Guides to working in Malta
What nobody tells you before you arrive, in plain words. Written for the people who use this site, checked against the official sources, dated.
Start here
Is Malta right for you? The honest pros and cons before you apply
Malta pays more than home and less than you think, rent takes a third to a half, English is enough, the island is small and the rules change often. Decide on facts.
Updated 5 November 2026
If you are coming to MaltaFrom job offer to residence card: the whole journey on one page
Every step a non-EU worker takes to work in Malta, in order: who does it, how long it takes, what it costs. Offer, courses, Jobsplus, Identità, visa, arrival, card.
Updated 5 November 2026
If you are coming to MaltaThe Single Permit checklist: what to send, in what order, with no surprises
A printable checklist for non-EU workers: what the employer needs from you, what you prepare yourself, what you bring to biometrics, and what should never be on the list.
Updated 5 November 2026
If you are coming to MaltaEU and EEA citizens: moving to Malta for work without a permit
No work permit: you can start the day you land. The paperwork is the Jobsplus engagement form, an eResidence card after three months, social security and tax numbers.
Updated 5 November 2026
Agents and scams
Never pay an agent for a job in Malta
In Malta a licensed employment agency may not charge you a cent. Anyone asking for a fee, a deposit or 'visa processing' is a scam. Red flags and where to report.
Updated 5 November 2026
For everyoneHow to verify a Maltese employer before you sign anything
Five checks that take an hour: the Business Registry, the VAT number, the real email domain, the job advert on Jobsplus, and a video call with someone who works there.
Updated 5 November 2026
For everyoneContract traps: fee clawbacks, passport holding, training bonds and the 20-month debt
The clauses that turn a job into bondage, why each is illegal or unenforceable in Malta, and what to do if you already signed one. Keep your passport. Owe nobody.
Updated 5 November 2026
The work permit
Working in Malta as a non-EU citizen: the Single Permit, step by step
Your employer applies for the Single Permit, not you. What Identità and Jobsplus check, how long it takes, the fast tracks, the Skills Pass, and what you pay: nothing.
Updated 5 November 2026
If you are coming to MaltaHealth screening for the work permit: what is tested, where, and what fails you
Non-EU workers need a health clearance from Malta's health authority. Which tests, why they happen in Malta, the chest X-ray rule, vaccinations, 15 working days, renewal.
Updated 5 November 2026
If you already live in MaltaRenewing your Single Permit: one year or two, and the new training rule
Renew up to 90 days before expiry. €150 a year today, more from 2027. Higher-skilled workers can get two years; lower-skilled workers need an integration course first.
Updated 5 November 2026
If you already live in MaltaBringing your family to Malta: the two routes, the income test, the flat
Spouse and children can join you after two years on a permit under the law, or 12 months under Identità's policy. Income: average or median wage plus 20% per dependant.
Updated 5 November 2026
If you already live in MaltaLong-term residence after five years: the test, the course, the €500
Five continuous years, income at least the minimum wage for two years, the 100-hour I Belong course at 75%, Maltese at MQF level 2, a €500 fee. What it gives you.
Updated 5 November 2026
For everyonePermit refused? The common reasons and how to appeal in time
Most refusals are a missing advert, a failed suitability check, a tourist-visa application or a blocked employer. Appeals go to the Immigration Appeals Board, fast.
Updated 5 November 2026
For everyonePolicy tracker: every rule change for non-EU workers since 2025, dated
A dated table of every rule change for non-EU workers in Malta since January 2025: fees, adverts, grace period, bank wages, pre-departure course, screening, Budget 2027.
Updated 5 November 2026
For everyoneBudget 2027: what the new fees and cuts mean for non-EU workers
Budget 2027 raised the first permit fee to €800, added a €400 yearly contribution, and ended free buses and childcare for non-EU workers short of five years.
Updated 5 November 2026
Your rights at work
Already in Malta: changing jobs, probation, notice and your rights
Probation is six months by default. Notice depends on length of service. On a Single Permit the new employer applies before you resign. What DIER does about unpaid pay.
Updated 5 November 2026
If you already live in MaltaReading your Maltese payslip line by line, and spotting underpayment
Basic wage, cost-of-living increase, bonus, overtime, tax, social security, deductions, net. What each line must show in 2026 and three checks that catch underpayment.
Updated 5 November 2026
If you already live in MaltaUnpaid or underpaid in Malta: the complaint to DIER, step by step
Wages must come at least every four weeks. If not, or if short, DIER takes the complaint and can go to court for you. What happens to your permit if you complain.
