Can Russians and Ukrainians Still Get Serbian Citizenship in 2026?

If you have read that Serbia is "locking down" passports for Russians and Ukrainians, here is the honest version: there is no published ban, but multiple reports describe a quiet slowdown in naturalizing people from Russia, Ukraine and Belarus. Nothing about it is official, so treat it as a credible rumour, not law.

What is actually being reported

Since around late 2023, immigration lawyers and journalists have described an unofficial practice of stalling ordinary naturalization for Russian, Ukrainian and Belarusian nationals. The most serious claim: a number of people who had already renounced their Russian citizenship, a normal naturalization requirement, were then left waiting for a Serbian passport that did not arrive, leaving them effectively stateless. Reporting put this at more than 20 people through 2025.

At the same time, a separate fast track reportedly handed Serbian passports to a couple of hundred well-connected Russians "in the national interest", without the usual residency or renunciation. So the picture is less a clean lockdown and more a two-speed system: harder for ordinary applicants, easier for a favoured few.

None of this is confirmed by the Serbian government. We are flagging it because if you are mid-application, it changes how carefully you should proceed.

Why the pressure is real

Serbia is a candidate for EU membership and its citizens travel visa-free to the Schengen area. The EU has repeatedly warned that loose citizenship and visa rules could threaten that visa-free regime. Serbia tabled a law to cut naturalization to as little as 12 months, then withdrew it twice after EU concerns (in 2023 and again in 2025). The overall direction is toward tighter rules for higher-risk nationalities, not looser ones.

The routes that still work

Not everything is affected. The reported slowdown is about ordinary naturalization. The ancestry-based routes are separate and, as of 2026, still open.

If you have a Serbian parent, grandparent or further ancestor, descent is almost always the cleanest path. For the long-game route through living in the country, see how residency builds toward a passport on our Relocate to Serbia page and the four legitimate paths in how to get a second passport.

The standard naturalization path

For those without an ancestry claim, the realistic timeline is around six years from arrival.

1. 1

   Get temporary residence

   Usually via company formation or employment. Since the 2024 reform it can be granted for up to three years at a time.
2. 2

   Reach permanent residence

   After about three years of continuous temporary residence.
3. 3

   Qualify for citizenship

   Generally after a further qualifying period of permanent residence.
4. 4

   Apply, then renounce

   Renounce your previous citizenship only once your Serbian passport is confirmed, never before.

The one mistake to avoid

If there is a single takeaway from the reports, it is this: do not renounce your existing citizenship until your Serbian passport is physically in your hands. The people who were left stateless followed the rules in the wrong order. A good specialist will not let that happen.

If you are Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, or from anywhere else and Serbia is on your list, we can connect you with a relocation specialist who works on these cases every week. They will tell you which route is realistic, how to sequence it safely, and how to move faster without falling into the renunciation trap.