Digital nomad visa in Malta

• The permit is for people aged 18 or over from outside the EU, the EEA and Switzerland who work remotely by telecommunications: as an employee of a foreign-registered employer, as a partner or shareholder of a foreign-registered company, or as a freelancer or consultant with clients whose permanent establishments are abroad.
• It is not for people hired by a foreign company who serve its Maltese subsidiary, or for anyone who serves Malta-based companies or individuals; holders and dependants cannot work for Maltese employers. Nationals of Afghanistan, North Korea, Iran, DR Congo, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Yemen, Venezuela, Russia and Belarus are currently not eligible, and the Agency may revise that list.
• Dependants can be a spouse, minor children, unmarried adult children who depend mainly on you, and adult children who cannot cope independently. They generally cannot be added after payment or approval, except at renewal and for newborns. Holders get no pension, social benefits, free education or free healthcare in Malta.

Sources: Residency Malta Agency (nomad.residencymalta.gov.mt). Checked 16 October 2026.

• The income test is about €42,000 gross a year. To be safe, have more than €43,000 a year. People who applied before 1 April 2024 keep an older, lower figure that does not apply to new applications.
• The income must be guaranteed for at least 5 months (cumulative) from the day you apply. Your last three months of bank statements must be in your name and show the income credited directly; the Agency accepts only official, unmasked PDF statements downloaded from the bank.

Sources: Residency Malta Agency (nomad.residencymalta.gov.mt). Checked 16 October 2026.

• Each person needs form N4 on the online portal, a signed letter of intent, a CV and a copy of every passport page. Employees add a contract saying the work can be done remotely, company owners a certificate of incorporation and share register, and freelancers service contracts showing duties and rate of pay.
• Applicants aged 18 or over need an original police conduct certificate from the national or federal police system, issued less than 6 months before submission and translated into English if needed. The checklist does not mention an apostille.
• After approval in principle you have 30 working days to send proof of accommodation and health insurance. The card needs a 12-month lease (no temporary or PO box addresses, hostels, boats or caravans), and insurance covering the EU and UK with at least €100,000 of cover, prepaid for a full year; travel insurance is not accepted.

Sources: Residency Malta Agency (nomad.residencymalta.gov.mt). Checked 16 October 2026.

• You apply on the Agency’s online portal, and processing takes about 30 working days from receipt of funds, not counting visa time. After arrival you book biometrics by email, and the card takes about 3 to 4 weeks and is collected in person with your passport.
• Identità’s visa-exempt list names Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States. Identità says visa-exempt nationals may visit for the first 90 days in every 180, but need a Malta D-visa before travelling if they plan to stay longer than 90 days.
• The Agency does not share reasons for a refusal. Its decisions are final with no appeal, and you can reapply 12 months after the rejection letter.

Sources: Residency Malta Agency (nomad.residencymalta.gov.mt), Identità (Government of Malta). Checked 16 October 2026.

• The application fee is €300 per applicant, non-refundable, paid by bank transfer from the main applicant’s account. The residence card costs €100 per person, paid in person by card only. Any visa fees are extra.
• A change of address has to be reported within 10 working days, with a €50 fee.

Sources: Residency Malta Agency (nomad.residencymalta.gov.mt). Checked 16 October 2026.

• The first permit lasts one year from the day the card is issued. It can be renewed three times, for at most 4 years in total, at the Agency’s discretion. Renewal needs bank statements showing at least 5 months of residence in Malta in the previous 12; apply 2 to 3 months before expiry.
• The second and third renewals also need a tax compliance declaration downloaded from the portal. If a renewal is refused, or you do not renew, you can reapply 12 months after expiry, and the Agency can revoke a permit for adverse information or a breach of the criteria.

Sources: Residency Malta Agency (nomad.residencymalta.gov.mt). Checked 16 October 2026.

• The Agency says the Nomad Residence Permit does not lead to permanent residence or citizenship.
• It is separate from the Malta Permanent Residence Programme: moving to that programme means applying through a licensed agent and giving up the nomad permit. A nomad permit also automatically revokes any other Maltese permit you hold.

Sources: Residency Malta Agency (nomad.residencymalta.gov.mt). Checked 16 October 2026.