Updated 5 November 2026
If you already live in MaltaHousing rights in Malta: registration, deposit, notice, and the 'ten people in a flat' problem
Every long let must be registered with the Housing Authority by the landlord. Six-month lock-in on a one-year lease, a month's notice, 5% cap on renewal, two per bedroom.
Updated 5 November 2026
For everyoneWho helps a worker in Malta: the offices, numbers and organisations that answer
DIER for wages, Identità for permits, Jobsplus for jobs and records, the Housing Authority for leases, the police for crime, unions, and organisations that help for free.
Updated 5 November 2026
Living in Malta
Your first weeks in Malta: where to live, the bus, a SIM, a bank, a doctor
Landing in Malta with a job: which towns people live in, finding a room, the free Tallinja bus card, SIM, bank, health centre, the heat, the languages, the real size.
Updated 5 November 2026
For everyoneSalaries and the cost of living in Malta, 2026
Minimum wage €229.44 a week in 2026. Typical pay in hospitality, admin, customer service, IT, finance. Rent by area, tax bands, 10% social security, two worked budgets.
Updated 5 November 2026
For everyoneFinding a flat or a room in Malta: where to look, what to sign, what to refuse
Rooms on Facebook, flats on the portals, agents who charge tenants, one month's deposit, a registered lease, two people per bedroom, and the 'no foreigners' problem.
Updated 5 November 2026
For everyoneWhere to live in Malta: a town-by-town guide for workers
Twenty towns in a paragraph each: rent level, commute, noise, who lives there and what it is like in August. Choose by the bus line to work, not by the sea view.
Updated 5 November 2026
For everyoneHealth care in Malta for workers: health centres, Mater Dei, insurance, pharmacies
Public health care runs through health centres and Mater Dei Hospital. Workers paying social security are covered; non-EU workers also hold €100,000 insurance. The doors.
Updated 5 November 2026
For everyoneOpening a bank account in Malta as a worker: what the bank wants, how long it takes
Non-EU workers must be paid by bank transfer since October 2025. What Maltese banks ask for, why it takes weeks, the interim options, and sending money home.
Updated 5 November 2026
For everyoneTax and social security in Malta: how PAYE works, the bands, the FS3, the return
Income tax is deducted at source under the 2026 bands. Social security is 10% of basic wage, capped. Your employer gives you an FS3 each year; you may need a return.
Updated 5 November 2026
For everyoneChildren in Malta: schools, childcare, language, and what Budget 2027 changed
State schools are free, in Maltese and English. From 2027 free childcare stays only for citizens, EU residents and long-term residents. Enrolment, language, the flat.
Updated 5 November 2026
For everyoneGetting around Malta: the bus, the Tallinja card, driving on a foreign licence, the ferry
Buses and the Tallinja card. From 2027 free travel is for citizens, EU residents and long-term residents; others pay €2.00 to €2.50. Non-EU licences: 12 months.
Updated 5 November 2026
If you already live in MaltaMaltese, English and the courses: what you must pass, and what just helps
English is enough for work. Maltese becomes mandatory for long-term residence: the 100-hour I Belong course at 75% and a Maltese test at MQF level 2. The other courses.
Updated 5 November 2026
If you already live in MaltaLeaving Malta: notice, the last payslip, tax, your contribution record, and the flat
Give notice by length of service, get the final pay with unused leave, tell Jobsplus and Identità, settle the tax year, keep your contribution record, end the lease.
Updated 5 November 2026
Careers and qualifications
How to apply for a job in Malta: the CV, the cover note, the interview
A Maltese CV is two pages, in English, no photo needed, permit status on line one if you are non-EU. How to write to an employer, interview by video and follow up.
Updated 5 November 2026
For everyoneGetting your qualifications recognised in Malta: MQRIC, the regulated professions, the timing
A Statement of Comparability from MQRIC puts your degree on the Malta framework. Fast-track permits need it; nurses, electricians and teachers need their regulator too.
Updated 5 November 2026
If you are coming to MaltaEU citizens: why people move to Malta, what the jobs pay, and the tax questions
Gaming, finance, tech, language jobs and remote work bring EU citizens to Malta. No permit needed. Salaries against rent, the tax residence question, the Nomad permit.
Updated 5 November 2026
Coming from your country
Pick your country. Each page says where the visa is really issued, which jobs people from your country take in Malta, how the scam looks at home, and what the real process costs.