Malta Residence/Citizenship through investment part 2 – Part one is here.
Permanent residency:
Anyone can apply for permanent residency in Malta regardless of their country of origin.
EU/EEA/Swiss nationals and their family members, as well as third-country nationals, are able to apply for permanent residency after the completion of five years of normal residency.
During the five years as a temporary resident, EU/EEA/Swiss nationals should have stayed in Malta for more than six months per year.
For non-EU nationals, the minimum requirement is not to be absent for more than six consecutive months in a year in the five years and should not be away from the country for more than ten months in the entirety of the said five-year period.
After obtaining permanent residence in Malta, it should be renewed every year.
Citizenship:
Citizenship through naturalization:
If you want to become a citizen of Malta through the process of naturalization, then the process is extremely complex.
First, a long-term visa, and after that, a residence permit. The next step is to apply for permanent residency and live in the country as a resident for at least five years.
After that, you will have to pass some exams related to language proficiency, Maltese history, and law.
Only after you complete all these steps, you shall be able to acquire citizenship in Malta through the process of naturalization. You should remember that citizenship is only necessary for the people who intend to stay in Malta for the entirety of their lives.
Citizenship through Marriage:
One of the least expensive and hassle-free ways to obtain Maltese citizenship is by marrying a Maltese citizen. After marrying a Maltese citizen, you can apply for citizenship after five years of marriage.
There are no mandatory requirements to stay in the country during this period.
However, marrying just for a Maltese passport is considered a criminal offense, and such people might have to face serious charges such as imprisonment up to two years.
As you may know, you should always marry for love instead of marrying for personal benefit.
Citizenship by descent or birth:
Children and descendants of Maltese citizens can obtain citizenship through this method.
There are no requirements such as minimum stay or residency in the country, yet one must prove his/her origin with appropriate documentation.
Citizenship through family reunification:
People who have close relatives such as parents, siblings, and grandparents living permanently in Malta can apply for citizenship.
Citizenship for distinguished service:
In case of special merit to Malta, citizenship is presented to an individual by the president of Malta.
In general, some renowned scientists, athletes, politicians, celebrities, or people involved with large businesses are provided with citizenship under this category.
However, there are no specific details regarding the criteria for obtaining citizenship through this method.
Citizenship for refugees and political asylum:
It has been estimated that 8,000 to 9,000 refugees arrive in Malta each year, mostly slaves from Africa and the Middle East. If such a person stays in Malta for six years, then he/she can obtain Maltese citizenship.
The only requirement for getting citizenship through this method is by proving that the individual has a life threat or is being discriminated against in the country of origin.
Investment programs:
These are the general ways of obtaining residency/citizenship in Malta, and we will now discuss the residency through investment and citizenship through investment in Malta.
First, let us start with the Malta Permanent Residency Programme (MPRP), which is a residency through investment programme in Malta.
The Malta Permanent Residence Programme (MPRP):
This permanent residence programme was launched in the year 2021, which offers permanent residence to non-EU nationals who make an investment in Malta.
Through this programme, people from third countries are able to get a second residency in Malta.
Mostly, people seek a second residency in safe and stable countries such as Malta so as to settle there in an event of an economic or political disturbance in their country of origin.
With the help of this programme, not only the main applicant, but the parents, children, parents, grandparents, and parents-in-law can also obtain residency and settle in Malta.
With the help of this residency permit, applicants can reside in Malta and travel within the 26 countries of the Schengen area without a necessity for a visa.
Only non-EU individuals who have financial stability and a significant amount of wealth are ideal for obtaining this type of residency permit.
Applicants will be required to submit documents such as a clean criminal record, source for their funds, etc., for becoming eligible to obtain this residency permit.
As a part of obtaining the residence permit, the applicant and their family members have to go through a four-tier due diligence test.
Along with these requirements, the individual should be able to prove that he/she has a wealth of at least €500,000, where €350,000 should be in the form of capital and €150,000 should be in financial assets.
There is a requirement for a minimum stay in Malta when a person obtains this residency permit.
While applying, the main applicant can include the following family members within the same application.
- Spouse or Partner
- Unmarried & economically dependent children
- Economically dependent parents of the applicant and his/her spouse
- Economically dependent grandparents of the applicant and his/her spouse
Given below are the investment requirements for obtaining residency under this programme. All the conditions given below are to be fulfilled by an individual to acquire the residence permit.
Condition 1 – The applicant should purchase a property worth at least €350,000 or rent a property that is at least €12,000 annually if the property is located in the Central & Northern part of Malta.
The minimum property price requirement can be reduced to €300,000 and the rental price requirement to €10,000 annually if the property is located in the Southern part of Malta or Gozo.
Condition 2 – The applicant should pay a government application fee of €68,000 if they are purchasing a property. If they are renting a property, then the government application fee will be €98,000.
Condition 3 – A donation of at least €2,000 should be made to a philanthropic organization or a non-governmental organization.
Condition 4 – An administration fee of €30,000 (sometimes €40,000 including all the costs) is to be paid, which is non-refundable.
The application along with the supporting documentation is to be submitted to the Residency Malta Agency, which happens to be the government agency responsible for the processing of these applications.
