Self-employed resident permit

seems relevant

https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=203955

Thanks, Myrkur. From that thread and the linked blog post it sounds like the prospects are not good! May I ask how you made the move from Russia to Malta?

Also, are there other EU countries that look at freelancers more favourably?

No problem EMX. I moved here with my parents which unfortunately doesn't really help you. Regarding other countries I would have said Cyprus (haha), but maybe other forum members can shed more light on this with respect to the countries they've been to...

From my personal experience the EU is quite hostile to Non-EU nationals who legally wish to immigrate, unless you are a millionaire of course!

Yes, I have been looking into Cyprus as well, but there seems to be very little info available on it. I cannot even find a list of the documents or information I'd need to submit to apply for a self-employed permit.

the HNWI scheme is being changed to make it more attractive - PM announced it this week

georgeingozo wrote:

the HNWI scheme is being changed to make it more attractive - PM announced it this week

Do you have a link or any more details? I cannot find anything about it with a Google search.

http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/vi … val.465806

But I doubt they will lower the min property purchase price to 100k no?

Hi EMX,

your best initial option is to apply for temporary residency as being economically self-sufficient and just show that you have the required finances and health insurance.

You can then think about your employment and tax situation.

That way you don't have to buy property in Malta which does not give you any residency rights unless you fit into the new HNWI. Now is not the right time to buy property in Malta. If you really want to stay then wait 2 years until the bubble bursts. Buying overpriced property at the moment will just make real estate sellers and developers happy which is what the whole scheme is
about.

150 k won't buy you that much in Malta anyway ! There are better investments !

Cheers
Ricky

Thanks, georgeingozo and thanks, ricky. Of course, I would rather not buy overpriced property. But I'm not sure that I qualify as "economically self-sufficient". Doesn't that require a significant regular income without working? Just putting my cash in the bank wouldn't be enough to get that and that kind of permit would prohibit self-employment, right? Also, even if I got it, would it be easier to then change over to a self-employed permit once I'm there than to get one from the start?

Hi EMX,

you don't need any regular income to qualify as economically self-sufficient. Money counts ....in any bank account.

Non-EU's are not allowed to work as self-employed ! You will not be able to change to a 'self-employed permit' as you need to abide by the rules and show a lot of money and employ a certain number of Maltese which you probably are not considering !

Don't even mention it when applying. The reason: Otherwise anybody could declare themselves as self-employed and enter Malta. That would be like granting yourself a work permit as a non-EU.

Cheers
Ricky

According to http://mhas.gov.mt/en/MHAS-Information/ … A8-URP.pdf self-sufficient persons need a minimum annual income of €13,976 in Malta plus accommodation. I'd also need a "CIR certificate", otherwise only temporary residence would be allowed. Am I looking at the wrong category?

Hi EMX,

unless you opt for the HNWI scheme (CIR) your only option is the temporary residency. You will surely find a way to show an income of 13.976 € to be self-sufficient! It is either CIR or adequate income otherwise.

To live in Malta you will need that amount anyway. That is only 1166 €/month.

Temporary residence is an individual decision by the director of DCEA based on each individual case.

Cheers
Ricky

EMX wrote:

I don't have the 500K EUR to pay the government for residence under the High Net Worth scheme, unfortunately.

AFAIK you do not have to pay that money to the Government, you could buy the property to a person/company and BTW if I remember well it is €400k (not €500k). Anyway you do not necessarily have to buy, you can also rent a property for at least €20k/year BUT you will have to pay also a minimum (and easily also a maximum) of €20k per year.

ricky wrote:

Hi EMX,

unless you opt for the HNWI scheme (CIR) your only option is the temporary residency

Well, that is unfortunate. I would not qualify for HNWI (at least in its current form) and my goal is ultimately EU citizenship, so temporary residence doesn't help me there unless I can turn it into permanent later. Thank you for the explanation, though, ricky!

