Malta Individual Investor Programme 

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Malta Citizenship Rights 

 

Reputable foreign individuals and families who are duly qualified in terms of the Maltese Citizenship Act, Cap 188, and the Individual Investor Programme of the Republic of Malta Regulations, 2014 (‘the Regulations’) and who contribute to the economic development of Malta are entitled to be granted full citizenship in Malta under the Individual Investor Programme (“IIP”).

 

The IIP aims at attracting the right investors to come to Malta, bring their expertise and experience, create new opportunities and make an economic contribution to the country. Key advantages of IIP in Malta:

 

-  A well-respected and stable EU country;

-  Reasonable contribution and efficient application process;

-  Strict due diligence standards and vetting of applicants, thus ensuring only highly respectable applicants will be admitted;

-  Visa-free travel to more than 160 countries in the world, including the USA;

-  EU citizenship gives right of establishment in all 28 EU countries and Switzerland;

-  Malta is an attractive place to live or to own a second home and is strategically    located with excellent air links.

 

Prior to the introduction of the Individual Investor Programme of the Republic of Malta (IIP Malta), under Maltese law, there were three ways through which Malta citizenship and Maltese passports can be acquired, namely:

 

1)  By birth: people born in or outside Malta need to satisfy certain criteria for them to be eligible for Malta citizenship, depending mainly on their date of birth;

 

2) By registration: spouses of a Malta citizen after five years of marriage, widow/widower of a Malta citizen, children born abroad to Maltese mothers prior to 01/08/1989 and persons who are of second and subsequent generations born abroad of Maltese descent (two ancestors born in Malta) are all eligible for Maltese citizenship; and

 

3)  By naturalization: citizenship by naturalization is normally considered favourably if one is a former Maltese citizen; one is born abroad to Maltese parents who are returned migrants; one is born in Malta, holds a foreign citizenship and at least one parent is a Maltese citizen; one is born to parents who were non-Maltese but one of whom or both subsequently acquired Maltese citizenship, and if one is born abroad and is of Maltese descent. Foreigners married to a Maltese citizen can apply for citizenship after 5 years of marriage. Foreigners with no marriage ties to a Maltese citizen, but who have obtained residency, can apply for citizenship as well; however such applications will only be considered after 15 or 20 years on a case by case basis.

 

In addition to this,  the fourth option has recently been introduced through the issuance by the Government of Malta:  a programme to be known as the ‘Individual Investor Programme of the Republic of Malta’ (IIP Malta). This Malta Investor Programme grants Malta citizenship to foreign individuals and their families, who contribute to the economic development of Malta.

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