There is a high risk of corruption in Serbia’s land administration. Of all bribes paid by business, around ten percent go to land registry officers (UNODC 2013). Of all the convictions for the crime of passive bribery, a quarter is related to the construction sector (GLIS 2017). A third of Serbians believe the land administration is corrupt (UNDP 2015). Foreign investors enjoy full private property ownership rights, yet, have insufficient confidence in the protection of these rights in practice (ICS 2017, GCR 2017-2018). Serbia has an adequate body of laws for the protection of property rights, but enforcement of these rights can be extremely slow (ICS 2017). Restitution claims, unlicensed construction, limitations on property rights and title fraud, among other issues, may complicate property titles (ICS 2017). Companies are advised to thoroughly investigate any land issue before making an investment (ICS 2017). Any ‘right of use’ issued under the old socialist system may be converted into ownership rights after paying a market-rate fee (ICS 2017). In the case of expropriation, Serbian law requires compensation to be paid in the form of similar property or cash (ICS 2017). The number of steps and time required to register property in Serbia are in line with regional averages (DB 2017).
A recent case showing the extent of corruption in Serbia can be found in the “Svamala case”. In April 2016, local government officials, real estate developers, and the police colluded to close off a street and bulldoze the majority of private properties on the street in order to allow the construction of a government-backed private real-estate project (FitW 2017). Police illegally detained people in the area and refused to respond to calls from the area; showing the high levels of corruption in the country’s land sector (FitW 2017). The Police Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs has completed its investigation into the case and has forwarded it to the prosecutor (B92, Jun. 2017).