Legalization of buildings under the law of 2025.

The Legalization Act

1. Introduction – New Legalization Act of 2025

By now, you must have heard about the new law that was passed in an urgent procedure on October 24, 2025 in the Assembly of the Republic of Serbia. The term legalization law has become established in the media (which is not surprising since in the past 30 years numerous laws have been passed that have tried to solve the problem of legalization of buildings built without appropriate permits), but this is not the official name of this law.

The official title of the law, which was published in the Official Gazette on the day following its adoption, reads: “Law on Special Conditions for Recording and Registration of Rights to Real Estate”. The beginning of the application (submission of applications) is marked as 08.12.2025, i.e. 45 days from the date of publication. Since this law refers to the legalization of buildings built without the permission of the competent authorities, the previously mentioned colloquial name “legalization law” perhaps better describes its true nature, and we will refer to it as the Law below.

The law will try to solve the decades-long problem of illegal construction in Serbia and various problems encountered by citizens who lived in such facilities, starting from the lack of appropriate infrastructure to legal issues that inevitably arose, such as difficult transfer of ownership, lower value, problems in the inheritance process, and more. What fundamentally distinguishes this Law from previous laws related to legalization is that the entire procedure will take place on a digital platform and that it will not be necessary to create expensive technical documents to submit an application and register property rights.

The state authorities responsible for the implementation of this Law are the Agency for Spatial Planning and Urban Planning of the Republic of Serbia (hereinafter: the Agency) and the Republic Geodetic Authority (hereinafter: the Authority). Also, the Law states that the act initiating the legalization procedure is the “Application”.

Based on the information we currently have, in this text we will show you in an accessible and understandable way how the process of legalization of facilities under the new law should proceed. The author would like to note here that this text is written at the beginning of November 2025, when the necessary bylaws have not yet been adopted (which should prescribe in a precise way how this law will be applied), nor has the portal through which applications will be submitted put into operation, and accordingly it is necessary to inform yourself about the specific procedures at the time when you submit the request for legalization of the facility.

Previous Remarks – How to Acquire the Right of Ownership of Real Estate in Serbia

In order for someone to acquire the right of ownership of real estate in Serbia, it is necessary to have a valid legal basis (contract of sale of an apartment/house, gift agreement, decision on inheritance) on the basis of which they will be registered as the owner in the real estate cadastre. In order for someone to be able to exercise the right of ownership to the full extent, that is, to be able to dispose of real estate (this does not only mean the sale, but also pledging real estate, putting a mortgage), it is essential to be registered as the owner in the real estate cadastre. The Real Estate Cadastre is a publicly available record of all real estate located in the territory of the Republic of Serbia.

Understanding these basic concepts and ways of acquiring real estate, as well as the importance of registration in the cadastre is important in order to understand the purpose of the Law that we will process here, as well as to understand what the owners of illegal buildings that are not currently registered in the cadastre gain by legalizing these buildings.

At this point, it would be desirable to mention the way in which the object that would be registered in the cadastre should be built. The person who builds such a building (let’s assume that this person will also be the owner) does so on the land that is intended for it, i.e. the building land that is registered as such in the real estate cadastre. The procedure includes many steps and the fulfillment of demanding administrative conditions, so we will only mention here that it is necessary to obtain a building permit, and after the completion of the facility – which meets all the conditions to be considered that the facility is legally built and that it is safe to use – an occupancy permit is obtained.

All facilities that are not built in the aforementioned manner are considered illegal facilities and with the fulfillment of certain conditions, such facilities will be able to be legalized under the new Law on Legalization of Facilities.

Illegal construction – a criminal offence

Building without a building permit is a criminal offense under the Criminal Code. A person who is a contractor or a responsible person in a legal entity that is a contractor is punishable by imprisonment from 3 months to 3 years or a fine, while an investor is punishable by imprisonment from 6 months to 5 years.

However, especially given the scale of illegal construction in Serbia, the perpetrators of these crimes are mostly not prosecuted. This is one of the reasons why there are (according to some estimates) more than 4 million illegal facilities in Serbia.

The new law prescribes zero tolerance towards all persons who illegally build facilities after the entry into force of the law. Similar provisions were prescribed by previously passed laws on legalization, and it remains to be seen whether this will actually be applied this time or whether this provision will remain just a dead letter on paper.

