Frequently Asked Questions
1. Eligibility & Fees
Q. Who is eligible to apply?
A. Third country nationals are eligible, excluding nationals from Afghanistan and North Korea, EEA and Swiss nationals.
Q. Can parents or grand-parents of the Main Applicant apply as dependants?
A. Yes. A parent or grandparent of the Main Applicant or of his/her spouse, who proves that he/she is not economically active and is principally dependant on the Main Applicant, is eligible as a dependant. If a grandparent is applying as a dependant, proof that shows the link between the grandparent and the Main Applicant/spouse has to be provided. An additional fee of €5,000 per additional dependant applies.
Q. Can household staff be eligible as dependants?
A. No. The Malta Residence and Visa Programme is only open to Main Applicant and his/her family dependants.
Q. In the case of an application for the entire family, are there additional fees?
A. The €30,000 covers the Main Applicant, his/her spouse and children who, upon submission of application, are not married and not economically active. For parents and grandparents of the Main Applicant and Spouse, an additional fee of €5,000 applies. A residence card processing fee applies when a residency card is issued or renewed. The fee is of €27.50 for a one-year time period per person per year. Hence a card valid for 5 years carries a fee of €137.50.
Q. What is the validity period of the Residency Certificate and the Residency Card?
A. The Residence Certificate has permanent validity i.e. it does not expire, but can be withdrawn if the relative conditions are not complied with. The Residency Card is valid for 5 years.
2. Qualifying Investment
Q. What form of qualifying investment is acceptable?
A. The Qualifying Investment will consist of Government Stocks or Funds that invest exclusively in Malta Government stocks, equivalent to €250,000.
Q. After the initial 5 years, with regard to the qualifying investment, can the Applicant sell the bonds or his investment portfolio still hold a Maltese residency?
A. Yes, s/he may sell the qualifying investment after 5 years, and still retain Maltese residency.
Q. Are the Funds which invest exclusively in Malta Government Bonds accepted as a form of qualifying investment?
A. Yes, they are.
3. Qualifying Property
​
Q. Do Applicants need to own/lease property at application stage?
A. No, not necessarily. The Applicant has to own/lease property after receiving the Letter of Approval in Principle. However, a property that would have been leased/purchased before the application submission, and which satisfies the necessary regulations regarding the Qualifying Property, is still acceptable.
Q. Can the Beneficiary sell, or stop leasing the declared qualifying property during the first five years and replace it with another qualifying property?
A. Yes, during the first five years the Beneficiary can sell the qualifying property and buy/lease a new property as long as he continuously satisfies the qualifying property conditions.
Q. Would the Beneficiary have to commit himself not to sell the property for the first five years if he decides to purchase a property?
A. No the Beneficiary does not have to commit himself not to sell the qualifying property. This can be sold as long as it is replaced by another qualifying property.
Q. Would purchasing a number of rooms in a hotel and owning these for a period of 5 years, naturally without anyone else having access to the rooms in the meantime, qualify?
A. No, these are not accepted as a Qualifying Property. The Main Applicant must lease or purchase a residential property.
Q. A client explained that he has just bought a property in the South of Malta for circa €190,000 and will be spending a minimum of €100,000 on it - therefore the total cost to him will be in excess of the €270,000 required for a property in the South. Will this be considered enough to satisfy the property investment requirements of the Malta Residence and Visa Programme?
A. If the property was purchased after 2015, the determining factor is the value of the property as declared on the contract of sale. Therefore, the said scenario does not satisfy the Qualifying Property criteria.
Q. Would an Acquisition of Immovable Property (AIP) permit be required for a non-EU citizen who is applying under this Programme if the property is not in a ‘special designated area’?
A. Yes, the acquisition of immovable property (AIP) permit is still required.
Q. Would the minimum property requirements no longer apply, after a qualifying property has been held for the first 5 years?
A. The Beneficiary is not obliged to retain possession of the Qualifying Property. However, to retain residence he must provide a suitable residential address.
Q. Is it possible for the Main Applicant to first rent, and then buy a property?
A. Yes, it is possible, as long as the qualifying criteria are satisfied in both cases.
Q. Can the Applicant take a loan to buy the Qualifying Property?
A. Yes. This is at the discretion of the Bank.
Q. During application stage Applicant undertakes to fulfil the obligation to buy or rent the property in Malta together with the investment obligation. Is an affidavit enough or do you need a promise of sale/rent agreement?
