{"id":"malta-merit","name":"Malta Citizenship by Merit","type":"CBI","status":"operational","country":"Malta","country_code":"MT","url":"https://www.mirabelloconsultancy.com/immigration/malta-citizenship-by-merit","min_investment":{"amount":1200000,"currency":"EUR","route":"Discretionary naturalisation on the basis of merit (Maltese Citizenship Act Art. 10(9)); no amount set in law; Mirabello practice experience: a real investment of about EUR 1.2 million in a government-approved sector, which may include a charitable donation","basis":"practice","note":"No investment amount is set in law: Article 10(9) of the Maltese Citizenship Act sets no price. EUR 1.2 million is Mirabello practice experience: a real investment in a sector approved by the Government of Malta as benefiting the country, which may include a donation to a charity; no government contribution or government bonds."},"qualification_basis":"merit","investment_routes":null,"family_pricing":null,"processing_time":"12-24 months","processing_time_basis":"practice","processing_time_note":"No official processing time is published by the government; this is Mirabello practice experience.","visa_free_count":184,"passport_index_rank":null,"key_destinations":null,"travel_access":null,"minimum_stay":null,"tax_note":null,"path_to_citizenship":"Discretionary certificate of naturalisation by merit after a two-stage process (approval in principle of a proposal letter, then a formal application with at least 8 months' residence in Malta); never guaranteed, no fixed timeline","highlights":["Maltese and EU citizenship: the right to live, work and study in all 27 EU member states, plus the EEA and Switzerland","Discretionary naturalisation for exceptional contribution to Malta (Art. 10(9)); no amount set in law; in Mirabello practice experience about EUR 1.2 million invested in a government-approved sector and 12 to 24 months, with no government contribution or bonds","Two ministerial decisions after independent Evaluation Board review; legal residence in Malta (at least 8 months before the formal application), a rented home and health insurance maintained until citizenship"],"atomic_answer":"Malta Citizenship by Merit is discretionary naturalisation under Article 10(9) of the Maltese Citizenship Act (as substituted by Act XXI of 2025) for a person who renders exceptional services or makes an exceptional contribution, including through job creation, to Malta or to humanity, or whose naturalisation is of exceptional interest to Malta. The law sets no investment amount or price; in Mirabello practice experience, successful applicants make a real investment of about EUR 1.2 million in a sector the Government of Malta approves as benefiting the country, which may include a donation to a charity, and the process takes 12 to 24 months; neither is an official figure, and unlike the former investor route there is no government contribution and no government bonds. Applicants first submit a proposal letter; after due diligence, an independent Evaluation Board recommendation and the Minister's approval in principle, the formal application needs at least eight months' legal residence in Malta, title to adequate residential property (in practice a rented home and health insurance, both kept until citizenship), Maltese or English, and, where the Evaluation Board requests it, an endorsement from a designated competent body. The Minister need not give reasons and the decision is final. A Maltese passport is an EU passport, with the right to live, work and study anywhere in the EU. The Community Malta Agency states that the route is not a programme or an alternative to Malta's former investor citizenship scheme, which the EU Court of Justice held contrary to EU law on 29 April 2025 (C-181/23).","fees":null,"last_updated":"2026-10-27","data_freshness":{"verification_confidence":56,"last_verified":"2026-10-22","fields_tracked":3,"stale_fields":1,"fields_with_homepage_only_source":2},"mirabello_index":{"composite":69,"rank_overall":51,"rank_in_type":11,"scores":{"cost":49,"speed":57,"mobility":100,"stability":65},"confidence":0.57},"regulatory_status":{"fatf_list":null,"eu_tax_list":null,"us_sanctions":null,"oecd_crs_high_risk_scheme":false,"as_of":"2026-06","status":"not listed on FATF, EU tax, US OFAC, or OECD CRS-risk lists"},"processing_stages":["1. Proposal letter to the Evaluation Board through the Community Malta Agency (achievements, exceptional service or contribution, post-naturalisation plan)","2. Agency due diligence (four-tier or more, independent providers, risk assessment) and administrative fees","3. Evaluation Board recommendation; Minister's