W-8BEN-E for a Montenegrin DOO and W-8BEN for a Preduzetnik: No US–Montenegro Tax Treaty (2026)
This article was created with AI assistance and has not been reviewed by a human editor. It is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute tax, legal, or financial advice.
Last checked: 29.09.2026. Neither Montenegro nor Yugoslavia appears on the IRS United States Income Tax Treaties - A to Z list. The United States is not among Montenegro's treaty partners, including the treaties Montenegro continues to apply from the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro, the FRY, and the SFRY. The FATCA agreement signed on June 1, 2017 is an information-exchange agreement, not an income tax treaty.
AI-generated imageThere is no US–Montenegro tax treaty. The 2017 FATCA agreement you may have heard of is about bank reporting, not tax rates. For services you perform from Montenegro, that usually changes nothing: the income is not US-source.
This guide is for a društvo s ograničenom odgovornošću (DOO) that invoices US clients, licenses software, or holds US stocks, and for a preduzetnik, including a freelancer who relocated to Montenegro. It covers which form you file, what stays blank, and which number goes on the tax line. A sample PDF is included further down.
A preduzetnik is a person who carries on business under personal liability. That person files Form W-8BEN, not Form W-8BEN-E: start the W-8BEN wizard. A branch of a foreign company is not a Montenegrin resident. The foreign company files its own form.
If you prefer to skip the reading, start the W-8BEN-E wizard. It already knows Montenegro has no US income tax treaty and, by default, leaves Part III (Lines 14–15) blank. A signature-ready PDF is $30. Form W-8BEN for a person is $5.
Blank form or already filled in?
You can download the official blank form from the IRS, or get the same file already filled in.
- Blank official W-8BEN-E (IRS, free): Download W-8BEN-E as a PDF directly from the IRS — for a DOO or an AD.
- Blank official W-8BEN (IRS, free): Download W-8BEN as a PDF directly from the IRS — for a preduzetnik.
- Already filled in (5–10 minutes): W-8BEN-E for a Montenegrin DOO ($30) or W-8BEN for a preduzetnik ($5) — Part III and Part II stay blank.
- IRS treaty list: United States Income Tax Treaties - A to Z — Montenegro does not appear.
- PwC withholding summary: Montenegro – Corporate – Withholding taxes — the United States is not among the treaty partners.
DOO, AD, or a preduzetnik?
Montenegro is not on the per se list in 26 CFR 301.7701-2(b)(8)(i). US classification does not follow the local abbreviation one-for-one:
- Društvo s ograničenom odgovornošću (DOO): The usual private company. Montenegro is not on the US per se corporation list. A DOO defaults to Corporation. A different classification is Form 8832. A single-member DOO is not disregarded by default.
- Akcionarsko društvo (AD): The joint-stock company. Montenegro is not on the US per se corporation list. An AD defaults to Corporation and can file Form 8832.
- Ortačko društvo or komanditno društvo (OD / KD): These default to Partnership.
- Preduzetnik: A person, not a company. A preduzetnik files Form W-8BEN.
- Dio stranog društva: A branch of a foreign company. It is not a Montenegrin resident. The foreign company files its own form.
Chapter 3 still decides which form you file. Part III is where a treaty claim would go. Today that part stays blank, because there is no treaty to cite.
Relocated to Montenegro?
Treaty benefits follow tax residence, not citizenship. If you are a tax resident of Montenegro, the treaty of your country of citizenship does not apply. A Ukrainian citizen who is a tax resident of Montenegro cannot use the US–Ukraine treaty. If you are still a tax resident of another country, use that country's treaty.
- Tax resident of Montenegro: Part II of Form W-8BEN and Part III of Form W-8BEN-E stay blank. There is no US–Montenegro treaty to cite.
- Still a tax resident of Ukraine: Use the US–Ukraine treaty, not this page. The Ukrainian guide explains that residence test.
- Citizenship alone: A passport does not choose the treaty once tax residence is in Montenegro.
What to write, and what to leave blank
On Form W-8BEN-E, Part III (Lines 14–15, Claim of Tax Treaty Benefits) stays blank. Do not enter an article number or a rate. Line 14b is not filled in. Part II (Lines 11–13) is a different section — a disregarded entity or a branch receiving the payment — and also stays blank for an ordinary DOO. On Form W-8BEN, Part II (Claim of Tax Treaty Benefits) stays blank for the same reason. The FATCA agreement does not fill those lines.
Income from services performed from Montenegro, the common case for a DOO or a preduzetnik invoicing a US client remotely or through Upwork or Toptal, is foreign-source and is not subject to US withholding at all. Services performed while you are physically in the United States are US-source. No treaty exemption is available for that income. Genuine US-source income is different again: a software licence fee for IP used in the United States, ad revenue attributed to US viewers, dividends on US stock, and interest on US instruments stay at the full 30% statutory rate. The portfolio interest exemption is a separate domestic rule. Ask an accountant. Do not treat it as automatic.