Legalization of facilities – a list of facilities that can be legalized according to the Act

The new law prescribes a list of facilities whose legalization will be possible in accordance with the Law.

These are:

  1. buildings, parts of the building, i.e. special parts of the building built contrary to the law;
  2. facilities, parts of the facility, i.e. special parts of the facility constructed, i.e. works performed on the facility without obtaining a decision on the approval for the execution of works;
  3. Buildings for which a temporary building permit was issued before May 13, 2003;
  4. Buildings built at a time when the issuance of a building permit was not prescribed, and on which the right of ownership was not registered in the cadastre of real estate;
  5. residential buildings of category “A” and “B” and commercial buildings for which a decision on a building permit has been issued, but by the date of entry into force of this Law, the legal deadline for obtaining a decision on an occupancy permit has expired;
  6. underground and above-ground installations, i.e. infrastructure line facilities, if they are the subject of registration in the real estate cadastre or infrastructure cadastre;
  7. Objects from the records of identified changes in real estate that are not registered in the Real Estate Cadastre;
  8. buildings registered in accordance with the provisions of the Law on Special Conditions for Registration of Ownership Rights on Buildings Constructed without a Building Permit (“Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia”, No. 25/13 and 145/14) and
  9. Land under the building or part of the land on the cadastral plot on which the building is built.

The facilities that will most often be subject to legalization according to the procedure provided for by the law are listed in item 1. These include numerous houses and apartments in which Serbian citizens live, and which are not registered in the real estate cadastre. Therefore, the implementation of the Law should enable the legalization of the house, i.e. the legalization of the apartment, which in some situations (which we will list below) would be done free of charge, that is, it would be free of charge.

Legalization of facilities built in special areas whose legalization requires the approval of the competent authority and facilities that are registered as the property of the Republic of Serbia

The legalization of facilities built in the following areas requires the consent of the public good manager (competent state authority) or the Ministry of Defense:

  1. Facilities built in the second zone of protection of the public good,
  2. objects that occupy a small part of the surface of the protective zone of the public road,
  3. facilities built in the zone of protection of high-voltage lines, as well as
  4. Facilities built in the protective zone of military complexes, military facilities, military installations and military warehouses.

Facilities that cannot be legalized for the benefit of citizens, i.e. facilities that will be registered in the ownership of the Republic of Serbia are:

  1. Buildings built on publicly owned land that is planned for the arrangement or construction of public purpose facilities in mandatory public ownership (e.g. squares, parks, schools, hospitals) by a planning document valid on the date of entry into force of this Law,
  2. facilities built in the first zone of protection of natural property and the zone of protection of cultural property of great importance and cultural property of exceptional importance,
  3. buildings built in another zone of protection of natural resources built on land in public ownership,
  4. buildings inscribed in the World Heritage List or built on the cultural property itself, on a public water property, in the railway belt, in the immediate zone of sanitary protection of water sources, as well as
  5. Facilities constructed in the zone of expropriation of state road IA – motorways and IM order – expressways.

Also, it is important to note that if someone owns a smaller prefabricated building, such as container-type prefabricated houses and mobile homes and prefabricated car washes, as well as buildings that have not been completed in a constructive sense (for example, the roof has not been completed) – these buildings will not be registered in the real estate cadastre, but in the records of identified changes in the buildings that are not registered in the real estate cadastre (which, He is also a member of the Republican Geodetic Authority.

Registration of ownership of buildings that have been legalized under this Law in the Real Estate Cadastre – a note that the building has been registered under the new Law

The law stipulates that for all buildings that are legalized under this law, a record will be entered in the cadastre that the right of ownership has been acquired in accordance with the new Law.

The reason why the note will be registered is that for the legalization of the facility it will not be necessary to attach the technical documentation that was necessary to attach according to the previous laws on legalization. For example, in order to legalize an illegally constructed building, according to the previous law on legalization, it was necessary, among other things, to submit a report on the condition of the building. This is no longer the case. According to the new Law, it is necessary to electronically submit information about the building (object ID or mark the object on the map, type of building, area, number of floors, special parts (if any) and proof of the right to the land and the building (purchase contract, decision on inheritance or assignment, etc.).

