Coming to Malta from Pakistan: where the visa is issued, the jobs, the rules at home

Pakistanis work across Malta’s construction sites, kitchens, delivery fleets, shops and care homes. The route here is the same Single Permit as for everyone, the employer applies and pays, and the only place you can be cheated is at home, before you leave.

Where the visa comes from

Malta has no embassy or high commission in Pakistan. Two possibilities: a VFS Global Malta visa service in Pakistan, if one is listed on VFS’s Malta pages, or Identità’s premium process for countries without a Maltese mission. The premium process runs by email to the Central Visa Unit, a token, document upload, a €300 payment covering all fees, and your passport sent and returned by courier. Six to eight weeks. We could not confirm a VFS Malta centre in Pakistan on an official page at the time of writing; check VFS Global’s site and write to the Central Visa Unit before paying any intermediary. The Bangladesh page covers the same courier process for Bangladeshi passports. The whole journey on one page shows where the visa sits between the job offer and the residence card.

Before you leave Pakistan

Pakistan’s Bureau of Emigration and Overseas Employment, through the Protector of Emigrants, has its own registration rules for workers going abroad and its own list of licensed overseas employment promoters. Check its current requirements for Malta. A promoter licensed in Pakistan who charges you for a Maltese job is still charging for something that is free on the Maltese side. The India page covers the same check for Indian passports.

The jobs Pakistanis take here

Construction and manual work, kitchen and restaurant staff, delivery riders, shop assistants, drivers, warehouse workers, carers, security. Construction needs no Skills Pass but construction workers from low-risk countries are now included in the health screening. Security work needs a Maltese police licence.

The health screening

If Pakistan is on Malta’s current high-risk tuberculosis list, a chest X-ray in Malta within six weeks of the application is required, and a repeat screening for renewal. All tests are done in Malta.

Life here

Pakistani communities are strongest in the harbour towns, Ħamrun, Marsa and the central area. Halal food and mosques are available; Malta’s main mosque is in Paola. Urdu is widely spoken among South Asian colleagues; English is the language of work.

The scam

The fee at home, the WhatsApp HR, the fake offer letter from a real company’s name, the “visa in 20 days”. Every element is covered in the never-pay-an-agent guide. A real Maltese offer comes with a three-week advert on Jobsplus and an employer who exists in the Business Registry.

The money

The minimum wage is €229.44 a week in 2026, about €994 a month, and many first jobs pay near it. A room costs €450 to €700 a month. Run your own numbers in the salaries guide before you accept. A salary far above the ranges there is a red flag, not a prize.

What never happens

Nobody in Malta charges you for a job. Agencies here are licensed by DIER and commit an offence if they take money from an applicant. Employers may not take money from workers for recruitment. The permit fee is the employer’s. You pay the two official courses, your visa, your health tests and your flight, and nothing else.

Check this at the source

• Identità, long-stay visa policy: where and how to apply, premium process €300, 6 to 8 weeks. https://identita.gov.mt/central-visa-unit-national-visa-long-stay-visa/
• Missions of Malta: embassies and high commissions. https://missions.foreign.gov.mt/embassies/ and https://missions.foreign.gov.mt/high-commissions/
• Identità, working and residing in Malta. https://identita.gov.mt/working-residing-in-malta/
• DIER: agencies may not charge applicants. https://dier.gov.mt/en/faqs/employment-agencies-regulations-and-the-temporary-working-regulations/2/