A deadline you cannot miss
After changing your place of residence you have three calendar days to notify the MUP of the new address. Failure to notify or a delay carries a fine of 20,000 to 150,000 dinars. This is a case where 'I will go later' costs dearly, so the moving date and the MUP visit are best planned together.
How the deadline is counted
There are nuances people learn only after missing it. In Belgrade the clock starts from the lease contract date: if the contract starts on 1 April and you move in on the 10th, the deadline is already running from the 1st. When booking by email, the notification date counts from the day the email was sent — provided you come with the documents at the time given in the reply. And one more point: if the dates in your documents differ, the older document is used — the izjava or the contract.
How it goes
The address cannot be changed online, only in person. The MUP usually requires the presence of all family members rather than one representative. The application is filed in the city you are moving to, not where you lived before.
If your residence is in progress
A separate case is changing your address while your first residence permit or an extension is being processed. If the first decision is still in progress, it is better to wait for the biometrics and change the address at the biometrics or after receiving the new document. If your documents were returned, it is more sensible to change the address in the application itself and attach the housing papers for the new address. The logic is simple: if you change the address mid-process, the new permit will still carry the old one, and the address will have to be changed again.
What about the card and what comes after
The ID card is not replaced after an address change: the same card remains, but the data on its chip is updated, including the address. This matters for banks: staff read the card with software and see the current address. If you have documents stating your address — certificates, contracts — keep the updated version to hand.
If you are leaving Serbia
If you are leaving the country, the landlord should go to the MUP and report that you have moved out and no longer live at that address. This is needed to avoid a 'rubber flat' — where many people are registered at one address. If it is not done, problems may arise on returning to Serbia: both with extending residence and with obtaining permanent residence.
What to do step by step
Plan the move and the MUP visit together, with a margin on the deadlines. Prepare the documents: your ID card, the izjava or lease contract for the new address, proof of ownership. If residence is in progress, decide whether to change the address at the biometrics or after receiving it. Come with the whole family to the MUP in the new city. After the change, update your address where it appears — above all for the bank. And if you are leaving, make sure the landlord reports your departure.
Data checked on 11 October 2026: deadlines, fine and procedure follow the rules in force on foreign residence and community practice; the liability for failure to notify should be checked against the current version of the law.