A. The declaration needs to be signed before a Commissioner for Oaths.
Q. It is quite normal for property to be co-owned by the Main Applicant and his/her spouse, children and sometimes grandparents. Would this be accepted as evidence of the €500,000 capital?
A. Co-ownership is acceptable up to and including spouse and children, as long as the spouse and the children are included in the application. If, the Main Applicant is applying on his/her own, only the value of his/her individual share will be accepted as forming part of his/her declared capital.
4. Proof of Assets
​
Q. If the Applicant is in possession of assets amounting to €500,000, or an annual income of €100,000 (arising outside Malta) – is the amount applicable only to the Main Applicant or is it applicable also to the other listed dependants?
A. The amount is applicable to the Main Applicant only.
Q. If the Applicant is in possession of assets amounting to €500,000, or an annual income of €100,000 (arising outside Malta) – does this amount change if the application is for the Main Applicant and other dependants?
A. No the amounts do not change with the number of persons covered under one application.
Q. Is the €500,000 capital requirement distinctive from the value of property acquired in Malta together with the €250,000 invested in government stocks?
A. Yes, they are different, distinctive requirements. Therefore, the applicant should provide:
€250,000 investment in qualifying Government Bonds +
Property valued at €270,000/€320,000 or rent of €10,000/€12,000 p.a. +
Capital of €500,000 and/or income of €100,000 p.a. (arising outside Malta).
Q. In regard to the €100,000 proof of annual income (arising outside Malta); is the declaration by the employer enough?
A. Yes, as long as there is enough information on the employer. Evidence, such as salary slips or contract of employment showing the annual salary, would suffice.
Q. What is required as a statement of Source of Wealth and Source of Funds?
A. A bank statement of the Applicant’s main account for the last 3 months would suffice.
Q. Not many people keep cash in a bank account for a long time. They may have investment in property, security or in a business. Can the Applicant present a security/investment portfolio and/or property appraisal and/or company financial accounts?
A. Yes, these documents are acceptable as long as they are issued from a reputable company or an official entity.
Q. Who needs to provide proof of income: Main Applicant or also the dependants?
A. Only the Main Applicant is to provide proof of income - €100,000 (arising outside Malta) annually and/or ownership of €500,000 in kind or in cash.
Q. With regard to the €500,000 capital requirement, would an architect’s appraisal (valuation) be acceptable as evidence in order to establish the total net assets of a client if his/her assets were primarily real estate?
A. Yes, an architect’s appraisal is acceptable, and real estate can form part of the Main Applicant’s capital requirement.
Q. Is a spouse considered to be a dependant if he/she has assets or sources of income?
A. Although the spouse is considered as a dependant, nothing precludes him/her from being in possession of certain assets and of sources of income.
5. Issuance of Letter of Approval in Principle, Residence Certificate, Biometrics and issuance of Residence card.
Q. What will happen once the application is submitted to the Malta Residency & VISA Agency (MRVA)?
A. A receipt of the application is given to the Registered Approved Agent (RAA) or Registered Accredited Person (RAP) who is also requested to pay the initial fee of €5,500. Once these fees are received by MRVA, due diligence checks on the Main Applicant and dependants are conducted. If this is successful, the application is presented to the board and, if approved, a Letter of Approval in Principle is issued by MRVA. Following this process, which will take approximately 4 months, the Main Applicant will need to buy/lease the Qualifying property, buy the Qualifying Investment and purchase the necessary Health Insurance Cover. The Main Applicant will be allowed a timeframe of three months from the receipt of the Letter of Approval in Principle. Once the Main Applicant provides all the documentation, MRVA will issue a Letter of Final Approval to the Main Applicant, inviting him/her and his/her dependants to call at the MRVA offices for the capturing of biometric data. Within 3 to 5 days MRVA will issue the Residence Certificate and Cards.
This whole process is conducted with the assistance of a Registered Approved Agent (RAA) or Registered Accredited Person (RAP) – such as ourselves. The Legal fees quoted cater for all of this process.
Q. Will the Residence Certificate and the Residence Card have expiry dates?
A. As long as all stipulated requirements will continue to be met, the Residency Certificate will not have an expiry date and the Residency card, which will reflect the said immigration position, will be initially valid for a period of five years, which period is renewable. In cases where a Residency Card is issued to a minor of less than 14 years, and the minor turns 14 within the “normal” five-year card validity, the expiry date of such minor’s card will fall due one month after his/her 14th birthday. The same applies when a dependant turns 18 years of age.
