Background check in Serbia

What are the benefits of background checks in Serbia?

Background checks help you minimize the risk of criminal activity in your workplace. Although your remote team members from Serbia won’t be working in the office with others, they may still present a risk to your team. In particular, when you’re giving them access to your internal systems and processes.

Running a background check on potential employees from Serbia can also offer potential legal protection. As an employer, you are required to provide a safe work environment for team members. By running background checks, you can help minimize your chances of hiring people who might engage in misconduct that causes an unsafe working environment.

What are the types of background checks in Serbia?

You’re not limited to running criminal background checks on applicants. Some employers may run a work history check, while others may run a full background screening.

When you’re interviewing Serbian candidates, you may consider these types of checks for a clear view of your applicants.

Criminal record check in Serbia

If your business bars workers with certain criminal convictions from applying, you may run a criminal record check. In Serbia, you need to have a valid reason for conducting these checks, and all criminal history checks need to be supervised by the proper authorities. Serbian criminal records searches offer information about felony convictions from the past seven years.

You can also run a civil search to find lower-level convictions. To run these searches, you will need to contact the city or jurisdiction in which the crime was committed. You can save yourself time by working with a third-party company to run a full background screening.

Employment history check

In Serbia, running background checks isn’t as common as in other countries, but they aren’t restricted. You are legally allowed to ask potential candidates questions about anything that’s relevant to their job, including their employment history.

To verify employment, you may call the companies listed on the employee’s resume to verify their history with the company and job title. But you may not be able to ask for certain types of information. Working with an employer of record can help you ensure that your employment verification questions comply with local regulations.

Medical Screening

In Serbia, employers need to conduct a medical screening of employees, particularly in high-risk occupations. As a remote worker, they probably won’t classify as high risk, so you may not be required to offer the screening. But you do have to offer a healthy work environment for your employees.

To offer your distributed team members a safer workspace, you could provide ergonomic chairs and other office furniture that helps them maintain their posture. You could also offer flexible breaks for fitness classes and other wellness checks.

Credit Check History

Under Serbian law, it is illegal to discriminate against a potential employee based on their financial status and other characteristics that don’t have to do with their job. Since financial status is protected, you may not be allowed to run a credit check on potential Serbian employees.

Unless you are entrusting them with significant financial responsibilities as part of their job, you can likely skip this particular background check.

Education History

One of the best ways to verify education history is to request a certified copy of the applicant’s diploma, degree, or certification. Many Serbian schools offer these documents or transcripts, and you can request them if they pertain to the applicant’s job.

You can ask potential employees for certified copies of their documents. But requesting them yourself gives you peace of mind that the documents are real.

Social Media Check

Before you hire an employee from Serbia, you may want to check their presence on social media. Potential deal breakers likely depend on your company. However, uncovering problematic statements on social media before hiring an employee keeps them from coming up later and damaging your company’s reputation.

When screening your applicants, do a deep dive and look for social media content that may go against your company’s policy. However, you can’t hold violations against an employee before they have the job. So, it's important to use your discretion before you decide not to hire someone over an old post.

Requirements for a background check in Serbia

To run a background check on a potential employee from Serbia, you will need this information:

• Name
• Date of Birth
• Full address
• Release form

You may also need an identity card or a passport to run a background check. Make sure your potential employees sign a release form before you run any reports.

Steps for conducting a background check in Serbia

Follow these steps to conduct a background check:

• Make a list of the types of screenings you need
• Verify local regulations to see what kinds of pre-employment checks or background checks are required and available
• Consult local employment laws to see which checks are allowed
• Have the potential candidate sign a release form
• Verify the types of documents you need to run a background check
• Collect these documents
• Run the background check

Are employee background checks legal in Serbia?

The most important thing you can do is consult local employment laws. While background checks allow you to uncover information that could impact your hiring decision, some countries protect employees from these practices. You want to stay in compliance with local rules and regulations or you could put your business at risk.

For example, in Serbia, you can’t run a criminal check on someone without a valid reason. Criminal checks are important for uncovering information about crimes that could impact your business. You want to know if someone was convicted of fraud or embezzlement. It’s also helpful to uncover intellectual property theft and other violations.

However, in Serbia you aren’t allowed to use a criminal conviction that’s unrelated to work as a reason not to hire someone.

Planning to Hire in Serbia? Here’s How Skuad Can Help

Background checks in Serbia are risky if you don’t know the local laws, and they are time-consuming. So Skuad performs background checks when you partner with us for EOR.

Working with Skuad can help you manage this risk. With Skuad as your Employer of Record, you can easily navigate local hiring and onboarding process including background checks.

Skuad can make sure all your background checks are legal and thorough. With our unified platform, you can also take care of onboarding, payroll, and compliance with all local laws. Choose Skuad to be your employer of record to hire your next employees in Serbia and beyond. Talk to our experts today.

FAQs

1. What can be asked in a background check in Serbia?

A background check in Serbia may vary depending on the purpose and scope of the check. Some common types of information that may be requested in a background check in Serbia are criminal records, employment history, education qualifications, credit history and references.

2. How is a background check done?

Background checks in Serbia are usually conducted by the Ministry of Interior of the Republic of Serbia or authorized private investigation agencies. The process involves checking criminal records, employment history, education records, and credit history. The individual or organization requesting the check must provide information about the person being investigated, as well as written consent from the person. 

3. What do employers look for in a background check in Serbia?

In Serbia, companies check and verify references from former employers or coworkers, criminal histories, credit histories, and proof of education and employment history. These checks are often performed to ensure the candidate is suitable for the position, especially for roles that involve handling sensitive information or financial data.

4. How many days are required for a background check?

The duration of a background check in Serbia may vary depending on the type of background check and the organization conducting it. Generally, a basic background check can take a few days to complete, while more extensive checks, such as those required for employment or security clearance, can take several weeks or even months.