According to provisions of the Law on Health Care (“Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia”, Nos. 25/2019, 92/2023 – authentic interpretation, and 29/2025 – decision of the Constitutional Court) providers of health care are:
- healthcare institutions in public and private ownership;
- higher education institutions in the field of health professions and other legal entities authorised by a special law to carry out healthcare activities (hereinafter referred to as: other legal entities);
- private practice;
- healthcare professionals who perform healthcare activities, in accordance with the law;
- other higher education institutions, i.e. scientific-educational and scientific institutions, with the opinion of the Ministry of Health, in accordance with the law..
Requirements for Setting up of Private Practice
Private practice may be set up by:
- An unemployed health care practitioner
- A health care practitioner beneficiary of old age pension.
The health care practitioner beneficiary of old age pension may set up private practice under the condition that he/she:
- is generally physically fit
- has acquired appropriate higher education of health professionals, or the appropriate secondary education of health professionals, specialization or narrow specialization
- have passed the professional exam
- has been issued, or renewed the license, in compliance with the law
- by judgment absolute, he/she has not been handed down for intentional criminal offense to penality of imprisonment of one year or a more severe punishment or to penality of imprisonment for a criminal offense against human health, until sentence has not been deleted in accordance with the law, by judgment absolute, he/she has not been handed down security measure in accordance with the Criminal Code, namely: compulsory psychiatric treatment and confinement in a medical institution, compulsory psychiatric treatment at liberty, compulsory drug addiction treatment, compulsory alcohol addiction treatment i.e prohibition from practising a profession, activity or duty because he/she can not perform health activities or by a decision of the competent body of the association, he/she has not been handed down one of the disciplinary actions banning health activity, in compliance with the law regulating the work of the associations of health care practitioners for the duration of the imposed security measure, or measure of prohibition
- meets other requirements laid down by the law.
On work of private practice, shall be applied the regulations governing the entrepreneurship if the Law on Health Care provides otherwise.
Private practice can perform health activities if it fulfills the conditions prescribed by the Law on Health Care and the regulations adopted for the implementation of this law, and if they have:
- prescribed type and number of health care practitioners with the acquired correspondingly high, or high school education, with license of competent chamber, and for the performing a certain tasks and with the appropriate specialization or close specialization, in labour relationship for an indefinite period of time
- prescribed diagnostic, therapeutic and other equipment for safe and modern performing of health activities for which he/she established a private practice
- prescribed premises for the performing of health activity for which he/she established a private practice
- prescribed types and quantity of medicines and medical devices which are required for performing health activity for which it was established private practice.
Polyclinic, except founders which performe the activity as an entrepreneur must have health care practitioner with appropriate education, licensed by competent chamber, employed for an indefinite period, for each of the areas of medicine i.e dental medicine within the polyclinic.
More detailed requirements in terms of personnel, equipment, permises, medicines and medical devices for the foundation and performance of healthcare services, as well as the type and method of delivery of health services by private practicen shall be prescribed by the Minister.
Private practice which use sources of ionizing radiation, in addition to the above mentioned requirements, must meet other conditions prescribed by the law governing protection against ionizing radiation.
Private practice can perform health activities if the Ministry of Health with decision establishes that the prescribed conditions for performing health activities are fullfiled.. Private practice can only perform health activity that is determined by decision of the Ministry of Health on the fulfillment of conditions for performing health activities.
It is forbidden that health care practitioner of other professional specialty to practice health activity that is different from health services established by the decision of the Ministry of Health on fulfillment of conditions for doing health services and private practice, except in cases stipulated in Paragraphs 3-5. Article 40 of the Law on Health Care.
Health activity which is determined by the decision of the Ministry of Health, shall be entered in the register of the Business Registres Agency. Private Practice begins on the date of entry in the register of a health care facilities which is managed by Business Registres Agency.
Register of health care facilities, as delegated work, and a unique evidence of subjects in health shall be managed by the Business Registers Agnecy. Register of health care facilities and unique evidence prescribed by the Law on Health Care, shall be established within 18 months from the date of entry into force of the Law on Health Care i.e on October 11, 2020 and in that period, Business Registers Agency shell ex officio convert. data on health care facilities from the register of commercial courts, according to the latest registered state.
Until the establishment of the Register of health care facilities and unique evidence, health care facilities will be registered in the competent commercial courts.
Types of Private Practice
Private practice may be founded as:
- Doctor’s outpatient unit (general specialist and narrow specialist)
- Outpatient unit of dental practice (general and specialist)
- Polyclinic
- Laboratory (for biochemistry with hematology and immunochemistry, microbiology and virology, histopathology with cytology)
- Pharmacy
- Outpatient unit (for health care and for rehabilitation)
- Dental laboratory.
Private practice stated at points 1-5 can be established by a healthcare professional who have finished integrated academic studies of medical profession, in accordance with the law.
Private practice, from points 6 and 7 may be established by a healthcare professional with a correspondingly high, or high school education of medical profession, in accordance with the law and on the basis of reports of MD, that is, a dentist, which contains instructions on the application of therapy, or making dentures and orthodontic appliances.
Polyclinic can be established for at least two different areas of medicine or dental medicine.
The founder of private practice shall independently engage in an activity as an entrepreneur. A health care practitioner may set up only one form of private practice.
Private practice may not engage in a health care activity in the area of emergency medical care, supply of blood and blood derivative products, taking, keeping and transplantation of organs, cells and tissues as a parts of human body, production of serums and vaccines, pathoanatomical – autopsy and forensic activity, or a health care activity in the area of public health.
Termination of Work of Private Practice
Private practice shall be stricken off the register in case of:
- Being stricken off
- Death of the founder of private practice
- The founder of private practice permanently loose the capacity for work concerning engaging in a health care activity, upon the decision of the competent authority
- The founder of private practice loose legal/business capacity, fully or partially, upon the decision of the competent court
- The founder of private practice sign an employment contract, or start engaging in any other independent activity as the main occupation
- He/she set up more than one form of private practice
- Fail to start engaging in certain types of practice within the health care activity within 12 months from the date of registration in the register with the competent authority, in compliance with the law
- He/she engage in the activity at the time of temporary termination of practice contrary to Article 41 of the Law on Health Care
- He/she do not start again to engage in the health activity after the expiry of the temporary termination of practice within 12 months from the date of expiry of the period prescribed by Article 41 paragraph 1 of the Law on Health Care
- Within the time period specified in the measure of the ban on engaging in an helth activity which has been brought against it because of failing to fulfill the requirement for engaging in that activity fail to fulfill those requirements, or fail to harmonize the activity
- Being sentenced, more than three times, for engaging in the activity for which it does not fulfill the statutory requirements
- For other reasons laid down by the law.
Notice of occurrence of the circumstances referred to in points. 10 and 11 shall be submitted by a medical or pharmaceutical inspector to the Business Registers Agency.
Last update: 28. 9. 2025.
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