Remote’s guide to employing in

Malta
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Make employment in Malta easy. Let us handle payroll, benefits, taxes, compliance, and even stock options for your team in Malta, all in one easy-to-use platform.

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  • Capital city

    Valletta

  • Currency

    Euro (€, EUR)

  • Languages

    English and Maltese

  • Population size

    514,564

Services available in this country:
Global Employment ServicesContractor Management

Facts & Stats

Malta Map Illustration
  • Capital city

    Valletta

  • Currency

    Euro (€, EUR)

  • Languages

    English and Maltese

  • Population size

    514,564

  • Ease of doing business

    Easy

  • Cost of living index

    73.61 (25 of 139 nations)

  • Payroll frequency

    Monthly

  • VAT - standard rate

    18%

  • GDP - real growth rate

    4.9% (2019)

Malta is a popular destination for tourists from Europe and the world over. The country’s pristine waters, 15th century architecture, and rich history are all drawcards for a growing number of digital nomads and remote workers.

But for businesses looking to expand, Malta offers an industrialized economy with low corporate taxes, strong GDP growth, a high income, a bilingual population, a strong democracy (18th best), and a growing IT industry.

Grow your team in Malta with Remote

Looking to employ workers in Malta? Companies hiring in Malta must either own a legal entity in the country or work with a global employment solutions provider, usually one that provides employer of record services.

Remote can employ your team in Malta on your behalf through our local legal entity in the country and handle payroll, benefits, taxes, and compliance for your Malta team. You can also pay contractors now in Malta with Remote.

Risks of misclassification

Malta, like many other countries, treats self-employed individuals or contractors and full-time employees differently. Misclassification of contractors in Malta may lead to fines and penalties for the offending company.

Employing in Malta

Employees in Malta enjoy protections against discrimination based on age, religion, sexual orientation, gender expression, and race.

Common questions that could come up during the hiring process include the minimum wage, overtime rates, and guaranteed paid time off. Remote can help you offer a complete, competitive, and compliant benefits package to your employees in Malta.

Minimum Wage

Maltese labor mandates a minimum weekly wage for all employees, as well as statutory increases employers must offer as an employee’s tenure increases. Here’s a breakdown of what employers should pay as the bare minimum.

  • 18 and above: €181.08 (€724.32 per month)

  • 17 years: €174.30 (€697.2 per month)

  • Under 17 years: €171.46 (€685.84 per month)

After working a year with the same employer, an employee earning the minimum wage will be entitled to an increase of €3 per week added to the base pay. After the second year, that grows to an increase of €6 per week or a €24 bonus on the employee’s monthly paycheck.

Employees earning more than the minimum wage will get similar increases, starting in the second and third years of their continued employment with the same employer.

Payroll Cycle

For customers of Remote, all employee payments will be made in equal monthly installments on or before the last working day of each calendar month, payable in arrears.

Onboarding Time

We can help you get a new employee started in Malta fast. The minimum onboarding time we need is only 4 working days.

Our team ensures your employees are onboarded and paid as quickly as possible while keeping your business compliant with all local employment legislation. The minimum onboarding time begins after the employee submits all required information onto the Remote platform. The onboarding timeline is also dependent upon registration with local authorities.

For all non-nationals of the country of employment, the Right to Work assessment (if applicable) will add three extra days to the total time to onboard. There may be extra time required if we need to follow-up on the right to work assessment.

Please note, payroll cut-off dates can impact the actual first day of employment. Remote has a payroll cut-off date of the 10th of the month unless otherwise specified.

14 Public holidays

Jan
Sunday, January 1, 20231New Year’s Day (L-Ewwel tas-Sena)
Feb
Friday, February 10, 20232Feast of St Paul’s Shipwreck (Il-Festa tan-Nawfraġju ta’ San Pawl)
Mar
Sunday, March 19, 20233Feast of St Joseph (Il-Festa ta’ San Ġużepp)
Friday, March 31, 20234Freedom Day (Jum il-Ħelsien)
Apr
Friday, April 7, 20235Good Friday (Il-Ġimgħa l-Kbira)
May
Monday, May 1, 20236Worker’s Day (Jum il-Ħaddiem)
Jun
Wednesday, June 7, 20237Sette Giugno
Thursday, June 29, 20238Feast of St Peter and St Paul (Il-Festa ta’ San Pietru u San Pawl)
Aug
Tuesday, August 15, 20239Feast of Assumption (Il-Festa ta’ Santa Marija)
Sep
Friday, September 8, 202310Feast of our Lady of Victories (Jum il-Vittorja)
Thursday, September 21, 202311Independence Day (Jum 1-Indipendenza)
Dec
Friday, December 8, 202312Feast of Immaculate Conception (Il-Festa tal-Immakulata Kunċizzjoni)
Wednesday, December 13, 202313Republic Day (Jum ir-Repubblika)
Monday, December 25, 202314Christmas Day (Il-Milied)

Competitive benefits package in Malta

At Remote, we’re obsessed with helping you craft the best possible employee experience for your team. We are leading the way in practicing “fair equity,” which means making sure employees everywhere have access to both the required and supplemental benefits they need to thrive (and that will allow you to attract the best local talent).

Our benefits packages in Malta are tailored to fulfill the local needs of your employees. Typically, our packages contain some or all of the following benefits:

  • Health Insurance

  • Dental Insurance

  • Vision Insurance

  • Mental Health Support

  • Pension or 401(K)

  • Life and Disability Insurance

Taxes in Malta

Learn how employment taxes and statutory fees affect your payroll and your employees’ paychecks in Malta.

  • 10%

    social security contribution

Types of Leave

Employees working a 40-hour week are entitled to 192 working hours (24 working days) off, plus 8 hours for every public holiday that falls on a weekend. The 192-hour base rate equals 24 days, calculated by 8 hours of work daily.

For example, for 2021 employees are guaranteed 216 working hours off plus 24 (8 working hours * 3) hours to cover for 3 public holidays that fall on weekends.

However, if the employee works below an average of eight hours daily, the basic holiday entitlement can be calculated by multiplying the number of working hours the employee puts in daily by 24.

Employees who’ve worked with an employer for less than a year will be entitled to paid vacation that’s equivalent to the length of time they’ve worked.

Employment termination

Termination process

An employee’s contract may be terminated for just cause (negligence, dishonesty, flagrant disobedience, etc.), redundancy, or when an employee reaches retirement age.

Notice period

Maltese labor law mandates that employees are informed in advance before having their employment so they can make appropriate arrangements to make the transition.

During probation period, an employee may be dismissed with one weeks’ notice if they have completed at least 1 month of employment. Notice periods follow a sliding scale from here:

  • 1 month to 6 months: 1 week

  • 6 months to 2 years: 2 weeks

  • 2 years to 4 years: 4 weeks

  • 4 years to 7 years: 8 weeks

  • More than 7 years: 8 weeks, plus 1 week for each additional year

Severance pay

There is no mandated severance pay specified under Maltese labor law.

Probation periods

Probation can last anywhere from a week to 12 months, provided it’s agreed upon in advance by both parties.