Line 9b, PIB and JMBG
A company and a person use different numbers.
| Line | What you enter |
|---|---|
| Line 9b of Form W-8BEN-E | The 8-digit PIB of the company, for example 02123452. 02123452 passes the check digit. 02655283 does not. |
| Foreign TIN on Form W-8BEN | The 13-digit JMBG of the person, for example 0101985210005. That example shows the format. This page does not claim a check digit. A foreign resident uses the tax identification number on the Montenegrin tax registration instead. The company PIB does not replace the JMBG on Form W-8BEN. |
| Line 14b and Line 15 | LEAVE BLANK. There is no US income tax treaty with Montenegro, so there is no treaty country and no article or rate. Line 14b is not filled in. The FATCA agreement does not go here. |
| Part II of Form W-8BEN | LEAVE BLANK. A preduzetnik who is a tax resident of Montenegro does not claim a treaty benefit. |
| State or Province | Podgorica, when that is the place. The city does not create a US treaty. |
Read the PIB from the tax registration before Line 9b. 02123452 is 8 digits and passes the check digit.
Sample: completed W-8BEN-E for a Montenegrin DOO
A filled example for a fictional DOO in Podgorica, Chapter 3 Corporation, with Part III left blank because Montenegro has no US income tax treaty.
Sample only. Lovcen Code DOO, Bulevar Svetog Petra Cetinjskog 10, Podgorica 81000, PIB 02123452, Chapter 3 Corporation, FATCA Active NFFE, Part III blank. The form stores the name without diacritics.
What happens to the income
Each row stands on its own. Do not move a rate onto the neighbouring row. There is no treaty rate to copy from a treaty Montenegro has with another country, and the FATCA agreement is not a rate.
| Income | US withholding | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Services performed from Montenegro (Upwork, Toptal, direct clients) | 0%. Services performed from Montenegro are foreign-source income, so they are not US-source income. | The work is performed from Montenegro. US withholding does not apply to that foreign-source income. |
| Services performed while physically in the United States | May be taxed in the United States. Services performed while physically in the United States are US-source, and no treaty exemption is available. | Physical performance in the United States makes the income US-source. Montenegro has no treaty exemption for it. |
| Software licence fees and royalties for IP used in the United States | 30%. A software licence fee or other royalty for IP used in the United States is US-source, and there is no treaty rate. | The IP is used in the United States. The statutory rate is 30%. |
| AdSense or YouTube revenue attributed to US viewers | 30% on the US portion. Ad revenue attributed to US viewers is US-source royalty-type income, and there is no treaty rate. | Only the portion attributed to US viewers is US-source. That portion is 30%. |
| Dividends from US stocks | 30%. Dividends from US stocks have no treaty rate, at any ownership percentage. | There is no US–Montenegro dividends treaty provision. The statutory rate is 30%. |
| Interest from US sources | 30% unless a US domestic exemption applies. Ask an accountant. It is not automatic. | Interest from US sources is US-source. A domestic exemption is separate from a treaty and is a question for an accountant. |
Form W-8BEN-E does not create a treaty rate. It shows the payer that the company is foreign, so foreign-source service fees performed from Montenegro are not withheld by mistake.
Questions people ask before they sign
Short answers for a DOO or a preduzetnik. A fund or a bank needs an accountant, not this page.
Does the FATCA agreement reduce withholding?
No. The agreement signed on June 1, 2017 exchanges account information. It is not an income tax treaty and it does not reduce a rate.
I'm Ukrainian and live in Montenegro — can I use the US–Ukraine treaty?
Only if you are still a tax resident of Ukraine. If you are a tax resident of Montenegro, that treaty does not apply, and Part II stays blank.
Preduzetnik — W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E?
Form W-8BEN. A preduzetnik is a person, not a DOO. The number on that form is the 13-digit JMBG, for example 0101985210005, or the tax identification number on the Montenegrin tax registration if you are a foreign resident.
Why does Upwork withhold 30%?
Usually the form was not filed, or the income type was chosen as US-source royalties or dividends. Services performed from Montenegro are foreign-source. The form documents that status so the platform does not withhold by mistake.
What to do next
- Fill out W-8BEN-E in the guided wizard: Start the W-8BEN-E wizard ($30). It leaves Part III blank.
- Are you a preduzetnik?: Use the W-8BEN wizard ($5).
- A company in Serbia: W-8BEN-E for a Serbian d.o.o..
- A company in Bosnia and Herzegovina: W-8BEN-E for a Bosnian d.o.o..
- A company in North Macedonia: W-8BEN-E for a Macedonian DOOEL.
- A company in Albania: W-8BEN-E for an Albanian SH.P.K..
- Still a tax resident of Ukraine: The Ukrainian guide.
Mistakes that get the form sent back
- Treating FATCA as a tax treaty: The 2017 agreement does not give a reduced rate. Do not type it on Line 14b or Line 15.
- A citizenship treaty instead of residence: A Ukrainian citizen who is a tax resident of Montenegro does not claim the US–Ukraine treaty. Benefits follow tax residence.
- Rates from treaties with third countries: A treaty Montenegro has with another country, including one continued from Serbia and Montenegro, the FRY, or the SFRY, does not apply to a US payer. Dividends from US stocks stay at 30%.
- Form W-8BEN-E from a preduzetnik: A preduzetnik files Form W-8BEN.