Since, according to the new Law, during the legalization of facilities, technical documentation is not submitted and not checked by the competent authorities, there is no confirmation of the safety of such facilities. That is why a note is entered in the cadastre that the building has been legalized in accordance with the new Law, which is essentially a warning to potential buyers of such a facility that there are no guarantees of its safety.

In support of all of the above, Article 5 of the Law speaks, which prescribes that the Republic of Serbia does not guarantee the safety and security of the use of the building registered in the Real Estate Cadastre under this Law. The same article stipulates that the owner of the facility accepts the risk of using the real estate that is the subject of registration and the responsibility for any damage to third parties.

Method and procedure of legalization of buildings under the new law

  1. Prior to the start of submission of applications under the Law (December 8, 2025), all local self-government units in Serbia are required to submit to the Agency a “digital zoning plan” containing the zones for which the purpose of the land and the amount of contributions for the development of construction land have been determined. Local self-governments are obliged to submit this plan to the Agency within 60 days from the date of entry into force of this Law (from 24.10.2025). Whether this will really happen remains to be seen.

On the basis of this plan, the Agency will be able to determine in which zone the facility is located, i.e. whether the legalization of such a facility is possible (for example, it is not possible to legalize facilities located in the first zone of protection of agricultural property) or whether the legalization requires the approval of the competent authority. Zones where it is not possible to legalize an object (these facilities are registered in favor of the Republic of Serbia), i.e. zones in which the approval of the competent authority is required for the legalization of an object are listed in the previous text.

Another reason for making zoning plans and submitting them to the Agency is to determine the legalization fee. The fee will be determined in accordance with the zone in which the facility to be legalized is located, and will range from 100 to 1000 euros, and in some cases it will be possible to legalize the facility free of charge.

  1. Dataset for public display (database of objects to be legalized) – The Agency shall prepare an appropriate database based on the submitted zoning plans, satellite and other images and other data sources. This database will be created for the purpose of identifying objects (on satellite images) and determining ownership of objects that meet the conditions prescribed by the law for legalization. From the date of publication of the dataset for public presentation, all interested persons (primarily citizens who want to legalize their apartments/houses) will be able to submit applications (requests) for legalization, objections to the data from the application, evidence of the construction time of the facility (if the facility is not visible on satellite images) and other documentation of importance for the legalization of the facility. This database should be created no later than December 8, 2025, since, according to the Law, the deadline for submitting applications for legalization should begin then.
  2. Submission of an application for the legalization of a facility – all applications, i.e. Applications for legalization will be submitted in electronic form. It is envisaged that applications will be submitted within 60 days from the date of entry into force of this Law, so that, since the Law enters into force on 08.12.2025, applications will be able to be submitted until 05.02.2026. The application for legalization (application) is submitted to the Agency and refers to one real estate. This, however, also entails the need to digitize all documents that are in paper form (this primarily refers to contracts and other documents that prove the right to land and buildings). In order for a document to be digitized and recognized as an electronic document in front of state authorities, it is not enough just to scan. The easiest way to digitize a document in accordance with the law is to have it done by a lawyer or notary public.
  3. When it comes to the legalization of an apartment, i.e. business premises, which is located in a residential, residential-commercial, or business building, the situation is as follows: Before registering the right of ownership of the apartment (or business premises), it is necessary for the investor (or any other person who has a legal interest) to submit an application for registration of the building, along with which he can submit a study of geodetic works, i.e. a sketch of apartments that are not registered in the real estate cadastre (if the investor is unknown or not available, The above study and sketch can be submitted by anyone who has a legal interest). After the Agency decides that the conditions for the registration of the building have been met, the conditions for acting on the requests for legalization on special parts of the building – apartments are met.
  4. If the object to be legalized is not visible on satellite images (for example, due to vegetation or clouds), which will often be the case when it comes to legalizing a house, the owner of such a facility will have to submit a study of geodetic works with the application (request) for legalization. The Institute decides on the correctness of the study, and if it does not have any deficiencies, the Institute enters the facility that is legalized in a special record of the identified changes in the facilities that are not registered in the cadastre and submits the notification to the Agency. The agency then proceeds with the process of legalizing the object as if the object were visible in the footage. If, on the other hand, the Institute determines that the study has deficiencies, it orders the geodetic organization to eliminate the deficiencies within eight days, i.e. it notifies the applicant (request) to eliminate the deficiencies within 6 months.
  5. When the Agency determines that the conditions for the registration of ownership rights on the object for which the request for legalization has been submitted have been met, it will issue a certificate that will be submitted to the Institute (Republic Geodetic Authority) via e-counter. When the Agency issues a certificate that the conditions for the legalization of the facility have been met, that certificate also contains a decision on the deletion of the existing notes on the facility related to the status of the facility (if such records exist). No appeal may be lodged against the Agency’s confirmation, nor may an administrative dispute be initiated, but a lawsuit may initiate proceedings before the appropriate court of general jurisdiction.
  6. If the legalization procedure is successfully completed, the right of ownership of the building and the land under the building will be registered in favor of the applicant (owner of the facility) and he will then have all the rights of the owner of the facility that was built in accordance with the law, except for the restrictions prescribed by this Law (note that the building is registered in accordance with this Law and that the Republic of Serbia does not guarantee its safety).
  7. Upon registration of ownership rights to the facility, it is possible to connect the facility to the electricity network, gas network or district heating network, water supply and sewage system, if there are technical conditions for this.