• The Nomad Residence Permits (Income Tax) Rules charge holders 10% on income from authorised work (remote work for a non-resident employer, or services for non-resident clients), counted as the first part of total income. Holders are not liable for 12 months from the permit date or 1 January 2024, whichever is later, unless they file a declaration that their residence is not merely casual; they must still register for income tax.
• Official proof that you paid tax abroad on that income at 10% or more settles the Maltese tax through double tax relief. The Agency says the permit does not by itself make you liable to Maltese tax and that it gives no tax advice; your other income and your family’s income stay under the ordinary Income Tax Act.
• Under the Income Tax Act, someone not ordinarily resident or not domiciled in Malta pays tax on foreign income only when it is received in Malta, with no tax on foreign capital gains. For 2027 the ordinary rates for a single person are 0% to €12,000, 15% to €16,000, 25% to €60,000 and 35% above that. A private firm’s summary says Malta has few specific residence rules.

Sources: Legislation Malta (legislation.mt), Residency Malta Agency (nomad.residencymalta.gov.mt). Checked 16 October 2026.

• Retirement tax status in Malta
• Work permit in Malta
• Family visa in Malta
• Permanent residence by investment in Malta

• Visas in Malta
• Malta

1. List of third countries whose nationals are exempted from holding a visa when crossing the external borders, Identità (Government of Malta), Central Visa Unit. Checked 16 October 2026. Document uploaded to the Identità site in October 2023; lists Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States of America.
2. Identity History Summary Checks (FBI criminal record check), Federal Bureau of Investigation; Internet Archive copy. Checked 15 October 2026. Internet Archive capture of 6 October 2026. Gives the US$18 fee and says the FBI does not forward requests to the State Department for the apostille, so the apostille is a separate step.
3. Nomad Residence Permit: application checklist, Residency Malta Agency (nomad.residencymalta.gov.mt). Checked 16 October 2026. Read on 16 October 2026. Documents for new applications and renewals; three months of PDF bank statements with income credited directly; original police conduct certificate less than 6 months old; the page does not mention an apostille.
4. US citizens abroad: filing requirements, Internal Revenue Service. Checked 16 October 2026. US citizens abroad file in the same way as those at home, on worldwide income.
5. Malta tax treaty documents, Internal Revenue Service. Checked 16 October 2026. IRS page linking the United States-Malta treaty and its technical explanation.
6. Foreign earned income exclusion, Internal Revenue Service. Checked 16 October 2026. Maximum exclusion for tax year 2026: 132,900 dollars per person.
7. Malta travel advice and advisories (entry and exit requirements), Government of Canada (travel.gc.ca). Checked 16 October 2026. Last updated 18 August 2026. Malta is a Schengen country; Canadian citizens need no visa for stays up to 90 days in any 180-day period, counted across all Schengen countries; a longer stay needs a visa from the high commission or embassy before departure; the regular Canadian passport must be valid at least 3 months beyond the date you expect to leave the Schengen area; the Entry/Exit System collects a facial image and fingerprints; ETIAS applications are "not yet open" (30 European countries).
8. Processing times and fees (criminal record checks), Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Checked 16 October 2026. Page modified 21 May 2025, opened 16 October 2026. Federal processing fee CAD 25 for each criminal record check; local fees set by the local police agency or accredited fingerprinting agency are extra; 3 business days or less when there is no match, up to 120 business days with manual processing or a possible record match.
9. Tax treaties in force: Malta, Department of Finance Canada. Checked 16 October 2026. Page dated 18 December 2024, opened 16 October 2026. Lists "The Canada-Malta Income Tax Agreement, as signed on July 25, 1986" with no protocol. Canada's Department of Finance and the Atlas Tax Map (Malta's Commissioner for Revenue, as of 30 May 2026) both record it in force.
10. Leaving Canada (emigrants), Canada Revenue Agency. Checked 16 October 2026. Page dated 17 September 2026. Who is an emigrant (you leave to live in another country and sever your residential ties); you usually become a non-resident on the latest of the date you leave, the date your spouse or common-law partner and dependants leave and the date you become resident of the new country; deemed non-residents under a treaty follow the emigrant rules; departure tax.
