other harmful organisms, are approved by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management with the consent of the Ministry of Spatial Planning, Construction and Ecology.
6. Do not collect protected wild plants or fungi for processing or sale without a permit from that ministry (art. 85, Law on Nature Protection).

In a national park, felling trees (except sanitary felling), hunting (except sanitary and breeding culls), uncontrolled collecting of herbs, mushrooms and forest fruits, dumping waste and anything that destroys nature are banned. Protection zones are set separately for each park, in the park's spatial plan.

Deadlines and amounts

• The manager sets tickets and fees for parking, camping, tourist, catering and sales activity and for guide services, with the Ministry's consent. Ask the park office for Sutjeska prices.
• An individual who breaks the house rules in a national park is fined 100 to 500 KM, and a sole trader 200 to 1,000 KM (art. 22 para. 5, Law on National Parks). A park warden can issue a misdemeanour order on the spot (art. 18). A company that breaks the bans in art. 11 pays 10,000 to 20,000 KM.
• Collecting protected species without a permit: an individual pays 400 to 6,000 KM, a sole trader 4,000 to 20,000 KM and a company 8,000 to 40,000 KM (art. 106, Law on Nature Protection).

Where to go

• JU Nacionalni park "Sutjeska" (public institution), Tjentište: phone +387 58 233 102, information and reservations +387 58 233 130, npsutjeska.net.
• Republički zavod za zaštitu kulturno-istorijskog i prirodnog nasljeđa Republike Srpske, nasljedje.org: expert opinion on nature protection conditions.
• Ministarstvo za prostorno uređenje, građevinarstvo i ekologiju RS: consents and permits.

Before planning an activity near a reserve or natural monument, ask the municipality and the Zavod for the list of protected areas in your municipality (Trebinje, Bileća, Ljubinje, Nevesinje, Berkovići). Hutovo blato Nature Park is in the Federation of BiH, so the Republika Srpska law does not apply to it. Under its 2026 price list the basic ticket is 5 KM for adults, and children up to 7 do not pay it. A family ticket for 2 adults and 2 children costs 50 KM and includes the basic tickets, the interpretation centre and a scheduled boat ride. Ask the park office on +387 36 814 716 about group terms. The lakes and trails of Sutjeska are covered in the article on Zelengora and the Sutjeska National Park lakes from Kalinovik.

Laws and sources

• Law on Nature Protection (Službeni glasnik RS no. 49/24, 11 June 2024), arts. 47, 68 to 70, 75 to 77, 85, 102, 106, 115
• Law on National Parks (National Assembly of RS, 13 July 2010), arts. 5, 8, 10, 11, 14, 16, 18, 22, text on the Zavod website
• Law on the Sutjeska National Park (National Assembly of RS, 13 December 2012), arts. 5, 10 and 12, copy on FAOLEX
• 2026 price list, Hutovo blato Nature Park