Maltese immigration law provides two main residence schemes or programmes for taking up residence in Malta, namely the Permanent Residence Scheme (PRS) and the Ordinary Residence permit. Persons may decide to move their residence status to Malta for various purposes, including offshore living, international business travel, tax reasons or for retirement.
| Permanent Residence Scheme | Ordinary Residence Permit | |||
| Tax on worldwide wealth | none | none | ||
| Tax on worldwide income not remitted to Malta | none | none | ||
| Tax rate on remitted income | 15% (subject to min.) | tax rates | ||
| Minimum annual tax | EUR4,192 | 0 | ||
| Fiscal viability: remittance by a single taxpayer | > EUR23,500 | < EUR23,500 | ||
| Fiscal viability: remittance by a married couple | > EUR28,500 | < EUR28,500 | ||
| Inheritance tax | none | none | ||
| Wealth tax | none | none | ||
| Permanent Residence Scheme | Ordinary Residence Permit | |||
| Investment required | none | none | ||
| Minimum stay | none | 6 months in every year | ||
| Property requirement | rent or buy | rent or buy | ||
| Malta address to be obtained | before/during/after obtaining residence | before obtaining residence | ||
| Application processing time | short | 1 week | ||
| Renewal (just a formality) | annual | annual | ||
| Cancellation/Non-renewal | only if conditions are breached | only if conditions are breached | ||
| Eligibility | EU & Non-EU nationals | EU nationals | ||
| Conversions between permits possible | yes | yes | ||
| Entitlement to Citizenship | no | no | ||
* The issue of Ordinary Residence Permits to Non-EU nationals is at the authority’s discretion.
For more information about the 1988 Malta Permanent Residence Scheme, about the Maltese Ordinary Residence permit, or about the HNWI Schemes, click on the links on the left hand menu of this page.
