MALTA: CITIZENSHIP

MALTA: CITIZENSHIP ADVANTAGES

International flights are very common for many businesspersons and professionals. When an important business trip is approaching, it is often necessary to take measures in order to obtain a visa in a selected country, which includes actions such as completing a long form listing the countries visited during the last five or ten years, visiting a consulate or an embassy for an interview and preparing all the required documents. These procedures often reduce flexibility and may disrupt business travel.

Maltese citizenship will grant you access to an ancient thus significant historical and a rich cultural legacy. Moreover, you will surely appreciate and enjoy many benefits from this beautiful archipelago, among which are:

1. 1. 1. The right to live, work and study in any member State of the European Union (Germany, Austria, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Monaco, France, Italy, Spain, etc.) of which Malta has been a member of EU since 2004;
      2. The ability to travel without any visa to 184 countries, such as the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, countries of South America, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, etc.; 
      3. Malta is a unique English speaking country in the Schengen Area. Your children may attend a local school and study in English. The Maltese education system is one of the highest standard;
      4. Access to excellent quality of life and a temperate climate with an average of 300 sunny days per year. In addition, you’re never more than 5 to 20 minutes away from the Mediterranean Sea;
      5. A very low crime rate which makes Malta one of the safest places in the world. In fact, Malta is consistently ranked in the top 10 of the safest countries in Europe;
         
      6. Strong and stable economy;
      7. Minimal imposition (no wealth tax, no inheritance tax);
      8. An outstanding health service system;
      9. The right to hold the citizenship of other states.

MALTA: REQUIREMENTS

Citizenship of Malta by investment is an exclusive program reserved for the most reputable and financially independent candidates who wish to reside legally in Europe. Applicants will be required to justify the absence of criminal history from their country of residency and or of their country of origin and successfully pass Due Diligence checks. Moreover, to qualify for Maltese citizenship, the main applicant must choose one of the two contribution options available (the contribution must be paid once the citizenship application is approved). The following are the main requirements for the Maltese Citizenship Programme: 

1. 1. Own a property in Malta of a minimum value of € 700,000 or rent a property in Malta of a minimum annual rent equivalent to € 16,000. The purchased or leased property must be preserved for a minimum of 5 years after obtaining Maltese citizenship;
   2. Pass Due Diligence verification process. The fees for Due Diligence are of € 15,000 for a single applicant, € 10,000 for applicant’s spouse and € 10,000 for each child or dependent over the age of 13 years old; 
   3. Subscribe to a Maltese Medical Insurance covering all health risks globally (with the exception of Canada and the USA);
   4. Make a contribution to the National Development and Social Fund of Malta (NDSF). Under the new citizenship programme, you should choose one of the two following contribution options:
      4.1. A contribution of € 750,000 for a single applicant who may apply for Maltese citizenship after being a resident of Malta for at least 12 months,
      OR;
      4.2. A contribution of € 600,000 for a single applicant after being a resident of Malta for at least 36 months.
      Under both contribution options, there is an additional donation amount of € 50,000 for applicant’s spouse and of €50,000 
   5. You will also be expected to make a donation of a minimum of €10,000 to a local charity or organisation. 

MALTA: LIST OF DOCUMENTS

Listed below are the documents required for both E-residency application as well as citizenship in Malta:

1. 1. 1. All the applications Forms;
      2. Power of Attorney (to be signed in front of a Notary in Malta);
      3. Notarised copy of current Passport, National ID card, birth and marriage certificates;
      4. Military book (if applicable);
      5. Letter of Intent;
      6. Curriculum vitae; 
      7. Due Diligence Checks;
      8. Bank certificate, reference and statements (covering previous 6 months transactions);
         
      9. Explanation of how applicant’s wealth was accumulated; 
      10. Insurance Policy (Health Policy to cover the applicants for a minimum of € 50,000 value covering healths risks worldwide with the exception of the US and Canada);
      11. Lease or purchase agreement in Malta;
      12. Residence cards of Malta and of any other country;
      13. Police certificates from the country of origin and from the country of residence;
      14. Certificate of business incorporation and/or work letter;
      15. Confirmation documents of income or any types of source: salary, dividends, pension, property ownership, lease agreements, business ownership, etc;
      16. Tax clearance.

MALTA: PROCESS

The application process to acquire Maltese Citizenship is regulated by precise rules and should take around 12-36 months to be completed according to the selected contribution option. Below is a standard citizenship by contribution step-by-step process to Malta step-by-step:

