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The Government of Malta has launched regulations whereby non-EU individuals and their families may be granted citizenship by certificate of naturalisation.
The legislation was enacted by virtue of Legal Notice 47 of 2014, which includes the rules, regulation and process towards granting this status. It regulates how the vetting and due diligence process will be carried out, the costs involved and also how these individuals must contribute to the economic and social development of Malta in exchange for citizenship.
This scheme provides for a maximum number of approvals at 1,800 and will run for 3 years. The application process will be handled through an approved agent and vetted by Identity Malta, which is the authority tasked with this programme.
MGI Malta has partnered with a leading approved agent in order to be able to assist prospective applicants throughout this process.
WHO CAN APPLY UNDER THE SCHEME
• Applicants must be at least 18 years of age
• The applicant may also include his/her spouse and children under the age of 18
• Children of the applicant between the age of 18 and 26 but who must not be married (in which case a separate application has to be made)
• Dependants over the age of 55 years who are wholly maintained and supported.
• Applicants who meet all the application conditions under the programme
WHAT ELSE IS REQUIRED FROM THE APPLICANT ONCE AN APPLICATION IS APPROVED IN PRINCIPLE
• Must Commit to an investment in Malta which cannot be less than €150,000 and which must be held for at least 5 years (these may take the form of Government stocks, bonds or investments approved by the authority)
• Acquire a residential address in Malta through purchase or letting of property, which value may not be less that €350,000 in the case of purchase or €16,000 per annum in the case of letting. The applicant must prove to have resided in Malta for a minimum of 12 months before being granted a certificate of naturalisation.
• Provide an indefinite global health insurance policy/ies to cover the applicant, spouse, children and dependants.
WHAT ARE THE MAIN COSTS AND CONTRIBUTIONS
€650,000 application fee in respect of the main applicant
€25,000 application fee in respect of the spouse
€25,000 for every child under 18 years of age
€50,000 for every unmarried child between the ages of 18 to 26 years
€50,000 for every dependent parent or grandparent
WHAT ARE THE DUE DILIGENCE FEES
• €7,500 in respect of the main applicant
• €5,000 in respect of spouse
• €3,000 in respect of each child under 18 years
• €5,000 in respect of unmarried children between 18 and 26 years
• €5,000 in respect of each dependant
THE PROCESS – DOCUMENTATION REQUESTED AND FORMALITIES
• Applications must be accompanied by supporting identification and verification documents as set out in the Checklist and Guidelines
• Pay a non-refundable application fee of €10,000 and €200 to cover bank charges on application
• Provide police conduct certificates
• Provide medical certificates stating that the applicant and his dependents are not suffering from contagious diseases and are in good health
• Furnish an affidavit of support for each dependent who is over 18 years of age
• Provide authenticated translations into English where original documents are provided in another language.
• Commit to pay the contributions and due diligence fee once the first approval is given
• Undertake to buy or rent property
• To provide evidence that the applicant has resided in Malta for a period of 12 months preceding naturalisation
• Finally all applicants aged 18 years and over are obliged to attend in person in Malta to undertake the Oath of Allegiance.
Identity Malta will carry out initial verification work on the applicant and dependents within 90 days from submission of a correctly compiled application form. Within a further 30 days from finalisation of the first verification process, further background checks will be carried out by Identity Malta, after which the approved agent will be notified that:
• The application has been approved in principle
• Refused
• Or that it has been delayed due to further checks being required
Once the application in principle is approved, the applicant must, within 25 days, settle the contributions and due diligence fees, and proceed with the other requirements relating to property, investments etc. Once these other conditions are met, the applicant will be issued with a certificate of naturalisation within a maximum of 2 years but not less than 6 months (in the case of those applicants who were already residing in Malta before submitting the application).
Further information may be obtained by contacting MGI Malta, and addressing to either George Farrugia on gorg@mgimalta.com or Nicholas Falzon on nick@mgimalta.com.
This information was compiled by Nicholas Falzon CPA and is intended to provide an overview of the Individual investor Programme. The sources used in the write up included the legal notice and the official brochure issued by Identity Malta for promoting this programme. The information contained therein should not be used as a substitute for professional advice (24/04/2014).