The Cost of Legalization

According to the new Law, the price for the legalization of the building, i.e. the fee paid to the competent authorities, is determined in the amount of the contribution for the development of construction land, the amount of which is determined on the basis of the submitted zoning plan of the local self-government unit.

Notwithstanding the above, if an application (request) is submitted for the legalization of a family residential building (legalization of a house) or a separate part of a building (legalization of an apartment) in a residential or residential-commercial building for which the investor is not known or is not available, the price of legalization of the apartment, i.e. the price of legalization of the house is:

1) in the city of Belgrade:

– in the extra zone: 1,000 euros;

– in the first zone: 800 euros;

– in the second and third zones: 300 euros;

– in the fourth zone: 200 euros;

– in the fifth zone: 150 euros;

– in the sixth and second zones: 100 euros.

2) in cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants:

– in the extra and first zone: 500 euros;

– in the second zone: 250 euros;

– in the third zone: 150 euros;

– in the fourth and other zones: 100 euros;

3) In cities and municipalities with between 50,000 and 100,000 inhabitants:

– in the extra and first zone: 300 euros;

– in the second zone: 200 euros;

– in the third and other zones: 100 euros;

4) in municipalities with less than 50,000 inhabitants and villages: 100 euros.

If the investor of the building is known and available, he pays a fee in the amount of the contribution for the development of the building land, and the right of ownership of the apartments is registered in favor of the owner without compensation. If the investor does not pay the fee, the Agency will bring a certificate of registration of ownership rights to the building with a note that the fee has not been paid, and the owners of individual apartments will be issued certificates for the registration of ownership rights on the apartment, without paying the fee.

If the legalization of warehouses, storage space, economic and auxiliary facilities and production facilities with an area of up to 500 m2 is carried out, legalization is free of charge for these facilities, and if these facilities exceed an area of 500 m2 , the fee is paid in the amount of 10 euros for each additional square meter.

Free legalization of a building – applicants for legalization will not pay a fee if a family residential building (house) or apartment used by the applicant and his/her family members for housing is legalized, if the applicant (request for legalization) is a person with disabilities, a fighter, a single parent or a social assistance beneficiary, or if it is a family with three or more children.

All of the above fees are paid in a lump sum, i.e. the price of legalization is fixed and is paid once.

Ownership of the land on which the object to be legalized was built – possible disputes about the right of ownership of the land

If the facility is on land owned by another legal or natural person, which is not the owner of the facility to be legalized, the Agency shall inform the applicant that the conditions for legalization have not been met, and such a facility cannot be legalized. In such a case, the Agency will instruct the applicant to resolve the issue of ownership rights over the land before the competent authority (court) within 5 years.

Notwithstanding the above, if at the time of the construction of the facility to be legalized, there was a legal basis on the land on which the facility was built, which ceased to exist after the construction of the facility, the Agency, subject to the fulfillment of additional conditions, may issue a certificate of fulfillment of the conditions for legalization.