Q. Is there any exemption from submitting the biometrics, for instance if a person is a baby or disabled?
A. Yes, children are exempt from biometrics up to the age of 6. With regards to people with disabilities, each case will be decided on its own merits.
Q. Will a language test be carried out to test the Main Applicant’s and the dependants’ knowledge of Maltese/English?
A. No.
Q. Upon renewal of the Residence Card after 5 years, do any other fees apply?
A. Yes. Each individual has to pay €27.50 per year to have the Residence Card renewed.
Q. Following the initial five-year period, upon renewal of residency card, are the Main Applicant and other beneficiaries required to come to Malta to retake their biometrics?
A. Although 3 sets of biometric data are captured for each Applicant, thus having 2 extra sets in file, the extra sets might be used up in case of technical issues, and/or in case of a change of address and/or in case of a loss of card during the validity of the card. In such circumstances, the Applicant and/or his/her dependants will be required to come to Malta for biometric data capturing. In cases where a Residency Card is issued to a minor of less than 14 years, and the minor turns 14 within the “normal” five-year card validity, the expiry of such minor’s card, will fall due one month after his/her 14th birthday. In such a case, another set of biometric data will be used. The same applies when the dependant turns 18 years of age.
Q. Would MRVA support or facilitate the issuance of visas for Applicants for travelling purposes?
A. MRVA cannot provide any support to applicants obtaining a Visa. The agency can only confirm that the applicant has applied for a Residency card under MRVP.
Q. Will the commencement of lease need to be as close to the appointment of submission of final documents as possible?
A. Ideally the Lease Agreement should commence closest to the submission of the final proofs. The same applies to the Health Policy.
Q. Is the health policy required to be submitted together with other requirements once an application has been approved?
A. Yes, the Health Policy endorsement or its equivalent, has to be submitted.
Q. After acceptance of the application, where do the Applicants have to provide the Biometric data? Does the whole family have to travel to Malta?
A. After the Letter of Final Approval, the Main Applicant and all dependants have to travel to Malta to have their Biometric data captured. However, at the discretion of MRVA and given certain conditions, Biometric data capturing can also be done in abroad. In the latter case, the Main Applicant and his/her Dependants would have to travel to Malta to sign the Subscriber’s Agreement.
Q. Can a foreigner ever apply for the acquisition of Maltese Citizenship by naturalisation?
A. Yes, a foreigner may submit an application for the acquisition of Maltese Citizenship by naturalisation after continuously residing in Malta for a period of five years. He/she should have resided in Malta throughout the twelve months immediately before the date of application, and four years out of the preceding six year period. He has to be knowledgeable in spoken/written English & Maltese, of sound mind and of good conduct.
Q. Is a minimum presence required in Malta on the part of the Applicants? Are no days spent in Malta allowed?
A. There is no minimum presence required.
6. Period outside Malta during the 5 years of benefitting from an MRVP residence permit.
7. Licence of Employment
11. Clients who change programmes
9. Change in status of a person benefitting from the MRVP
8. Travel
10. The Official Compliance Form
Q. May a Beneficiary under the programme be granted an automatic licence to be employed or to engage in business in Malta?
A. The Beneficiary still needs to apply for a work permit through normal procedures.
Q. How can the Beneficiary and/or dependants apply for a work permit?
A. The Beneficiary and/or dependants can apply for a work permit by submitting an application for a ‘work permit’ through the normal channels. Kindly note that dependants are only eligible to work after the application has been submitted.
Q. How can the Beneficiary and/or dependants apply to set up a business in Malta?
A. The Beneficiary or spouse can apply, through the competent authorities, to launch a business in Malta as long as they satisfy the prevailing legislation. A dependant can also take this route without loosing his/her residency rights.
Q. Taxation of working clients: I found information about “a flat tax rate of 15% on foreign source income remitted to Malta and 35% on Malta source income”. What does this mean please?
A. This Programme doesn’t carry any tax grants and/or incentives. The statutory tax applies. If you have any further tax-related queries we will put you in touch with a colleague of ours, who is a local tax consultant.
Q. Would a minor dependant of an Applicant be entitled to free education whilst residing in Malta? If so, does this apply also to Secondary and Tertiary (i.e. University) education?
A. No, under the MRVP a minor is not entitled to free education. However, if the Main Applicant acquires a work permit, his/her children would be entitled to free primary and secondary education in state schools.
