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Cars 4 Rental Information on Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav

General

Area: 25,713 sq km (9928 sq miles).
The former Yugoslav republic of ‘Macedonia’ is only one of three areas of the historical region of ‘Macedonia’, which includes Pirin Macedonia (Bulgaria) and Aegean Macedonia (Greece), with a total area of 66,600 sq km (25,700 sq miles), most of which is in Greece. In deference to Greek sensibilities, the United Nations and other international organisations have formally recognised Macedonia under the interim name of ‘The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia’; however this is gradually reverting to ‘The Republic of Macedonia’.

Population: 2,022,547 (official estimate 2002).

Population Density: 79.7 per sq km.

Capital: Skopje. Population: 467,257 (2002).

GEOGRAPHY: Roughly rectangular in shape, and on the strategic Vardar Valley north–south communications route, Macedonia (Former Yugoslav Republic) is landlocked, bordering Serbia & Montenegro to the north, Albania to the west, Greece to the south and Bulgaria to the east.

Government: Republic since 1991. Gained independence from Yugoslavia (now Serbia and Montenegro) in 1991. Head of State: President Branko Crvenkovski since 2004. Head of Government: Premier Hari Kostov since 2004.

Language: Macedonian (a slavonic language using the Cyrillic script) is the most widely used language. Albanian, Turkish and Serbo-Croat are also used by ethnic groups. English, French and German are widely spoken.

Religion: 67 per cent of the population are Eastern Orthodox Macedonians and around 23 per cent are Muslim Albanians. There are also Muslim Turks and Serbian Orthodox minorities. As elsewhere in the former Yugoslav federation, local politics are now strongly divided along national confessional lines.

Time: GMT + 1 (GMT + 2 from last Sunday in March to Saturday before last Sunday in October).

Electricity: 220 volts AC, 50Hz.

Telephone

IDD is available. Country code: 389. Outgoing international code: 00. All telecommunications services are generally working normally.

Mobile telephone

GSM 900 network operated by Cosmofon and Makedonski Telekomunikacii (website: www.mobimak.com.mk). Coverage is limited to the main towns.

Internet

ISPs include Macedonia On-Line (website: www.mol.com.mk). There are a few Internet cafes in the main towns.

Post

Services work normally.

Press

The main daily newspapers are Dnevnik, Flaka e Vllazrimit, Nova Makedonija and Vecer (an evening paper). Weekly papers include Fokus and Puls. The Macedonian Times comes out monthly in English and Macedonian.

Radio: BBC World Service (website: www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice) and Voice of America (website: www.voa.gov) can be received. From time to time the frequencies change and the most up-to-date can be found online.

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Money

Currency: Macedonian Denari (Den) = 100 deni. Notes are in denominations of Den5000, 1000, 500, 100, 50 and 10. Coins are in denominations of Den5, 2 and 1, and 50 deni.

Currency exchange: All major currencies may be exchanged, but Euros are easiest to exchange.

Credit & debit cards: Very limited acceptance. Check with your credit or debit card company for details of merchant acceptability and other services which may be available.

Travellers cheques: To avoid additional exchange rate charges, travellers are advised to take cheques in US Dollars or Euros.

Currency restrictions: There are no restrictions on the import and export of local or foreign currency.

Exchange rate indicators
The following figures are included as a guide to the movements of the Denar against Sterling and the US Dollar:

Date: Nov ’03 Feb ’04 May ’04 Aug ’04
£1.00= 89.40 90.58 92.88 92.68
$1.00= 52.68 49.76 52.00 50.31

Banking hours: Mon-Fri 0700-1900; Sat 0700-1300.

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Health

Special Precautions Certificate Required
Yellow Fever No No
Cholera No No
Typhoid and Polio No/1 N/A
Malaria No N/A

1: An outbreak of poliomyelitis occurred in the region in 1996, and immunisation is advisable. Vaccination against typhoid is also advised.

Food & drink: Mains water is normally chlorinated and, whilst relatively safe, may cause mild abdominal upsets. Bottled water is available and is advised for the first few weeks of the stay. Milk is pasteurised and dairy products are safe for consumption. Local meat, poultry, seafood, fruit and vegetables are generally considered safe to eat.

Other risks: Hepatitis A and brucellosis are endemic.
Rabies is present. For those at high risk, vaccination before arrival should be considered. If you are bitten, seek medical advice without delay. For more information, consult the Health appendix.

Health care: Prescribed medicines must be paid for. There is a reciprocal health agreement with the UK but health insurance with emergency repatriation is strongly recommended.

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Climate

As a landlocked country, the Republic of Macedonia has a pronounced continental climate, with very cold winters and hot summers.

Required clothing: Mediumweight clothing and very warm overcoats in winter; lightweight clothing and raincoats required for the summer.

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Passport

Passport Required Visa Required Return Ticket Required
British Yes No No
Australian Yes Yes No
Canadian Yes Yes No
USA Yes No No
OtherEU Yes No/1 No
Japanese Yes No No

PASSPORTS: Passport with at least three to six months' validity (depends on the individual case) required by all.

VISAS: Required by all except the following:
(a) 1. nationals referred to in the chart above (except Australia, Canada, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovak Republic and Slovenia) for tourist and business stays of up to three months;
(b) nationals of Barbados, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Botswana, Croatia, Cuba, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Monaco, New Zealand, Norway, San Marino, Switzerland and the Vatican City for tourist and business stays of up to three months;
(c) nationals of Serbia & Montenegro and Turkey for tourist and business stays of up to 60 days;
(d) nationals of Malaysia for tourist and business stays of up to one month;
(e) nationals of Bulgaria for tourist and business stays of up to 30 days.

Note: (a) Nationals of the following countries need to obtain official approval from the Ministry of Interior in Macedonia in order to obtain visas: Afghanistan, Algeria, Bangladesh, Burundi, Cameroon, Chile, China (PR), Congo (Rep), Egypt, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Honduras, Hong Kong (SAR), India, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, The Philippines, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Vietnam and Yemen. Their visas must also be issued at an embassy (including for nationals of Czech Republic, although they do not need prior approval). All other nationals require visas, but their applications do not need to be referred to Skopje. (b) Any holders of travel documents other than a passport must also require approval from Macedonia.

Types of visa: Single-entry: £13 (£25*); Double-entry: £17 (£29*); Multiple-entry: £24 (£37*); Business: £24 (£37*).
* These prices are for those nationals that require approval from the Macedonian authorities. Visas are issued free of charge to nationals of the CIS (except nationals of Uzbekistan).

Validity: Valid for one, two, three or six months.

Application to: Nearest Diplomatic or Consular mission (see Contact Addresses section).

Application requirements: (a) Valid passport. (b) Application form, which must be submitted in person. (c) One passport-size photo. (d) Fee payable in cash. (e) For business and private visas a letter of invitation is required.

Working days required: Usually one week, although if approval is not needed from Macedonia (see above), can take as little as one day.

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Cars 4 Rental Information on Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav

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