approval in principle or rejection (no reasons given, decision final)","4. Formal application: 8 months' residence, title to adequate residential property, competent-body endorsement, Maltese or English, ties to Malta","5. Updated due diligence, second Board evaluation, Minister's final decision and letter of approval (may carry continuing obligations)","6. Oath of allegiance in Malta within 6 months of the letter of approval, then certificate of naturalisation"],"required_documents":null,"biometric_enrolment":null,"dependant_additions":null,"nationality_naturalisation":null,"region":"EU","family":{"id":"malta-merit","country_code":"MT","family_model":"included_at_application","relatives":{"spouse":{"eligible":null,"conditions":"Not specified in sources retrieved"},"children":{"eligible":null,"max_age_inclusive":null,"age_rule_text":"Not specified in sources retrieved. Legacy MEIN (closed) allowed dependent unmarried children under 29 - must NOT be assumed for the merit route.","age_measured_at":null,"adult_child_max_age_inclusive":null,"adult_child_conditions":null,"step_adopted":null,"disabled_child_any_age":null,"age_bands_for_fees":[]},"parents":{"eligible":null},"grandparents":{"eligible":null},"siblings":{"eligible":null},"other":{"eligible":true,"conditions":"Law-firm summary (Mondaq): dependants may be part of the application; first-round due diligence covers 'any dependant included'; Letter of Approval issued to applicant and dependants if any. Dependant definition not given."}},"timing":{"together_with_main_applicant":true,"add_later":null,"add_later_conditions":null,"add_later_deadline":null,"after_approval_births_marriages":null,"age_out_during_processing":null},"costs":{"currency":"EUR","contribution_includes_family":null,"per_category":{},"government_fees":[],"due_diligence_per_adult":null,"notes":"No fixed contribution or published dependant fees. Agency may set administrative fees per stage (Mondaq); amounts unknown. Legacy MEIN dependant figures not applicable."},"dependants_status":{"residence_obligation":null,"work_rights":null,"independent_after":null,"citizenship_path":"Letter of Approval in favour of applicant and dependants; naturalisation per Citizenship Act art 10(9)","if_principal_divorces_or_dies":null},"verification":"machine-extracted","confidence":{"authority":0.3,"freshness":0.6,"textual_clarity":0.2},"evidence":[{"field":"relatives.other","basis":"Mondaq summary of Legal Notice 159 of 2025","source_url":"https://www.mondaq.com/trusts/1694312/malta-introduces-citizenship-by-merit","source_tier":"E_secondary","verified_date":"2026-10-09"}],"conflicts":[],"gaps":["Legal Notice 159 of 2025 and Citizenship Act art 10(9) not read directly; dependant definition, ages, fees all unknown","Community Malta Agency (komunita.gov.mt) guidance not located","Add-later rules, age-out, dependants' status","Rule 11 sensitive: surface factually only"],"last_checked":"2026-10-09"},"provider":"Mirabello Consultancy","source":"Mirabello Consultancy","verified_by":"Mirabello Consultancy (IMC member, ACAMS-certified team)","book_a_consultation":"https://www.mirabelloconsultancy.com/contact-us-for-your-free-consultation","terms":"https://www.mirabelloconsultancy.com/ai","disclaimer":"Provided by Mirabello Consultancy Ltd. for general information only, indicative and subject to change without notice; not legal, financial, tax, or immigration advice, nor an offer or solicitation. Programmes are operated and governed solely by the respective sovereign governments. No warranty of accuracy or completeness; Mirabello accepts no liability for reliance on this information. © Mirabello Consultancy Ltd. This data and its selection, structure and provenance are Mirabello's proprietary compilation — permitted for interactive, attributed use only; systematic bulk extraction, scraping, or redistribution to rebuild a competing dataset is prohibited (acceptable-use terms: https://mcp.mirabelloconsultancy.com/v1/terms). Terms: https://www.mirabelloconsultancy.com/ai","data_updated":"2026-10-27T11:02:03.019Z","visa_free_set":"177","claims_provenance":{"path_to_citizenship":{"source_url":"https://komunita.gov.mt/","source_tier":"official","verified_at":"2026-06-06","confidence":70,"review_due_at":"2026-09-04"},"visa_free_count":{"source_url":"https://komunita.gov.mt/","source_tier":"official","verified_at":"2026-06-06","confidence":25,"review_due_at":"2026-09-04"},"visa_free_set":{"source_url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visa_requirements_for_Maltese_citizens","source_tier":"secondary","verified_at":"2026-10-22","confidence":74,"review_due_at":"2027-01-20"}}}