Lusco, yes, I could rent for 20K EUR per year, but as I understand that alone would not get me residency. http://www.ird.gov.mt/downloads/hnwi/hn … scheme.pdf says

It is important to note that special tax status granted by the High Net Worth Individuals Rules does not grant the beneficiary a right to enter, stay and reside in Malta, at any time throughout the duration of such status.

To get that I'd have to enter into a "qualifying contract" with the government, involving paying them money. I can't seem to find the link right now where I got the 500K EUR from, but that was the amount. Or am I missing something?

Different schemes and qualifications for different forms of residency.
We have to be certain which is which.
Is Russia considered a 'Third Country'?

As GnG posted..............

Third country nationals who applied for the HNWI scheme and declared that they intended to be long-term residents in Malta had to enter into a contract with the Government with a financial bond of €500,000 and €150,000 per dependent, to effectively purchase permanent residency after five years.

http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/vi … val.465806

Yes, that's the one - thanks, redmilk. Unfortunately I don't have that kind of cash. (And yes, Russia is definitely a "third country".)

"Is Russia considered a 'Third Country'?" yes - its any non-EU/EEA country

So, for EMX with his current aspirations and situation we have, as previously posted by GnG and Ricky; accurate and definitive answers.

Which is a shame for EMX at present. Good luck, hope things work out for you.

Hi EMX,

there is no thing as EU citizenship!

Are you referring to residency? It is just about impossible to gain Maltese citizenship unless you have family ties to Malta.

If you find a job and get a work permit you can apply for ordinary residency which would be extendable on a yearly basis as long as you have a work permit.

After 5 years ordinary residency you can apply for permanent residency in Malta but the authorities usually make sure that TCN's don't stay for long !

It will be difficult unless you marry a Maltese or EU citizen -)))

Cheers
Ricky

Ah, that's too bad. I was thinking of naturalising as a Maltese citizen eventually (if things went well and I liked it) which would also make me a citizen of the EU. But if it's that hard in practice, looks like you guys are right and Malta isn't really the place I should consider. I am looking at some other countries, too, but I'll post in the appropriate forums about those.

ricky wrote:

there is no thing as EU citizenship!

Actually there is - from wiki

"Citizenship of the European Union was introduced by the Maastricht Treaty, which was signed in 1992, and has been in force since 1993. European citizenship is supplementary to national citizenship and affords rights such as the right to vote in European elections, the right to free movement, settlement and employment across the EU, and the right to consular protection from other EU states' embassies when a person's country of citizenship does not maintain an embassy or consulate in the country they need protection in"

edit - ah, see I've quoted from same place

However, you can't apply for EU citizenship, its automatically granted if you are a citizen of an EU country

Forget about Malta, EMX

Buy the apartment in Spain and they provide you with permanent residence on this basis. After 5 years you can apply for citizenship.

I don't know any Russian in Malta obtained citizenship in last 10 years unless he/she married on Maltese.

Spiridonov, I thought it was 10 years residence in Spain to get citizenship? Also, last I heard they're only considering giving residence permits for buying real estate. Has that law been passed? Do you have a link? I'd be interested to read more about it.

No, I have no updated information about it. The main point is: for many EU countries (Czech, Spain, Portugal, Bulgaria etc) I've heard about Russians who obtained residence and citizenship. Never heard it about Malta, even long-term residence here is a challenge

Spain - just google "spain residence foreigners property" and there it is

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne … 30000.html

"The plan, aimed principally at the Chinese and Russian markets,"

"the measure is expected to imitate agreements established in Portugal and Ireland "

Oh yes, I'm well aware of that, but the key word is "plan". I thought Spiridonov was saying it had already become law and I missed it. The article says "in the coming weeks" - and it was 6 months ago. So it looks like Spain is no hurry. According to http://www.propertywire.com/news/europe … 37747.html the law is expected to be passed July this year, but the figure it gives is 500K EUR, not 160K.

Hi,

I am from the UK and have been in Malta for 5 weeks now. I have just landed myself a role within a company but have found out it is a self employed role. How do I go about getting the information I need to apply for my eResidence to stay here longer to work as self employed?

Many thanks in advance.

Chris