Q. Can Applicants work in an EU country under the MRVP?
A. The MRVP does not grant the Beneficiary any employment rights in the Schengen Area. Therefore, he or she will need to apply for a work permit in the Schengen country according to the provisions of that particular country.
Q. Will the holder of the residency card be allowed to travel Visa-free throughout Europe, or only in Schengen countries?
A. Holders of the MRVP residency card may only travel to Schengen countries, and for a maximum period of 90 days within a 180 day period. The traveller should invariably carry a valid travel document.
​
Q. When minor children under MRVP reach the age of 18, do they lose their Malta residence status?
A. No, they do not lose their MRVP residence status.
Q. If a Beneficiary decides to give up his/her residence right in Malta within the first 5 years and move to another country, can he/she then sell the Government bonds immediately, or does he/she have to wait for 5 years until he/she can sell the Government bonds? Same question applies to the lease agreement: If he/she wants to leave Malta before the lapse of the first 5 years, can he/she then get out of the lease agreement, or does the lease agreement have to be for a five-year period?
A. This can be done, but naturally this will result in the cessation of the programme. The fact that he/she sells the Government bonds and does not adhere to the qualifying property agreement, the client will automatically lose his/her status and this applies vice versa, that is, if he/she relinquishes his/her certificate, there will be no obligations to fulfil. If a Beneficiary relinquishes and/or loses his/her residency rights, any dependants benefiting from residency rights through the same certificate will automatically lose their residency rights.
​
Q. After 5 years, Beneficiary will need to submit the Official Compliance Form every 5 years, to show that he or she is still fulfilling the obligations. Do all obligations need to be retained? Is there any fee to be paid? Is there any documentation that needs to be filled and submitted?
A. After five years the beneficiary doesn’t need to retain the qualifying investment, nor the qualifying property. Notwithstanding, he/she is required to provide the MRVA with a suitable residential address to re-issue the respective residence card.
​
Q. If an MRVP Beneficiary decides to change to the Malta Individual Investor Programme (IIP), will the €30,000 contribution be deduced from the IIP fees?
A. No. The €30,000 fee paid for MRVP is non-refundable and non-transferable.
Q. Can a client change his/her IIP application over to the MRVP? As yet, the client has not submitted his IIP Citizenship application, however he has already obtained his/her 18 month residence card via the IIP.
A. Yes, as long as the full MRVP process will be followed.
12. General questions
​
Q. Is there a compulsory minimum length of stay within one year after a Beneficiary gets his/her residence permit?
A. No, there is no minimum length of stay requirement.
Q. Can the Beneficiary add dependants at a later stage?
A. Yes. The Beneficiary may add dependants at a later stage. A €5,000 fee applies to parents and grandparents of the Main Applicant or spouse.
Q. Is there a fee for the Residence Card?
A. Yes. It is €27.50 per person per annum. Hence a card valid for 5 years carries a total fee of €137.50 per individual.
Q. What would the consequences be should the Beneficiary divorce from his/her spouse?
A. In the case of a divorce, the Spouse of the Beneficiary will lose residency rights. This might also effect the Spouse’s children whose other biological parent is not the Beneficiary and who would have been included as Dependants under the said Application. However, each case will be assessed on its own merits.
Q. Client is an EU national, and his/her partner is a third country national. Client wishes to apply for the MRVP for his/her partner. In this regard, since Client is of a European nationality, and thus prohibited from applying for the programme, may his/her partner (third country national) apply for the MRVP and client will act as his/her Benefactor?
A. Our legislation does not impede him/her from submitting an application as a Main Applicant, supported by a benefactor.
Q. Can a Main Applicant rely on a benefactor for proof of assets?
A. Yes, however these should be in the name of the Main Applicant. If in order to satisfy this requirement, the benefactor will be transferring the amount to the Main Applicant, documentary evidence of this transfer such as deed of gift or sworn declaration, and evidence of the bank transfer must be submitted with the application.
Q. Can an adult dependant who is employed and receiving the minimum wage still be supported by the Main Applicant where the minimum wage is not enough to support their lifestyle?
A. By legal definition, the answer is no. A dependant has to be economically inactive at the time of submission of application. He/she may seek employment thereafter.
Q. Can the residence card be renewed abroad through the Maltese Embassy?
A. As things stand today the Residency Card cannot be renewed through a Maltese Embassy.
Q. Should parents or grandparents applying be above a certain age?
A. No, there is no age threshold.