What does the Law on Archival Material and Archival Activities bring?

General information about the Regulation As of January 1, 2024, all legal entities in the Republic of Serbia are obliged to apply the provisions of the Regulation on unique technical and technological requirements and procedures for the storage and protection of archival material and documentary material in electronic form. Key elements of the Regulation include the obligations of creators and owners of documentary material, a special regime for state authorities, a list of material categories with retention periods, and protection measures. The procedure of professional supervision, destruction of documentary material, and handing over permanently preserved materials to the competent public archive is regulated. The Regulation stipulates that the list of categories of documentary material with storage periods is submitted to the competent public archive in electronic form via the eAdministration portal. Checking and approval of this list is done through eArchive. Obligations of creators and holders of documentary material include adopting internal rules, applying protection measures, classifying material, and keeping certain records. The competent public archive performs Expert supervision over archiving, paying special attention to checking electronic archiving in the eArchive. Protection measures refer to all technical and technological components used to prepare documentary material. The Regulation regulates the procedure for extracting and handing over archival materials that are permanently stored after the expiry of 30 years from the creation date. Also, procedures are set for destroying documentary material whose storage period has expired. Protection measures are applied to all technical and technological components used to prepare documentary material for electronic archiving. The Law on Archival Material and Archival Activities contains provisions that mention the following:

• Using a software solution for electronic archiving,
• Approval of the list of categories of archival material and documentary material with retention periods,
• Electronic archiving of creators and owners before submission to the competent archive;
• Carrying out professional supervision in the eArchive,
• Extraction of electronic documentary material that is destroyed,
• Extraction of electronic documentary material that is permanently stored, and
• Protection measures of the software solution in which electronic archiving is performed.

The basic categories found in a company, which need to be regulated by the Law on Archives, are:

• General documentation of the company,
• Establishment and decisions of management bodies,
• General acts:
• Work relations,
• Finance and Accounting,
• Safety and Health at Work,
• Archive business.

According to the Act on Archival Material and Archival Activities, we are obliged to submit the following documentation to the competent archive:

• Rulebook on the method of recording, classifying, archiving, and keeping archival material and documentary material,
• Rulebook on how to record, protect, and use electronic documents,
• List of categories of archival material and documentary material with retention periods.

It is important to note that the Law stipulates penalties for non-compliance with set obligations of 50,000 to 2,000,000 dinars or from 5,000 to 150,000 dinars for a responsible person in a legal entity. Archive materials, specially selected original documents, are kept permanently. The owner of the archival material is the holder of its rights, and in the absence of the original form, the reproduced one is kept. The archive book is maintained continuously and includes an inventory of documentation with special obligations for legal entities. The new Law on Archival Material brings additional obligations for legal entities concerning preserving archival materials. According to the Law on Archival Material and Archival Activities, documentary material includes all records of subjects, including state bodies, institutions, companies, etc. Documents can be in printed or electronic form. Legally defined properties of documents include authenticity, trustworthiness, integrity, and usability. TPA support in implementing the Regulation

• TPA Serbia provides a software solution in the form of an Archive Book intended for all companies, regardless of size, for companies that have problems with storing and exchanging documentation, with frequent loss or damage of paper documents.
• The archive book is available as a service on the Cloud platform and can also be installed at the user’s location.
• The archive book is an open system where the user can integrate with existing ERP systems.
• TPA provides support for integrating the software with the customer’s existing system.
• TPA provides services related to the storage of electronic archival material; we work on adjusting your processes to comply with the requirements stipulated by the Regulation.
• We provide training and education to users on implementing new technical and technological requirements. We help users understand the changes, procedures, and protection measures the Regulation stipulates.
• TPA Serbia provides advisory services to clients in connection with implementing the Regulation. Expert support in adapting their processes and systems to match the requirements.
• Assistance in adopting internal rules and procedures that follow the Regulation and providing advice on the classification and organization of documentation.
• Assistance in creating and submitting lists of archival and documentary material categories with retention periods to the competent archive.
• TPA continuously monitors changes in legislation and updates clients on new obligations and opportunities.