Living in Malta is mostly straightforward, with a few frustrations worth knowing about in advance. The paperwork has an order to it, and doing it out of order means queueing twice. The electricity bill is fine until the first hot August.
These pages cover the practical business of being here when Malta is not a holiday but a Tuesday.
- Working in MaltaFinding work, contracts, notice periods and what a Maltese payslip looks like.
- Money and taxIncome tax, the bands, and what residence status changes about them.
- Banking in MaltaOpening an account as a newcomer, and why it takes longer than you expect.
- Cost of living in MaltaWhat a month costs here, from rent to the summer electricity bill.
- Renting in MaltaLeases, deposits, agency fees and the questions to ask before signing.
- Buying property in MaltaBuying as a resident or a foreigner, the AIP permit and the real costs.
- UtilitiesWater, electricity, the ARMS account and why the summer bill jumps.
- Internet and mobileProviders, coverage, contracts and getting a local number quickly.
- Living in GozoWhat you gain, what you give up, and the ferry in between.
- Everyday lifeBins, buses, village life, noise, and the rhythm of an ordinary week.
- Healthcare in MaltaPublic and private care, the European card, and how to register with a GP.
- Schools and educationState, church and private schools, and how families choose.
- Driving licenceExchanging a licence, what transfers automatically and what does not.
- Government servicesIdentita, Jobsplus, ARMS and the offices you will end up visiting.
- The Maltese language, and the phrases worth learningWhat Maltese is, how much of it you need, and the words that change how a village bar responds to you.
- Community and meeting peopleMeeting people when you did not arrive with anyone.
- BCRS: the deposit on bottles and cansTen cents on every bottle and can, and how to get it back. What is in the scheme, what is not, and why the machine spits things out.
- Getting married in MaltaNo residency requirement, six weeks of notice and a list of documents. What the Marriage Registry asks for and how far ahead to start.
- Gyms, running and working out in MaltaGyms and day passes, the free outdoor gyms the councils put in, where people run, and why the hour matters more than the route.
- Insurance in MaltaMotor cover is compulsory. Home, health and boat cover are not. How the Maltese market works and why most people use a broker.
Where to start
Do the paperwork in order
You register your residence first, then apply for the eResidence card, then open a bank account, get a tax number and register with a GP. Each step wants a document produced by the one before it.
Almost nothing here is hard on its own. If you do the steps in the wrong order, you can lose weeks.
Your first 30 days
Rent and the August bill
Housing has risen sharply over the last decade, and air conditioning through a Maltese summer produces a bill most newcomers have not budgeted for.
Everything else, particularly food and transport, costs noticeably less than in northern Europe.
What a month costs
Meeting people takes effort
Maltese social circles are built around family and the village, so nobody is looking for new friends. Join something that repeats and learn twenty words of Maltese.
Both of those work far better than any expat event.
Meeting people
Residence, tax and employment rules change, and they turn on the specifics of your situation. Everything here explains how a process generally works and points at the authority that decides. Confirm anything that carries a deadline or a fee before you act on it.