The Nomad Residence Permit, boundaries included.
Malta’s remote-work permit is well run and clearly documented. It also has firm limits — on who you may work for, how long you may stay, and where it leads. We put those first because they decide whether the route suits you at all.
What this permit does not do
Official guidance from the Residency Malta Agency states that the Nomad Residence Permit does not lead to any sort of permanent or long-term residency, or to citizenship. If your goal is to settle permanently in the EU, this is not the route, and no amount of renewing changes that.
The permit is issued for one year and may be renewed up to three times, giving a maximum total stay of four years, at the agency’s discretion. Renewal is not automatic: you must show at least five cumulative months of residence in Malta in the previous twelve, evidenced by payment transactions in Malta on a bank statement, and the second and third renewals also need a tax-compliance declaration. It is a defined period, not an open-ended one.
You also may not work for Maltese employers or companies while holding it. Official guidance goes further: someone contracted by a foreign company who provides services to that company’s Maltese subsidiary is not eligible. The route is built around work that stays outside Malta.
Three qualifying work structures.
You must be 18 or over and a third-country national — non-EU, non-EEA and non-Swiss — and your work must sit outside Malta in one of these forms. Some nationalities are not eligible at all: the Residency Malta Agency lists Afghanistan, North Korea, Iran, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Yemen and Venezuela, and currently the Russian Federation and Belarus. The agency can revise that list, so check it before you start.
You work for an employer registered in a foreign country, under a contract.
You conduct business activities for a company registered in a foreign country in which you are a partner or shareholder.
You offer freelance or consulting services to clients whose permanent establishments are in a foreign country.
The core requirements.
From Residency Malta Agency guidance. Each is checked before the permit is issued, not after.
€42,000 gross per year for applications submitted on or after 1 April 2024 (applications submitted before that date retain the earlier €32,400 requirement). The income must also be guaranteed for at least five months, cumulatively, from the day you apply.
Cover for risks in the European Union including Malta, and the UK, with minimum cover of €100,000, fully prepaid for one year. Travel insurance is not accepted.
A valid one-year rental or purchase agreement for a residential property, needed before the card is issued. Hostels, boats, yachts and caravans are not accepted.
Plus a background verification check carried out by the agency.
€300 per person, non-refundable, paid by bank transfer. A residence card issuance fee of €100 per person applies later.
Spouses, minor children, dependent unmarried adult children, and adults unable to cope independently for medical reasons. Dependants cannot be added after approval — only at renewal, or for newborns. Like the main applicant, dependants may not work for Maltese employers or companies.
Financial thresholds and government procedures can change. We confirm the current requirement against official sources before your application is prepared.
From application to residence card.
Applications are submitted through the Residency Malta Agency online portal. Two stages of approval, with biometrics captured in Malta.
Application and documents submitted
VizaboltThrough the agency’s online portal, with the supporting documents for your work structure.
Application fee paid
You€300 per person by bank transfer, once the receipt is issued.
Background checks
AuthorityThe agency carries out its verification. Official guidance indicates roughly 30 working days for this stage.
Approval in principle
AuthorityA letter of approval in principle is issued if the checks are satisfied.
Accommodation and insurance submitted
YouYour property agreement and health insurance are submitted within the window the agency sets. This is where most timelines slip, so we start it early.
Final approval
AuthorityA letter of final approval is issued once those documents are accepted.
Biometrics in Malta
YouCaptured in Malta. Depending on your nationality you may need a national entry visa to travel for this step — we confirm which applies to you.
Residence card issued
AuthorityThe card is produced and issued, with a €100 per person issuance fee.
Nomad Residence Permit questions.
No. Residency Malta Agency guidance states the permit does not lead to any sort of permanent or long-term residency, or citizenship. If settling permanently is your goal, this is the wrong route and we will say so.
The permit is issued for one year and may be renewed up to three times, at the agency’s discretion — a maximum total stay of four years. Each renewal needs proof of at least five cumulative months living in Malta in the previous twelve (shown through payment transactions in Malta on a bank statement), and the second and third renewals also need a tax-compliance declaration. Someone who spends most of the year elsewhere should not expect to renew.
No. Holders cannot offer services to, or be engaged in economic activity with, employers or companies based or registered in Malta. Providing services to a foreign company’s Maltese subsidiary also makes you ineligible.
Yes — spouses, minor children, dependent unmarried adult children, and adults unable to cope independently for medical reasons. Note that dependants cannot be added after approval (only at renewal, or for a newborn), so they normally need to be part of the original application. Dependants are bound by the same rule as you: they may not work for Maltese employers or companies.
Official sources
This page is written from official government and consular sources, not from other advisory websites. Last reviewed 2026-10-16.
Guides worth reading first
Malta Nomad Residence Permit: Eligibility to Year Four
Who can and cannot apply for Malta’s Nomad Residence Permit, the €42,000 income test, the stages after approval, family rules and where the permit ends.
Renewing a Malta Nomad Permit — and What Happens After Year Four
The five-months-in-Malta renewal test, the tax declaration at the second and third renewals, the four-year limit, and what Malta’s 10% tax rule says.
Considering Malta?
Tell us how you work and where your employer or clients are based — that decides eligibility before anything else does.