Employment 2025

MALTA Law and Practice Contributed by: Paul Gonzi, Rebecca Diacono and Mattea Pullicino, Fenech & Fenech Advocates

rights; there are currently no restrictions on EU/EEA/ Swiss nationals’ access to the labour market. Third-Country Nationals Non-EU/EEA/Swiss nationals (ie, third-country nation - als) typically require an employment licence to work in Malta and cannot legally take up employment or self- employment without this licence. An application for an employment licence is generally submitted by the employer to the Expatriates Unit, Identità, through a Single Permit Application (SPA). All applications must be submitted online. On completion of a successful SPA, the third-country national would be issued with a Maltese residence permit, which would allow the person to legally work and reside in Malta, subject to certain conditions. For standard SPAs, the processing time of an application takes roughly 12 weeks from the submission of the application and a successful applicant will be issued with a residence permit for a minimum one-year period. Labour Market Test In terms of current policy, the employment of third- country nationals by Maltese employers is generally subject to the satisfaction of a Labour Market Test, whereby the employer must demonstrate that an effort was made to first recruit EU/EEA/Swiss nationals for the position, prior to offering the position to the third- country national – this is subject to any applicable exemptions. In July 2025, the government announced a new Labour Migration Policy, a key focus of which centres around the applicability of the Labour Market Test. It is expected that more rigorous testing will be carried out by the authorities, whilst employers will now be required to adhere to more stringent rules relative to the advertising of job positions, amongst other mat - ters. Malta Vacancy Exemption List Due to exigencies in the current market, certain occu - pations are exempt from the requirement to satisfy the Labour Market Test. The Malta Vacancy Exemption List is issued by Jobsplus and updated from time to time, depending on shortages in the local labour mar - ket. It is important to note that, unlike the Key Employ - ee Initiative Scheme (see below), when an occupation

is on the Malta Vacancy Exemption List, the role is exempt from the Labour Market Test irrespective of the gross annual salary earned by the third-country national or the seniority of the position. The Malta Vacancy Exemption List currently includes the fol - lowing occupations: accountants, auditors, personal carers, IT consultants and vets. Key Employee Initiative Scheme and Specialist Employee Initiative In addition to the Malta Vacancy Exemption List, a third-country national may also submit an SPA under the Key Employee Initiative Scheme (KEI) or the Spe - cialist Employee Initiative (SEI). Effective 1 August 2025, the KEI applies to third-coun - try nationals who: • earn a gross basic salary of at least EUR45,000 per annum; and • hold a managerial or highly technical position which requires relevant qualifications or adequate experience. The SEI applies to third-country nationals who: • earn a gross basic salary of at least EUR30,000 per annum; and • hold academic qualifications and/or work experi - ence linked to the role being offered. The KEI and SEI are beneficial as, in addition to being exempt from the Labour Market Test, they provide for a fast-tracked application process, whereby SPAs are processed in around ten to 15 working days from sub - mission of the application. Furthermore, a successful applicant is issued with a one-year residence permit on first submission and on renewal, subject to the discretion of the Expatriates Unit, may be issued with a residence permit for a three-year period. In terms of the Labour Migration Policy, amendments to the KEI and SEI are expected to be introduced later in 2025. Residence permit It is important to note that, once an SPA is success - fully approved and the third-country national is issued

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