"Adio" to Dubrovnik A tale of two refugees Full Monty Parlor Games Share My Fire Car - the relationship-saving device Going Straight West A year to expirience, a lifetime to understand Meeting Vuk Cultural insensitivity Sex in Serbia Buvljak experience What's news in Yugoslavia? part II What's news in Yugoslavia? Trust issues: Yugoslav Banks Hosting, Serbian style Flat-hunting Staying legally in Yugoslavia Welcome to Belgrade Border crossings The Paper Chase: Single - entry visas

Yugoslavia is a different story. The gold rush might be waning in Warsaw, Prague and Budapest, but the digging hasn't begun here yet. The few foreigners who work and live in Yugoslavia haven't made a significant dent in the labor market and legislation pretty much reflects that reality. Whether Belgrade will become the next hot destination for the twenty-something crowd seeking to help Yugoslavia's transition to democracy and a market economy will depend a lot on investor confidence. In turn, investor confidence depends a lot on political stability and positive publicity, which there isn't much of at the moment. What I can be sure of is that the makeup of foreigners coming to Belgrade will continue to be the random English teacher, volunteers in non-governmental organizations and journalists.

If you are one of the above, this is what you need to know.

Your tourist visa keeps you legally in Yugoslavia from between a few days and a few months, depending on where it was issued. If you decide to extend your tourist visa, you need to register with the police station in your neighborhood. When your extension runs out, you have a couple of choices, go back to Budapest to get another tourist visa or sweat out a couple of months worth of paperwork.
Many opt for the former. Budapest is a nice place to visit if you want to taste a bit of the West again. It has international cuisine, a swinging nightlife, Turkish baths, great architecture and a couple of English-language bookstore. You can even find bagels there. Plus, there are plenty of opportunities to brag to other expatriates about how their cushy are no match for the thrill of living in the Balkans on the brink of constant danger without even a jar of peanut butter to save you.

If you decide on the latter, other than a long wait, getting your papers in order is actually no big deal compared to what Serbs and Montenegrins must go through in other countries. The entire process requires a few steps taken in logical order, a good map of Belgrade and again, a cultivated sense of patience.

Destination 1: The Police Station

The first thing to do is visit the police station in your neighborhood and ask for the white residency card. Whoever you are staying with (or pretending to stay with) must show his or her identity card and state that they are your landlord.
Many journalists work in Yugoslavia without accreditation, especially those whose coverage of the recent wars in Croatia and Bosnia didn't bring smiles to the Ministry of Information. Receiving accreditation is the only way you'll be able to get a multiple-entry visa and sometimes you get invited to official press conferences. But otherwise, it's the best way for the Ministry to keep track of you.

Destination 2: The SIV Building

If you decided it's worth it, you must then visit Mr. Jovan Ilic at the Federal Ministry of Information's foreign journalists department at the SIV building in New Belgrade. Bring him the following items:

-A letter from your employer describing the publication or agency you are writing for, your assignment and the duration of your stay
- Your Curriculum Vitae
-Two passport-sized photos

Mr. Ilic will give you a form to fill out which asks for some basic information, including the address of your employer. In two weeks to a month, you'll get a little blue book with your picture in it and accreditation documents. This book is easier to carry around than a passport and can even work wonders when facing Belgrade's finest or even club bouncers.

Destination 3: The MUP

The next step is to visit the Central Police Station on November 29th street, affectionately called the "MUP". Foreigners needing any kind of documentation, including a driver's license or a work permit, will come to know this place well. Bring along:

-Your passport
-The white residency card
-The signed and stamped accreditation papers
-100 DM worth of Dinars
-A passport-sized photograph

If you are applying for a work permit, you must provide additionally:

-Your work contract
-The company's by-laws on hiring foreigners

Before going into the building itself, you'll need to visit the visa office located at the back side of the MUP building. The clerk will take your money and type out your applications for your documents. Then take everything upstairs to the department for foreigners on the second floor and hand it over to the secretary in room 14.

With this one swift move, you've condemned yourself to a month's wait. It's a proper initiation to life in Serbia and you'll start to relate to the locals with a heightened sensitivity.

When the important day finally arrives, you must once again, return to the MUP to fetch your documents.
Now, hop on that next train to Budapest!

by Jennifer C. Brown    

To click here...            Talk back index...

Your previous talk back on the subject above:
visit visa to Serbia - Loai Hasan
i like to apply to visit visa to srbia - ibrahim daoud
Visas...... - Charl Rossouw
Vi niste normalni....or....You're NUTS! - Petar Vlasic
The Bagels - Tamara Tomic-Brennan
Zivot - Sergej Oudmanovic
Want to say hi - Stefan Lindberg
Volim te srbia - marko milojkovic
Your stay in Belgrade - George Roberts
Living in Beograd - Jelena Miladinovic
Love Belgrade! - Jennifer Downey
Staying here if you're not a journalist - Mark Daniels
I am rather bemused with you guys - Miodrag
right on!!! - Rastko Cekic
Staying there and learning the Language - Sean Eckenrod
Renting room or apartment - Laura Hansgen