Hiring a Web Agency in Serbia
Hiring a web studio in Serbia means a B2B contract, an invoice in euros without Serbian VAT (you self-account for it under reverse charge in the EU), servers in the EU and source code in your own repository. Adspire is a small studio in Niš. You talk directly to the developer, in English.
Author: Đorđe Mladenović, Technical Director. Updated: .
What you get, and what you don't
You talk to the person who writes the code. No project manager in between, and the same time zone as most of Europe (CET), so calls happen in your working hours.
- Calls and email in English or Serbian. The site itself can be delivered in English or German.
- We don't write legal texts such as the imprint, privacy policy or terms. Those come from you or your lawyer.
- We have not yet invoiced a client in the EU. Our references are live systems for companies in Serbia, which you can open and use.
- A small studio runs few projects at once. If your deadline is fixed, ask about the free slot before you sign.
Contract and code ownership
- A B2B service contract with scope and milestones.
- The source code lives in your GitHub or GitLab repository from day one.
- All rights pass to you when the final invoice is paid. No licence fees to us.
- We sign an NDA before the first detailed call if you want one.
An invoice without Serbian VAT
The invoice is in euros, without Serbian VAT. In the EU your company self-accounts for the VAT under the reverse-charge mechanism, so we need your VAT ID. Payment is by SEPA or SWIFT transfer, per milestone.
Outside the EU the rules differ by country. Have your accountant confirm the treatment before the first invoice arrives.
GDPR when the developer is in Serbia
Serbia's 2018 data protection law follows the GDPR closely. Even so, the European Commission has not listed Serbia among countries with an adequate level of protection, and that has consequences.
- Servers and the database stay in the EU, for example at Hetzner in Germany or AWS in Frankfurt. The hosting contract is best held by your company.
- We build with test data. Access to real customer data happens only when the work needs it.
- When it does: a data processing agreement under Art. 28 GDPR plus EU Standard Contractual Clauses for the transfer to Serbia.
Systems that are live
Live systems for companies in Serbia: booking, web shops, internal software.
Common questions about hiring an agency in Serbia
Is hiring an agency in Serbia straightforward for an EU company?
Yes. A B2B service contract with a Serbian company is common. The invoice comes without Serbian VAT and you apply reverse charge. Have your accountant confirm it before the first invoice arrives.
What language do you work in?
Calls, email and documentation are in English. The finished site or app can be in English or German. Legal texts such as the privacy policy come from you or your lawyer.
Where is the data hosted?
On servers in the EU, usually in Germany. The hosting contract is best held by your company, so nothing depends on us if the work ends.
Who owns the code when the project ends?
You do, once the final invoice is paid. The code sits in your repository from the start. There are no licence fees and nothing ties you to us.
Do you already have clients in the EU?
Not yet. Our references are live systems for companies in Serbia. If you would be our first EU client, we say so up front rather than hide it.