Objects built on land in exclusive public ownership and in public ownership with an undetermined share – If the object is built on such land (and it is not a zone in which the object cannot be legalized and is registered in favor of the Republic of Serbia), the Republic Geodetic Authority, in the procedure of dividing the plot, determines the area of the plot on which the object is built and registers that plot in favor of the owner of the object.

When a cadastral parcel is co-adopted or jointly owned by several persons, of which only one is the owner of the building to be legalized, the Institute will register the right of ownership in favor of the owner of the building, while no changes are made to the rest of the plot.

Illegally Constructed Buildings After the Act Came Into Force

If an application for legalization of a facility has been submitted, and the Agency determines that the facility was not built before the entry into force of this Law, such a facility cannot be legalized. In such a case, the provisions of the law governing planning and construction shall be applied and such facilities shall be removed, i.e. registered in favour of the Republic of Serbia.

If a person, after the entry into force of this Law, starts or completes the construction of a facility (illegal facilities) without the issued building permit, in that case the provisions of the Law governing the construction of the facility shall be applied, as well as the provisions of the Criminal Code (illegal construction is a criminal offense).

In order to prevent and prevent new illegal construction, the Republic Geodetic Authority conducts annual surveys and, based on the data thus obtained, updates the data in the records on the identified changes in the objects that are not registered in the Real Estate Cadastre.

Procedures for the legalization of facilities that have been initiated under the previously applicable laws on legalization

The new Law on Legalization stipulates that on the day of entry into force of this Law, the Law on the Legalization of Facilities from 2015 ceases to be valid. year.

Procedures that have been initiated in accordance with the provisions of the Law on Legalization of Facilities for Facilities prescribed by this Law (in the part of this text where the list of facilities that can be legalized has been made, you can find a list of these facilities) shall be terminated on the day of entry into force of this Law.

Conclusion

Legalization of buildings in Serbia has been a problem for decades. A number of laws have been passed that have failed to solve the essence of this problem and prevent illegal construction.

What makes this law fundamentally different from the previous ones is that the request for legalization does not include technical documentation about the facility that would guarantee its safety. The justification for such a legal solution is reflected in the importance of legalization of buildings and legal certainty in real estate transactions, as well as lower material costs for the legalization of buildings. All buildings that are legalized under this Law will have a record in the cadastre that they are registered under it. The law also stipulates that the Republic of Serbia does not guarantee the stability of such facilities.

Bearing in mind everything we have stated in this text, we hope that this Law will be successfully implemented and that many citizens who live in buildings that are not legalized will finally receive legal protection of their property.

Legalization Lawyer

If you have a facility that you would like to legalize or have any questions about this matter, feel free to contact the Law Office Pekić via e-mail: [email protected]

Questions Answers

What happens if more than one person files an application for legalization of one object?

– If more than one person submits an application for the same facility, the Agency, on the basis of the attached evidence, issues a certificate of fulfillment of the conditions for registration if the person who is the owner of that facility can be determined beyond doubt. If it is not possible to determine in an unambiguous way who is the owner of the facility, the Agency will inform all applicants that the conditions for registration of the facility have not been met and will instruct them to resolve the right of ownership in the procedure before the competent authority (court).

When will it be possible to apply for legalization?

– Submission of the application for legalization should be enabled on December 8, 2025, i.e. 45 days from the date of publication of the Law.

What is the deadline for filing an application (request) for legalization?

– The request for legalization should be submitted by 08.02.2026 (60 days from 08.12.2025 when the start of applications on the basis of the Law).

What happens if I miss the deadline for applying for legalization?

If you miss the deadline for submitting an application for legalization for justified reasons, the request may be submitted within one year from the entry into force of this law. Along with the request submitted within the deadline, it is necessary to submit proof of the existence of a justified reason for not submitting the request within the prescribed deadline.

How much does it cost to legalize a house of 100 m2 ?

– The price for the legalization of a house depends on which local government the house is located in, as well as within which zone in that local self-government it is located, in accordance with the zoning plan.

Advokat Stefan Pekić pozira za sliku njegovog portreta.

Author

Attorney Stefan Pekić

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