An outdated and unadjusted legislature related to the work of association of citizens complicates the orientation and activities of the citizens interested in establishing and working in NGOs. This project was launched in order to provide free legal aid and counseling for NGOs with regard to their establishing, registering, working and tax planning, as well as to create a positive legal environment for the development of the third sector in the Serbia and Montenegro, through the transformation of the existing legal regulations and procedures. Furthermore, the representatives of NGOs will be able to work more easily and efficiently if they have obtained direct legal advice and help.

Legal Counseling

The legal advises include founding, registering and operating of association of citizens (non-governmental organizations). Citizens contact legal counseling service by phone or in person, but also by sending their prepared documents in order to get legal advise by mail. The requested advises were predominantly related to the following issues: the registration procedure, different conditions and procedures for registering at the Ministry of Human and Minority Rights, the contents of the required documentation, as well as aid in formulating the particular statute provisions, application deadlines, administrative costs and ways of paying these costs, etc. Some of these concerns were related to the obligations for reporting the changes in organizations, or to the very process of changing statutes and ways of formulating these changes. For more effective work of the legal counseling service, two handbooks were published and distributed to citizens and NGOs who seek legal aid. The first one is How to Found and Register an NGO designed for citizens interested in establishing an NGO. The second one is Legal Guide for NGOs designed for the extant organizations that includes advises concerning their obligations after registration that are in compliance not only with the law they are registered on, but also with other regulations concerning legal persons - bookkeeping, accounting, employment and labor, etc.