Companies that have failed to pay the mandatory membership fee to the Serbian Chamber of Commerce (PKS) are now receiving warnings before facing penalties. While this fee is legally required, some business owners argue they don’t receive any benefits from the membership and see no reason to pay.
The membership fee is compulsory for all registered businesses in Serbia. However, some companies are refusing to pay, claiming that the fee does not provide any tangible benefits. In response, the PKS has begun issuing warnings to these businesses before initiating further actions.
One warning, which New Economy had access to, explains that the membership fee has been mandatory since 2017 as a legal obligation for all economic entities. The fee is essential for financing the PKS’s activities and offers members the right to access the benefits of membership.
If companies fail to pay by the specified deadline, they will incur interest charges. In the case of one company that received a reminder, the total amount due reached almost 88,000 dinars, which includes 62,300 dinars in unpaid membership fees and around 25,500 dinars in interest. The company can avoid the interest if the debt is paid within eight days.
If the debt remains unpaid, the PKS warns that it will begin forced collection procedures without further delay.
PKS has also stated its willingness to show understanding and is open to negotiating payment terms with companies that owe membership fees.
The owner of one company that received a warning said that, although her business would be willing to pay the fee if they received services from PKS, they have not been provided with any tangible benefits. “There is no issue with paying the membership fee if we are provided with something in return. But we are at a disadvantage compared to other businesses in the same industry that have received benefits from the Chamber. Without a clear benefit, we cannot justify paying this fee,” she told New Economy.
The membership fee is determined by the company’s annual income and classification. Micro companies pay a monthly fee of 600 dinars, plus one-twelfth of 0.004% of their income. The fixed portion of the fee depends on the size of the company: small firms pay 3,600 dinars, medium-sized firms pay 43,000 dinars, and large firms pay 160,000 dinars. The highest monthly membership fee is 185,000 dinars.
However, companies with business income under 20 million dinars only pay the fixed portion of the fee, and companies with business income below 1 million dinars are exempt from paying the fee altogether.
The Chamber of Commerce did not provide information about the specific benefits members receive, despite requests from New Economy.
“Membership Should Be Voluntary”
Dragoljub Rajić, coordinator of the Network for Business Support, commented in an interview with New Economy that the Law on Chambers of Commerce, which mandates the membership fee, was introduced in the 1990s and briefly repealed. PKS has been charging the fee again since 2017.
“In economically developed countries like Germany and Austria, only large companies pay membership fees, allowing smaller businesses to receive services from the chambers. This is how it works in European countries, where governments provide services to the economy because they recognize that a strong economy is essential for a higher standard of living,” Rajić explained.
In Serbia, however, he argues, the Chamber of Commerce holds a privileged position. “All discussions about new and existing laws happen within the PKS, but businessmen are often informed too late to make changes. This Chamber has become another tool for centralizing power, where decisions are made from the top down, without consulting the economy,” Rajić added.
He suggested that the Chamber of Commerce sends reminders when it faces financial difficulties, and while it may not have sued anyone for non-payment, most businessmen are against paying the membership fee. “An economic referendum should be held to allow businesses to express their opinions. The role of the chamber should be to address the economy’s issues and propose legal changes, not act as a channel between the political elite and businessmen. This mandatory payment system should be abolished, and companies should have the option to pay the membership fee voluntarily,” concluded Rajić.
