Electronic Archives 2025: How laws in Serbia and trends in BiH are driving companies to digitally store documents
Is your company still wasting valuable time searching for documents in crowded archives? Are you aware of the legal obligations that are coming into force and carry with them serious consequences for non-compliance? It's time to face reality: electronic archiving is no longer an option, but an inevitable business strategy. As digitalization experts, we understand the complexity of this transition and offer you comprehensive solutions that ensure full compliance and operational efficiency.
Electronic archiving is no longer just a "nice detail" - the growing need of industry and legislation are forcing companies to modernize. In Serbia, digital document storage is mandatory from January 1, 2024, while in BiH, there is an increasing signal towards a digital future. Let's see why the transition to electronic archiving is inevitable already in 2025.
What is an electronic archive?
An electronic archive is not just a replacement for paper. It is an intelligent document management system – from storage and metadata, to search and versioning. Its implementation enables instant access to documents anywhere and anytime, with advanced security protocols that protect your data from unauthorized access and loss. Unlike a paper archive, it is accessible, secure and work-adaptable, with significant savings. Just imagine eliminating the costs of renting archive space, purchasing paper and toner, or mailing documents!
Legal framework in Serbia: Digital archive becomes an obligation
Serbian legislation has clearly set the course for a digital future, making electronic archiving mandatory for all businesses that deal with digital documents.
The Law on Archives and Archival Activities (Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia 6/2020) is the foundation of the new regulation. It stipulates the mandatory electronic storage of all documents created in digital form – including everything from electronic invoices and contracts to internal correspondence that has archival value. This means that companies cannot rely solely on printing digital documents for archiving; the digital original must be preserved digitally.
The Regulation on Technical and Technological Requirements, which entered into force on 1 January 2024 after several delays, specifies the technical and technological requirements that electronic archiving systems must meet. It directly affects all businesses that deal with e-documents, defining standards for the security, integrity and authenticity of electronic archival materials.
Furthermore, it is important to understand that electronic documents sent to government institutions (e.g. SEF, APR, CROSO) are already considered archival material. This means that you are already obligated to preserve them in accordance with the law, and an adequate electronic archive ensures that you are fully compliant.
For companies this means:
From January 1, 2024, permanent storage of electronic documents is mandatory. No more delays – your documentation must be digitally archived.
The penalties are severe: While individuals are exempt, legal entities risk fines of up to 2 million dinars. In addition to financial penalties, non-compliance can lead to reputational damage, inspections and administrative obstacles that can seriously jeopardize your business. The question is not if you will be fined, but when, if you do not comply with your business.
Documentation that is already stored with state authorities is exempt from additional obligations, but this does not mean that you are exempt from archiving other digital materials.
In other words, from 2024, a digital archive is no longer a “nice-to-have” option, but an absolute legal obligation and business necessity: companies that do not adapt their processes in time not only expose themselves to high penalties, but also significantly lag behind in operational efficiency, productivity and, most importantly, competitiveness in the market. In the digital age, lagging behind in digitalization means losing ground.
Digitalization trends in BiH
Although Bosnia and Herzegovina does not yet have a single regulation that obliges all entities to have an electronic archive, the signals are more than clear – digitalization is an inevitable direction. Already, banks, microfinance institutions, telecom operators and certain public administration services are actively managing documents in digital form. Why? Because they have recognized the necessity of meeting regulatory requirements for data security, more efficient reporting and, in general, modernization of business.
The latest and strongest signal comes from the Preliminary Draft Law on Fiscalization of Transactions in the Federation of BiH (November 2024). This law, among other things, transposes the EU Directive 2014/55/EC on electronic invoices, which introduces mandatory long-term storage of e-invoices and accompanying documentation. Although this law has not yet been adopted, its appearance clearly shows the direction of future regulations. This means that companies that switch to digital archives on time gain a significant advantage, avoid later, more expensive and potentially chaotic adjustments, and are prepared for future legal changes.
Advantages of switching to electronic archiving
The introduction of electronic archiving changes the way organizations manage information. Searching and sharing become an instant process, the risk of data loss decreases drastically, and the entire workflow gains transparency. Of course, the first question that management asks is: is such an investment worth it? We have already covered the detailed calculation and methodology for return on investment in the blog post “How can we tell if digitalization is truly worth the investment?”.
Below, we highlight the main operational benefits that companies most often notice immediately after switching to electronic archiving:
Faster access to documents (seconds instead of days): Forget hours spent searching for lost documents or waiting for delivery. With an electronic archive, the necessary documents are available with a click of the mouse, regardless of location.
Control, versioning and security (access only to authorized users): By implementing a digital archive, you ensure complete control over documents. Every change is tracked (versioning), and access is strictly limited to authorized users only, which drastically reduces the risk of errors, loss or misuse of data.
Legal compliance – no fines: Compliance with legal regulations is imperative. An electronic archive ensures that your company meets all legal obligations regarding document storage and management, eliminating the risk of high fines and legal problems.
Lower costs – less paper, space and distribution: In the long run, a digital archive brings significant savings. The costs of purchasing paper, toner, printing, physical storage of documents (renting space, shelving), as well as distribution and archiving costs are eliminated. These savings are directly reflected in your business results.
Digital productivity – automation and records without manual entry: Electronic archiving opens the door to business process automation. By integrating with other systems, the need for manual data entry is eliminated, errors are reduced and employee time is freed up for more strategically important tasks.Kako uspješno preći na digitalnu arhivu?
For a detailed, proven step-by-step process for moving to electronic archiving, we recommend our OWIS guide for the private sector - a document that shows in nine steps how to successfully plan, implement and maintain digital document preservation. The steps to take are:
1 Analysis of the current situation - It records how documents currently flow through departments, where they get stuck and what the key weaknesses are.
2 Defining organizational goals - Measurable digitalization goals are set - e.g. % faster invoice processing or reducing archive costs.
3 Ensuring support from management and employees - Internal “buy-in” is built so that the change goes through without resistance and delays.
4 Analysis of technical and organizational resources - Infrastructure, security requirements and available budget are checked before selecting a solution.
5 Selecting the right solution and partner - Options are compared, a budget is defined and suppliers who can adapt the system to your processes are selected.
6 Preparations for implementation - A detailed plan, timetable and “pilot” department are created to ensure a smooth start.
7 Phased implementation and testing - The system is introduced in phases, results are monitored and potential “bottlenecks” are removed. owis.com
8 Employee training and change management - Through training and mentoring, the team learns to work in a new environment, with a clear plan for changing habits. owis.com
9 Continuous monitoring and optimization - After “go-live”, KPIs are monitored, processes are adjusted and the system is updated according to legal changes.
Conclusion
Electronic archiving is now an inevitable step towards a digital future. As we have seen, the legal framework in Serbia and the growing trends in BiH clearly show that the transition to digital document storage is imperative. With proper implementation, with a system that provides support in education, facilitates the transition and ensures full compliance with all legal regulations, companies not only avoid penalties but also unlock the full potential of operational efficiency and competitiveness in the modern business environment.