Malta · Citizenship by naturalisation
Granting of Citizenship by Naturalisation on the Basis of Merit
Malta's answer to the CJEU ruling. Act XXI of 2025 kept the Article 10(9) 'exceptional services' power but stripped out every transactional element. Governed by the Granting of Citizenship by Naturalisation on the Basis of Merit Regulations, Subsidiary Legislation 188.06, as amended by Legal Notice 159 of 2025. There is no set sum: the responsible Minister confirmed 'there will no longer be a set amount of money which applicants will have to pay to acquire citizenship.'
This is not a repackaged golden passport and should not be sold to clients as one. Financial investment alone expressly does not constitute merit; each file goes to an independent Evaluation Board that recommends to a Minister who retains unfettered discretion. For the overwhelming majority of UHNW families the honest answer is that Malta no longer offers a purchasable citizenship at any price.
Qualifying routes
Article 10(9) ground; assessed by an independent Evaluation Board
scientists, researchers, athletes, artists, entrepreneurs, philanthropists, technologists
residual discretionary ground; assessed against Malta's Vision 2050 priorities
The facts
- Total landed cost
- No published fee schedule or contribution. Cost is professional and due-diligence fees only. Do not model this as a priced product.
- Timeline
- 12–24 months — indicative only; discretionary process with no service standard — treat with caution
- Physical presence
- Not published as a fixed figure in the merit regulations; the route is not a substitute for the residence-based naturalisation track
- Family
- assessed case by case; no published dependant schedule
- Permanent residency
- n/a — confers citizenship if granted
- Citizenship
- Discretionary grant; no entitlement at any point
- Language test
- not published for this route
- Dual citizenship
- Permitted
- Requirements
- demonstrable exceptional service, contribution or interest under Article 10(9) of the Maltese Citizenship Actassessment by the independent Evaluation Board, which may interview the candidate and take expert sectoral adviceclean criminal record and full due diligencealignment with Malta's national interest and Vision 2050 development priorities
- No quota, no fixed criteria, no fee schedule, no guaranteed pathway and no appeal — a discretionary ministerial act dressed in regulations. Unsuitable as the anchor of a relocation plan.
- Intermediaries are already repositioning MEIN marketing under the 'merit' label with implied price points. There is no price point. Any adviser quoting one is inventing it.
- The route is deliberately narrow to survive C-181/23 scrutiny; volume approvals would invite a fresh Commission infringement action, so Malta has a structural incentive to keep grants rare.
- Timelines and eligibility detail in this entry come from Maltese law firms rather than a published government service standard.