Legal Obligation to Appoint a Responsible Person
According to Article 9 of the Law on Archival Materials and Archival Activities ("Official Gazette RS", No. 6/2020), every creator and holder of registry material is obligated to designate a responsible person for the protection of registry material and archival materials.
This is not optional — it's a legal obligation for all companies, entrepreneurs, institutions, and organizations in Serbia.
Who Can Be the Responsible Person?
The law doesn't prescribe specific qualifications, but in practice it's usually:
- Director or owner — most common in small companies
- Administrative employee — secretary, office manager
- Company lawyer — if the company has one
- Archive employee — in larger companies
- Accountant — common in practice, though not ideal as they already have many responsibilities
It's important that this is an employed person in the company — it cannot be an external party (except in cases of outsourced archiving services).
What Are the Responsible Person's Duties?
1. Maintaining the Archive Book
Properly filling in the archive book throughout the year and submitting it to the competent archive by April 30th.
2. Applying the Category List
Proper classification of documentation according to the adopted Category List of Registry Material.
3. Document Storage
Ensuring adequate storage conditions — appropriate room, temperature, protection from moisture and fire.
4. Destruction Procedure
Preparing lists of documentation for destruction, submitting requests for archive approval, conducting the destruction procedure.
5. Communication with the Competent Archive
Contact with the territorially competent archive — submitting archive books, obtaining approvals, responding to requests.
6. Inspection Preparation
Keeping all documents and records ready for any potential archival inspection audit.
How to Formally Appoint the Responsible Person
Appointment is done through an internal decision or resolution signed by the director or authorized person. The document should contain:
- Full name of the appointed person
- Job position/role
- Date of appointment
- Description of duties
- Legal basis (Article 9 of the Law)
- Director's signature and company stamp
This decision is kept permanently and presented to archival inspection upon request.
What If the Company Has No Appointed Responsible Person?
Not having an appointed responsible person is a violation under the Law. Penalties are the same as for other archival violations:
- Legal entities: 50,000 — 2,000,000 RSD
- Responsible persons: 5,000 — 150,000 RSD
Practical Tips
- Appoint someone who has time — this is a real obligation with concrete tasks, not just a formality
- Provide training — competent archives often organize free training for responsible persons
- Use software — a DMS system dramatically reduces the responsible person's workload
- Plan for replacement — if the responsible person leaves the company, immediately appoint a new one
Conclusion
Appointing a responsible person for the protection of registry material is one of the first obligations of every company under the Archival Law. This person is the pillar of the entire document management system.
Arhivix significantly eases the responsible person's work — automates the archive book, tracks retention periods, categorizes documentation, and generates reports. Instead of manual record-keeping, the responsible person uses a system that works for them. Try it free.
