POSTERN

Malta

Naturalisation by residence. Ordinary Maltese naturalisation after 5 years of legal residence.

Free · The law behind every answer · Checked Sep 27, 2026

Naturalisation by residence

Maltese citizenship on approval.

Who qualifies

You keep your U.S. citizenship.

1

It could fit.

Ordinary Maltese naturalisation after 5 years of legal residence.

Every door that fits your family

Not legal advice.

2

What it takes.

Time
1–2 years for the naturalisation decision once residence requirements are met.
Cost
About $1,000–2,000 in fees and translations.
The hard part
Malta's citizenship-by-investment scheme (which offered citizenship in 12–36 months for a direct payment) was struck down by the CJEU in Case C-181/23 on 29 April 2025 as incompatible with EU law, so ordinary 5-year residence is now the only route; there is no shortcut left.
3

Citizens by 2033.

If your first permit is issued in 2027 and you keep living there, this is the road.

  1. 2027
    Residence begins

    No permit term of its own; the clock runs on legal residence.

  2. 2032
    Permanent residence

    Five years of legal, continuous residence (no absence over 6 months at a time or 10 months in total), the 100-hour 'I Belong' integration course passed at 75%, and a Maltese language certificate at MQF Level 2 with at least 65%. Student, seasonal and some family permits do not count.

  3. 2032
    Apply for citizenship

    With a language test.

  4. 2033
    Citizenship
Language
An adequate knowledge of Maltese or English.
Time away
Living in Malta for the whole 12 months right before applying, and for at least 4 of the 6 years before that. The minister may count older residence in special cases.
Two passports
Yes. You keep your U.S. citizenship.
  • Not a permit: five years of living in Malta (the last 12 months unbroken, 4 of the 6 before), then a discretionary grant.
  • Naturalisation is at the minister's discretion. Residency Malta's own FAQ says the decision follows 'internal policies' in which the number of years is a factor; those policies are unpublished, and in practice five years may not be enough.
  • No official decision-time figure found.
  • Whether there is a formal language test for citizenship, or only an interview, is not stated in the Act.
  • How long the decision takes isn’t published; we allow a year.
The law behind these dates
4

Living there.

Time you must spend there
The program sets no minimum number of days. Renewal still expects it to be your home.
Tax
Naturalisation itself has no tax effect; ordinary Maltese tax residence rules apply based on days present and domicile.

We never file a tax return. We tell you what applies and brief the professional who does.

5

Start today.

  1. Apply to Community Malta Agency once the residence requirement is met.Open komunita.gov.mt ↗
6

Or let us run it.

$900for your first year as a founding member. Then $399 a year, automatically.Standard first year: $1,200. Everyone renews at $399.One membership, the whole family. Accounts and activation included.

10 steps, from the first paper to the passport. You do 2 of them: send what we ask for, sign, and show up. We run the rest, and keep every permit renewed on time. Accounts and activation are included, whether you move now or keep the plan ready. Accounts depend on provider availability. Government, record and approved third-party charges are extra.

Run it for my family →
7
ISSUED TO

YOUR FAMILY

Cover