Three rulebooks issued in July 2026 set out the forms, supporting evidence and data-exchange procedures for Serbia’s domestic tax on greenhouse-gas emissions and a parallel tax on imported carbon-intensive products. The regulations entered into force on 23 July 2026, after both taxes began on 1 January 2026.
The domestic charge is set at €4 per tonne of CO2 equivalent, payable in dinars. The framework also establishes an auditable chain linking physical production, verified emissions, customs documentation, tax returns and investment records.
For Serbian manufacturers, the rules make carbon data financially material. For exporters to the European Union, the framework creates an additional reporting layer alongside EU CBAM processes.
Domestic greenhouse-gas emissions tax scope and calculation
The Serbian domestic emissions tax applies to operators required to hold a greenhouse-gas emissions permit and active in electricity generation, cement, fertilisers and nitrogen compounds, crude iron, steel and ferroalloys, and aluminium production. The covered gases include CO2, nitrous oxide and perfluorocarbons, with non-CO2 gases converted into tonnes of CO2 equivalent.
The taxable base is calculated as verified total emissions minus a reference quantity linked to the relevant production process or activity. The remaining taxable emissions are multiplied by €4 per tonne of CO2 or CO2 equivalent and converted into dinars using the official middle exchange rate of the National Bank of Serbia at the end of the tax period.
The tax period is generally the calendar year. Operators must file electronically with the Serbian Tax Administration by 31 May of the following year and pay by the same deadline.
This schedule means emissions generated during 2026 are expected to be filed by 31 May 2027. The underlying law also requires an amended tax return within 15 days if an operator submits a revised emissions report.
PP EGESB, PIE and OUE forms for verified emissions reporting
The rulebook introduces the PP EGESB tax return and requires operators to attach a verified emissions report. Where a competent authority determines emissions itself, an official emissions assessment must be attached instead.
Operators must provide installation-level source data through the PIE form. They must also submit a consolidated calculation for the reporting period through the OUE form.
The framework requires that carbon-tax results be assembled from installation emissions sources rather than relying on a single top-down figure for companies operating multiple sites. It links installation-level inputs to the legal entity’s total taxable position under the domestic tax.
Tax credits tied to emissions-reduction investment
The rules also define an evidence trail for credits connected with emissions-reduction investment. Electricity producers deriving at least 80% of revenue from electricity generation may receive a credit equal to 20% of qualifying expenditure on prescribed emissions-reduction measures.
The credit cannot reduce more than 80% of the calculated carbon-tax liability. Investment records must be maintained separately for each project or measure.
Companies claiming the credit must submit an analytical schedule of investments through PK-1. They calculate the credit through PK-2, with recoverable value-added tax excluded from eligible investment expenditure.
The evidence requirements extend beyond invoices to engineering documentation tied to emission sources. The rules specify that equipment specifications, baseline energy balances, commissioning records, meter data, acceptance certificates, production volumes and post-investment performance form part of the tax evidence file.
Imports of carbon-intensive products: scope, threshold and embedded emissions
The second part of Serbia’s framework covers imports of carbon-intensive products classified under specified customs classifications for iron and steel, cement, fertilisers and aluminium. Importers bringing in less than five tonnes of covered products during the tax period are outside the tax under the current threshold.
The import tax base is embedded emissions generated during production of imported goods reduced by applicable reference emissions. Actual emissions can be used where confirmed by an eligible validator; if actual emissions cannot be validated, calculations may rely on prescribed default values.
The import return is submitted using PP UUIP, supported by UP, which breaks down imported goods by supplier and customs tariff code. The schedule includes quantity of product, method for determining emissions, emissions per unit, total emissions, reference emissions, taxable emissions and tax liability before credits.
Monthly customs data exchange and import credit documentation
Serbia’s Customs Administration transmits import data electronically to the Tax Administration by the 10th day of each month for the preceding month. The transmitted data include tariff code, description, quantity, country of origin, customs value, customs-declaration number and date, importer identity and customs office.
The framework also allows importers to claim a credit for a carbon price demonstrably paid in the country of origin. The supporting package must link payment to the relevant product, production installation, emissions quantity and reporting period.
The credit documentation must include a verification report and confirmation from the competent authority that the carbon charge was paid. Foreign-language documents must be translated into Serbian by an authorised court interpreter.
Interaction with EU CBAM reporting obligations
The Serbian measures intersect with EU CBAM but are distinct from it. EU CBAM entered its definitive phase on 1 January 2026, covering imports in sectors including cement, iron and steel, aluminium, fertiliser, electricity and hydrogen.
Under EU CBAM rules, EU importers or their indirect customs representatives carry legal obligations to report embedded emissions and surrender CBAM certificates. Where actual emissions are declared, underlying installation data must be verified by an appropriately accredited CBAM verifier.
A Serbian €4-per-tonne domestic tax does not automatically exempt shipments from CBAM requirements. EU rules allow account to be taken of a carbon price effectively paid in the country of origin only subject to evidence and applicable adjustments tied to what was actually paid.
Allocation between Serbian domestic payments and EU embedded-emissions claims
The exporter needs an allocation bridge connecting Serbian installation verified annual emissions, domestic taxable base and carbon payment with embedded emissions assigned to each covered product exported to the EU. The bridge must also prevent allocating the same carbon payment more than once across different customers or consignments.
This approach makes monitoring, reporting and verification operate as a continuing factory process rather than an annual environmental exercise. A credible CBAM MRV system begins with defined installation boundaries and an inventory of emission sources including furnaces, kilns, boilers, generators and process units.
The system must determine which fuels and raw materials enter each process and document measurement instruments alongside calculation methods. It also requires controls over production and inventory data used in embedded-emissions calculations for products.
MRV controls for precursors and electricity data inputs
The MRV requirements include consistent treatment across production routes such as intermediate goods, recycled content, process gases, waste streams and flaring. They also cover exported energy, internal transfers and shared utilities where several products use common assets like steam or electricity.
For steel, aluminium, fertilisers and some downstream goods, precursor information is identified as a central risk area under MRV practice described in the framework. Exporters may have reliable information on direct emissions but still lack verified data for imported or domestically purchased intermediate materials such as slabs or billets supplied by other plants.
If precursor files are missing or incomplete supplier declarations need to function as controlled MRV inputs through contracts specifying reporting period, production installation details, methodology requirements, emission boundaries, product quantities verification status and correction procedures.