Kosovo postpones strict implementation of the Law on Foreigners and Vehicles

2025-10-24 17:06:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Kosovo has postponed the implementation of the Law on Vehicles and the Law on Foreigners until January 15, 2026. Based on the Law on Vehicles, cars with foreign license plates cannot remain in Kosovo for more than three months or on the basis of an authorization.

Authorities in Kosovo had previously announced that strict enforcement of the laws would begin on November 1, an announcement that was criticized by the Serb community, civil society, and political representatives.

The Ministry of Interior said on Friday that from November 1 to January 15 it will conduct an information campaign for all citizens of Kosovo and foreigners who have temporary and permanent residence in Kosovo.

"The special focus of this campaign will be to inform citizens about the conditions for participating in traffic in the territory of Kosovo, especially for vehicles registered in a foreign country and issues related to the implementation of legal provisions for vehicles. The campaign will also provide practical instructions for the entry, movement, residence and employment of foreign citizens in Kosovo," the announcement said.

The new traffic measure affects members of the Serbian community who reside in Kosovo according to the Serbian system, but who drive cars with license plates from Serbian cities, using authorization.

This authorization contains the driver's ID card data, which is issued by Serbian authorities for cities in Kosovo, but which official Pristina does not recognize. There are such cases in Serb-majority areas both north and south of the Ibar River.

In addition to measures related to the circulation of vehicles with foreign license plates, the Kosovo Police also announced in September the implementation of the Law on Foreigners regarding personal documents, which means that all those who do not have a residence permit in Kosovo will have to apply for one.

Authorities in Kosovo have published a guide explaining the procedure for obtaining a short-term, temporary or permanent residence permit, and anyone who does not apply for such a permit will be deported from the country.

There is no accurate official data on how many Serbs live in Kosovo and possess Kosovo documents, as members of this community – mainly in the four municipalities in the north – boycotted the population census process conducted in 2024.

However, according to estimates by Serbian civil society and local authorities in Serb-majority municipalities, around 100,000 Serbs live in Kosovo. A 2024 report by the non-governmental organization Aktiv, titled “Trend Analysis: Attitudes of the Serb Community,” showed that over 93 percent of 503 respondents possessed Kosovo documents.

A group of Serbian NGOs had previously stated that there are still thousands of Kosovo Serbs who cannot obtain Kosovo documents because "civil registration of Kosovo Serbs, as well as other members of non-majority communities, has been hindered for many years."

Kosovo authorities, from November last year to April this year, have enabled Serbs in Kosovo to obtain citizenship "with delay", taking into account that some of them could not obtain Kosovo documents because they only had birth certificates issued by Serbian institutions, which Kosovo authorities do not accept. /REL