11. National Police Checks, Australian Federal Police. Checked 16 October 2026. A National Police Check can be used for working overseas; each application costs 57 Australian dollars, or 114 with fingerprints; identity documents worth 100 points are needed. The page does not say whether Cyprus accepts it, and the Cypriot list does not name the document.
12. Income tax treaties: treaties in force (Malta), Australian Treasury. Checked 16 October 2026. Page last updated 24 March 2026. Malta: agreement signed 9 May 1984, in force 20 May 1985, with the multilateral instrument applying (the table's MLI date is 1 April 2019).
13. Social Security Agreement between Australia and Malta: frequently asked questions, Internet Archive copy of 7 September 2024, Department of Social Services (Australian Government). Checked 16 October 2026. The current agreement started on 1 July 2005 and replaced the original of 1 July 1991; Australia and Malta share responsibility for paying pensions; Australia adds periods of Maltese insurance to Australian residence; Australia pays covered pensions indefinitely in Malta; at least 10 years of Australian residence is normally needed for the Age Pension.
14. Criminal records: get your own, Ministry of Justice (New Zealand). Checked 16 October 2026. Opened 16 October 2026. The Ministry aims to respond to criminal record check requests within 20 working days; if a country asks for the record to be apostille-certified, you send the record you get to the Department of Internal Affairs.
15. Tax treaties (New Zealand double tax agreements in force, signed and under negotiation), Inland Revenue (New Zealand), Tax Policy. Checked 16 October 2026. Opened 16 October 2026. 41 agreements in force; Malta is on none of the lists (in force, signed, or being negotiated).
16. Social Security Agreement with Malta: living in Malta, Work and Income (Ministry of Social Development). Checked 16 October 2026. Opened 16 October 2026. Page for the agreement (updated 23 June 2026): covers NZ Super and Veteran's Pension and Malta's Retirement Pension, Survivor's Pension and Non-contributory Old Age Pension; lets you add periods of residence in either country; contact International Services at least 4 weeks before you leave; needs at least 1 year continuous New Zealand residence between ages 20 and 65 and an intention to live in Malta at least 26 weeks.
17. Nomad Residence Permit: eligibility, Residency Malta Agency (nomad.residencymalta.gov.mt). Checked 16 October 2026. Read on 16 October 2026. Third-country nationals aged 18 or over who work remotely as employees of a foreign-registered employer, as partners or shareholders of a foreign-registered company, or as freelancers with clients whose permanent establishments are abroad; minimum gross yearly income EUR 42,000 (applications made before 1 April 2024 keep EUR 32,400); not open to people hired by a foreign company who serve its Maltese subsidiary.
18. Nomad Residence Permit: FAQs (version 14.1, updated 17 April 2026), Residency Malta Agency (nomad.residencymalta.gov.mt). Checked 16 October 2026. Read on 16 October 2026. Income EUR 42,000 gross a year, guaranteed for at least 5 months from the application date; fee EUR 300 per applicant plus EUR 100 for the residence card; about 30 working days; one year renewable three times for at most 4 years; renewal needs at least 5 months in Malta in the previous 12; ineligible nationalities; dependants; accommodation and health insurance rules; no route to permanent residence or citizenship.
19. Visa: frequently asked questions, Identità (Government of Malta). Checked 16 October 2026. Visa-exempt nationals may visit the Schengen area for the first 90 days in every 180 without a visa; a visit of more than 90 days needs a Malta D-visa even for visa-exempt nationals; D-visas are processed by the Central Visa Unit, taking up to 8 weeks from the VFS appointment; fees are non-refundable.
20. Nomad Residence Permits (Income Tax) Rules, S.L. 123.210 (L.N. 277 of 2023), Government of Malta, Legislation Malta (legislation.mt). Checked 16 October 2026. Official PDF text of 7 December 2023 read on 16 October 2026. 10% on chargeable income from authorised remote work; no liability for the first 12 months unless a declaration is filed; registration for income tax required; tax paid abroad at 10% or more is deemed to settle the Maltese tax; other income and family members stay under the Income Tax Act.
21. Income Tax Act (Cap. 123), consolidated text, articles 4 and 56, Government of Malta, Legislation Malta (legislation.mt). Checked 16 October 2026. PDF read on 16 October 2026; amendments listed up to Act III of 2026. Article 4(1)(g) provisos (i) and (ii); article 56(1)(b)(i), marked as applicable from the year of assessment 2027 (Act III of 2026, article 13(2)).