1. 1. 1. You will be required to collect all personal documents required for both residency and citizenship applications. All of the supporting documents must be legalised and translated into English according to Maltese guidelines; 
      2. Our real-estate experts and our local advisors guide you in property acquiring or renting in Malta. This step may be accomplished remotely during which a member of our devoted team leaves for Malta and selects the best neighbourhoods for you and your family, books visits for various properties, sends you pictures, videos as well as detailed descriptions and negotiates the price, if necessary. You may then select the property that suits you best and the lease agreement may be signed. We send you the keys and the lease by safe courier service;
      3. We book the most appropriate health insurance for you with a broker or an insurance company; 
      4. We can propose management services for your property to ensure your property is ok until you come to Malta;
      5. You and your family may travel to Malta and attend an appointment with Maltese immigration authorities to apply for an E-Residency and pay a non-refundable fee of € 5,000 for a single applicant and of € 1,000 for each family member part of the application (this amount is from the total amount of the total contribution amount of either € 750,000 or of € 600,000). At this moment, the biometrics will be collected;
      6. Once the E-Residency card is issued, you may come to Malta to collect it or we may collect it on your behalf and send it to you via a safe mail service;
      7. You may choose a contribution amount for citizenship application which is either an amount of € 750,000 (if you apply for citizenship after 1 year) or of € 600,000 (if you decide to apply for citizenship after 3 years). If you choose the first option, we may submit your application for citizenship. At this stage, you will be expected to cover government and Due Diligence fees.
         
      8. The due diligence verification process may take up to 120 days;
      9. When the approval of the citizenship application is received, the applicant must proceed with the contribution payment to the Maltese government as well as other remaining government fees. You have a limited time to proceed with the contribution transfer. Additionally, the transfer of the donation amount should come from a bank account that is under your name, which must have been presented previously during the application process and and approved by the government;
      10. The applicant is invited to take an oath to obtain the naturalisation certificate. For this action, every member of the application over 6 years old must be present to take an oath and provide biometrics;
      11. Finally, you and your family members will receive a passport of Malta as well as a national identification card in the next 7 to 10 days;
      12. As a final step, we will be glad to invite you to one of the best and local Maltese restaurants to celebrate your achievement.

MALTA: TESTIMONIAL

Our family of four started looking for a new place to relocate once I inherited the company from my father. While the business was doing well, the oil and gas industry is prone to volatile disruptions, so it is better for us to create a safety net for our next generation. We have been doing so for a while, and our French apartment right underneath the Eiffel Tower. However, there were severe travel restrictions with our passports, and we first tried immigrating to Canada. Soon we realised that we could not stay the mandatory 2 years every 5 years, and had to come back to Europe, searching for a new location to relocate. We were all very disappointed when we had to leave our Montreal apartment abandoned and that was when we found Inimex in France. They recommended Malta and so we quickly signed agreement with Inimex.

They got to work even before we signed the agreement and had everything translated, legalised and in front of me for final check within a week. We applied and in a month and a half we obtained e-residency. So we came to Malta, bought a nice apartment in front of the Mediterranean Sea in Sliema, our kids’ favorite place in the world. I personally love the people who are genuine and kind, while everyone said the local food was incredible. So once we settled down, Inimex initiated the next stage and we applied for the citizenship. Within 1 year, we had our certificates and Maltese passport. The awesome thing about Malta is that it lets me keep my old passport and there was no need to face legislative problems back home. I am so grateful of Inimex and cannot thank them enough for the work they have done. This was probably the best result for our family.

MALTA: TESTIMONIAL

My wife and I are lucky enough to be international way before we immigrated. Our business spanned two countries and we lived in both, or on some airplane flying in between, but sadly we wished there was more opportunities to live in Europe. We had education in Switzerland and France, and really had a deep connection with the continent. We saw a nice new program with Malta that could easily facilitate travel within Europe. Our local contact in Malta recommended us Inimex, who was an expert in this field, so we happily followed his advice. Inimex was really professional, and during our consultation, their immigration lawyer explained almost everything so clearly that we had no question to ask any more. They answered everything perfectly and we had our application done within weeks after our arrival in Malta. They prepared documents, organised translation and notarisation and much more behind the scenes so I did not have to even know about it.

We got our residence card within half a month, and during the first year here in Malta we had a lot of work cut out for us. Malta government does very rigorous search on the background of every single applicant, and that meant a lot of documents to provide, verify and translate. Thankfully, Inimex helped us all the way, and there was not a thing that we had to worry. Our case was accepted quickly, and once contribution was made, we obtained our third citizenship, because we did not have to give up our previous two citizenship. Inimex’s local agents also showed us around many exclusive places such as the yacht club and the golf meetings, so we both had more connections and thus more business partners.

MALTA: OUR SERVICES

In Malta, our company will gladly offer you various kind of services, including juridical, administrative, business, translation services, etc. Our partners and collaborators live and work in Malta. Many of us live in Malta have been living in Malta for several generations. Therefore, we are familiar with how everything works in Malta. This way, it will be a pleasure to assist you with regards to any topic or concern you may have in Malta.

1. 1. 1. Application process for citizenship by investment in Malta;
      2. Assistance in bank account opening, medical insurance enrolment, school registration for children, driver’s license exchange;
      3. Renting and buying a property in Malta;
      4. Business registration, set up a company in Malta, business and financial plans;
      5. Private driver with a luxury car;
      6. Private translator and interpret, guide or assistant during your stay in Malta;
      7. Registration at fitness, yacht, tennis and golf clubs;
      8. Accounting services and tax registration procedure.