After reviewing, successful applicants will be asked to make the above-mentioned investment, and following successful completion of making an investment, the Residency Malta Agency will issue a Maltese residence certificate (permit).
Having discussed the permanent residency programme, we will now discuss the process of citizenship through investment in Malta.
Citizenship by Investment:
This programme is known by the name “Malta Citizenship for Exceptional Services by Direct Investment” or “Malta ESDI
People who are wealthy and are ready to invest in Malta’s economy can apply for citizenship right after one year of residency ( or three years) in the country.
Not just the applicant, but the entire family of the individual can apply for citizenship.
- Spouse
- Children up to 29 years of age
- Parents of the applicant (over 55 years)
- Parents of the spouse of the applicant (over 55 years)
One important thing that should be taken into consideration is that the children aged more than 18 years and the parents should be financially dependent on the applicant.
Right after applying for citizenship, the applicant will be provided with a temporary residency permit, with which they can travel in Europe without a visa.
From 2014 to 2020, there was an investment programme called the Malta Individual Investor Programme, which is closed now.
This made things hard for individual investors but the citizenship through investment programme remained the same, through which citizenship can be obtained without having to live permanently in the country.
From this year (2021), investors can acquire Maltese citizenship for exceptional services provided through direct investment, as per one of the articles of the Maltese Citizenship Act.
The process of obtaining citizenship through investment in Malta is considered to be the fastest and easiest way if you are okay with spending a significant amount of money.
Requirements – The requirements for Malta ESDI are as follows, and individuals must meet all of these conditions.
Condition 1: The individual must contribute at least €600,000 after one year of residency in Malta. Otherwise, they must contribute €750,000 after three years of residency in Malta.
Condition 2: The individual must purchase a residential property that is worth at least €700,000, and this property should be held by the individual for at least five years.
The individual can rent out this property during these five years and can sell it after completion of the said five-year period (if they wish).
(Or)
Alternatively, the individual can acquire a residential property for lease, for which the value must be at least $16,000 per year and this process should be continued for 5 years.
Condition 3: The individual should make a donatdonate0,000 to any of the following organizations or societies, which has been approved by the Community Malta Agency:
Cultural organization
Scientific organization
Philanthropic organization
Animal welfare organization
Registered sport
Additionally, €50,000 should be paid as a contribution to the state fund for each additional family member applying for citizenship through this programme.
Eligibility Test – The family members of the individual should pass a background check, which is equivalent to Due Diligence.
The investor and the family members must provide the information related to the source of their funds along with all the supporting documentation necessary for the application process.
During this test, the applicant and his/her family must prove that all their income sources are genuine and legal, and they don’t have any sort of criminal background.
The main objective of this test is to ensure that the applicant and his family have no obstacles to acquiring citizenship in Malta, and the process is strict and thorough.
In most cases, 1 out of every 5 individuals who take this test fails to obtain citizenship.
After successfully passing the test, the individual becomes eligible for Maltese citizenship valid for a lifetime.
For taking the eligibility test, the main applicant must pay a fee of €15,000 and each additional family member must pay €10,000 whether it is the applicant’s spouse, child (12 to 29 years), or parents (over 55 years).
There is also an administrative fee applicable for each applicant, which is €1,000.
Process of applying – The process of applying for citizenship with the help of the Malta ESDI program is as follows.
Step 1: First, you must select a property, whether it can be for purchase or leasing.
Step 2: Next, you must submit your residency permit along with all the documentation necessary for the citizenship application.
Make sure that you are residing in Malta for at least three before you submit these documents.
Step 3: Once you are approved, you can apply for the process of naturalization. This process usually takes around four to five months from the date you submit the necessary documents.
Only after you receive this approval, you will be required to provide proof of residence, make the necessary investments, and take an oath of allegiance.
Step 4: After this application gets approved, you can apply for a Maltese passport according to your citizenship certificate.
In simple words, a family of two people would need around €766,000 to €1,500,000 for obtaining citizenship in Malta, without including the property purchase.
One thing you must remember is that Malta would only accept 1,500 people for the next four years, while only accepting less than 400 people per year.
After these four years, the rules and conditions of this law are likely to be changed or revised again.
Malta is considered a safe and stable economy in Europe and there are no restrictions on dual citizenship.
With this country’s citizenship, you can obtain the right of establishment in 27 EU countries along with Switzerland. You can also travel to 184 countries with the necessity of a visa.
Bottom Line:
You should remember that obtaining citizenship or residency in Malta can be quite expensive, and you must only apply for it if you can deal with the expenses.
The process of applying to residency/citizenship through investment is straightforward, yet it takes a lot of time and effort from the individual.
Some individuals might not find enough time to go through the process, and in such a situation, we will be glad to assist you in the process of obtaining residency/citizenship in Malta.
That being said, if you need a professional financial planner or investment manager to take care of your crucial financial needs, you can avail yourself of the top-notch financial services offered by us here.
You can also avail of these services through our mobile app by clicking here.
If you want to learn everything about investments and become familiar with the process of investing, then you can join Adam Fayed Academy and become an efficient investor.
Finally, we hope that you were able to find this article useful in accessing the information for which you have been searching.
