Since the Delegation of the German Economy for Serbia and the Austrian Chamber of Commerce gave their support to the enactment of the new Law, we’ve seen multiple efforts on the side of the Chamber of Commerce of Serbia to showcase the added value that is to come as a result of the change of the financing model (mandatory membership fees)
Despite these efforts, it is too soon to predict the impact of the new measures brought into effect by the Law on Chambers of Commerce, as the structure of the Chamber of Commerce & Industry of Serbia is still in the process of reform, and will not have its final form until the first quarter of 2018. Until then, the practical effects of this law remain to be seen in practice, and we can only stress the risks that go with the enacted measures by looking at similar cases.
The members will certainly expect the imposition of an obligation to pay to deliver them identical benefits to those that companies in countries like Austria and Germany receive
Unless the added value is provided and recognised, compulsory membership could potentially drive investors away. The non-specified sum of the membership fee is also a hindrance, and the question arises as to whether the imposed fee would be justified by better and more proactive engagement of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce vis-à-vis its members, particularly foreign investors.
The members will certainly expect the imposition of an obligation to pay to deliver them identical benefits to those that companies in countries like Austria and Germany receive. This particularly applies to foreign investors who are used to high professional and efficiency standards of their respective chambers. It will be rather challenging to justify it to them if the chamber system in Serbia fails to live up to the same standards.