Benefits in Serbia

Employment in Serbia automatically brings the employee into the three mandatory insurance systems, funded by the contributions described in taxes:

• Health insurance (RFZO): Public healthcare coverage for the employee, including sick-pay funding from day 31 of incapacity.
• Pension and disability insurance (PIO): The state pension and disability system.
• Unemployment insurance (NSZ): Unemployment benefit entitlement through the National Employment Service.

Serbian law requires several employer-paid allowances and reimbursements alongside salary:

• Commuting cost: Mandatory, tax-free up to RSD 5,782 per month.
• Meal allowance (topli obrok): Mandatory unless meals are provided another way; must be expressed in money.
• Annual leave bonus (regres): Mandatory, paid in connection with annual leave.

Amounts for the meal allowance and regres are set by the employer’s general act or the employment contract; all three are detailed in payments.

Under the 2023 OSH law, employers must adopt a written risk assessment for every workplace, train employees on safe work at hiring and when conditions change, refresh that training periodically, secure first-aid capability, and fund medical examinations for higher-risk roles (including night work). For employees working from home, safety duties are met through the risk-assessment act and the employee’s duty to report changed conditions; see remote work.

What employees value most tells the same story from the other side: flexible hours (41%), remote work (40%), a four-day week (34%), private health insurance (30%) and extra days off (29%).

Private health insurance is the one paid benefit whose prevalence keeps rising year on year, it has effectively become the expected differentiator in competitive offers, particularly in IT and professional services.

Two-thirds of Serbian employees are parents, and the survey shows family-oriented benefits are becoming a distinct competitive lever.

Most employers focus primarily on providing New Year gift packs for children (77%), while what parents actually want is extra days off (67%) and flexible or reduced hours (63%).

A 13th salary is not required by Serbian law; where it appears, it is a discretionary market practice.

Other common benefits in professional roles include equipment such as laptops and phones, transport top-ups above the statutory reimbursement, and training budgets.