How to pay bills in Montenegro

Updated 17 February 2021

If truth be told over the last 15 years of managing my old town apartment, keeping track of and paying bills in Montenegro has been a rather haphazard affair.  Not because I am a slap-dash kind of girl.  Far from it.  But because Montenegro system of issuing utility and other household bills seems – well – somewhat random and very inefficient, when compared to the way we do things in England.  (Sorry to be blunt, Montenegro. I hope we are still friends). So I’ve drawn up a guide on how to pay bills in Montenegro for all you property owners (or would-be ones!) out there.

Obviously, I am just one girl who owns a small period apartment in the middle of the very unique Kotor Old Town.  So, this may not ring true for everyone.  But my experience has been that, although I am pretty sure that bills are calculated regularly, when it comes to being a foreigner with a property in Montenegro, there seems to have been no simple way to actually receive those bills regularly.  What this has looked like for me has been bills either shoved in the meter box outside, which if I am lucky I (or my property agent) might stumble upon at some stage.  Or the bills just don’t seem to reach me at all.

Just to explain at this point, Montenegro has no postal service to individual homes ie there are no postmen and many properties do not therefore have a letterbox. Any bills are delivered by someone from that organisation who knocks on your door to try to collect payment first.

Be proactive when you pay your bills in Montenegro

Over the years I have learnt that it pays to have a more proactive approach to bill paying in Montenegro.  In England utility companies are not shy in coming forward with bills for you.  If you have ever bought a property in UK, you’ll be familiar with the welcome bills waiting for you as soon as you step in the door of your new home. 

In Montenegro I have got into the habit of going to the relevant company building to pay my bill in person when I visit my apartment  – whether or not I have had the latest bill that month.  I make sure to take an existing bill in with me – even if it’s old – so they can look up my account easily and I don’t have to rely on too much verbal explanation.  I’ve found that Montenegrin office cashiers are not usually the chattiest bunch.  Or the most cheerful.  In fact, if you are after a truly Eastern European experience to immerse yourself in the culture …head over to pay a household bill.

The upside of all this random bill issuing is that usually the bills are fairly small compared to those in England, and people seem happy to let you pay in an equally relaxed way.   I would guess that Montenegro establishments miss out on quite a bit of money because of these inefficiencies though.

The exception to this is the electricity bill.  Around the time I bought my apartment in Montenegro, the electricity company for my area  seemed quite happy to supply me with all my electricity needs for some time even though they had not actually registered me on their system (my original builder had been responsible for doing this).  I am pleased to say that the new company that manages electricity nationwide for Montenegro, EPCG, has moved the whole operation into the 21st century in terms of its efficiency and online services.  In fact, if you end up in arrears with your bill now, they will make a charge and even cut off your supply.  So, be warned, no slacking with your electricity bill.

List of essential bills to pay in Montenegro

Here is a list of the essential household bills you will need to pay for your property in Montenegro.  This assumes that you are connected to water and electricity, which some rural properties may not be.

1. Rubbish (waste)

2. Water & sewerage

3. Electricity

4. Property tax (charged annually)

I’ve also included:

5. Home insurance (not essential if you don’t have a mortgage there, but recommended)

6. TV / broadband (not strictly essential, but I’ve included some contacts)

Note, there is no mains gas in Montenegro.

For each bill I’ve given the detail for Kotor and then listed the websites for the key areas in Montenegro below.  You will then be able to find the local office by going to kontakt.

For other areas in Montenegro, you’ll need to google online.  They should be easy to find if you enter Montenegrin words in your search along with the place your property is in.  I’ve given the key Montenegrin words for this in each section.  Note that if you want to use google translate, you need to translate to Serbian or Croatian (Montenegrin is not listed).

All water, electricity, rubbish, telephone, internet, satellite TV bills can in fact be paid in the local post office or bank, but that would only be for a specific bill.  When you go to the actual company office,  they will be able to check your account so you can catch up with any outstanding amounts at the same time.

Over the years I have learnt that it pays to have a more proactive approach to bill paying in Montenegro.

How to pay your rubbish bill in Montenegro

The removal of rubbish and street cleaning is dealt with regionally in Montenegro.  The organisations who deal with bins are known as Komunalno in most places.

By the way, there is no bin collection from individual properties in Montenegro, so residents have to take their rubbish to the large public silver bins located at various points.

Useful search words are:

komunalno – utility company

Čistoća – cleaning

racun za smece – bill for rubbish

Crna Gora – Montenegro

Kotor – DOO Komunalno Kotor
Škaljari bb, 85330 Kotor

In Kotor rubbish is handled by Komunalno Kotor.  You can pay the bill by visiting the brown building to the right of the bus station, which is on the right-hand side of the main road as you head down into Kotor from the tunnel.  If you drive, you will need to take the turning to the left of the bus station and follow the road around the back of it to get to the Komunalno Kotor. There is no provision in Kotor to pay your rubbish bill online.

Tivat – DOO Komunalno Tivat

Budva – DOO Komunalno Budva

Bar – DOO Komunalno Bar

Look under Komunalne Djelatnosti Bar

Herceg Novi – Čistoća DOO Herceg Novi

Podgorica – Čistoća DOO Podgorica

How to pay your water bill in Montenegro

As it is for waste, water is supplied and managed regionally in Montenegro.  The bills will be headed Vodovod i Kanalizacija (meaning water and sewerage). 

Before this regional water supply system was put into operation in 2010, there was significant water shortage in the summer months.  I can personally remember the days when we hurried to have our morning showers before the taps ran dry.   No need to worry about that now, I am thankful to say.

Key search words;

vodovod i kanalizacija – water & sewerage

Kotor – Vodovod i Kanalizacija Kotor

Škaljari bb, 85330 Kotor

In Kotor you can pay your water bill in the same brown building as you pay your rubbish bill (see directions above).  Water and rubbish are paid at 2 separate counters accessed by different entrances, but the cashier will direct you if you get the wrong one.   Just wave the bill you want to pay at them.

Tivat – Vodovod Tivat

Budva – Vodovod Budva

Bar – Vodovod Bar

Herceg Novi – Vodovod Herceg Novi

Podgorica – VIKPG