This page provides information on the national frameworks to address hate crime in Serbia. The information provided here should be viewed alongside data presented on Serbia's hate crime report page.

Hate crime recording and data collection

The Serbian police records and reports on incidents committed on the basis of national, racial and religious hatred and intolerance. Police records of hate incidents are based on the reports of regional police administrations and other bodies and units of the Ministry of the Interior, and according to a special methodology developed at the Directorate for Analytics in 2004.
Hate crimes are recorded manually, and there is no special database for registering hate crimes.
The Public Prosecution Office registers criminal offences committed out of hatred in accordance with the Instructions of the Supreme Public Prosecution Office from 2015. The central record, which contains consolidated data on the actions of all public prosecution offices, is kept by the Supreme Public Prosecution Office. This record, in addition to other data, also contains some  data on the motives of a criminal offence.
According to the general mandatory instruction of the Supreme Public Prosecution Office from 2018, public prosecutors have been appointed in all Public Prosecution Offices to act as hate crime focal points and monitor the recording of these crimes. To perform this role, public prosecutors must have completed specialized training.
The annual report of the Supreme Public Prosecution Office contains data on all hate crimes, as well as on crimes of inciting hatred. The aforementioned data are publicly available on the website of the Supreme Public Prosecution Office.
The 2018 Guidelines for the prosecution of hate crimes have been presented at numerous trainings organized by the Judicial Academy, and are a valuable tool to ensure the effective prosecution of hate crimes by public prosecutors. With assistance from the OSCE Mission to Serbia, the Guidelines were amended in 2026 to reflect the current state of international law, case law and recommendations issued to Serbia.

Hate crime victim support

Support for victims of hate crimes in Serbia is available as part of the general victim support system.
Since 2017, victim support services within the Public Prosecution Offices have provided information and support to aggrieved parties (victims) and witnesses. The services are tasked with improving the support provided, including informational and logistical support, with the aim of facilitating victims' participation in the procedure and preventing their secondary victimization. These services co-operate informally with civil society organizations (CSOs) that provide victim support services, including legal advice, psychological counselling or specialized support for victims of hate crimes.
In addition, hate crime contact points within Public Prosecution Offices are responsible for liaising with victims and maintaining communication with the specialized CSOs providing support to victims of hate crimes.
The Criminal Procedure Code prescribes various forms of protection and support for victims, as well as a number of procedural rights, including the right to a translator/interpreter, attorney, case file review, and information and notification about the decisions made by the procedural authorities, among other rights.
Victims can receive the status of an especially vulnerable victim. If granted, this status allows for the appointment of an ex officio attorney, as well as a series of special safeguards, including those related to the questioning of victims. For example, particularly vulnerable victims may only be questioned by the authority conducting the criminal proceedings, which is obliged to show special diligence and care. The status also allows for the support of a psychologist, social worker or other expert during the questioning of particularly vulnerable victims, as well as the use of audio-visual equipment and the absence of the defendant and other persons during questioning.

Hate crime capacity building

Basic concepts related to Article 54a of the Criminal Code on "Special Circumstances for Determining the Punishment for a Crime Committed Out of Hate" are included in professional training programmes for police cadets preparing for the positions of police officer, traffic police officer, and border police officer.
The in-service professional development programmes for police officers include modules on human rights and working with vulnerable groups. The in-service professional development programme takes place according to annual programmes adopted by the Minister of the Interior, and is mandatory for police officers who directly exercise police powers.
Hate crime prosecution is included in the Judicial Academy's training plan for public prosecutors. The training plan incorporates the 2018 Guidelines on hate crime prosecution, as well as relevant case law of the European Court of Human Rights.