Malta Golden Visa for Israeli Citizens: The 2026 Guide
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Malta Golden Visa for Israeli Citizens: The 2026 Guide
Israeli citizens are eligible for Malta permanent residency under the Malta Permanent Residence Programme (MPRP). Israelis already visit the Schengen Area visa-free for short stays, so what Malta adds is the right to live in Malta with your family. No Israeli foreign exchange controls stand in the way of the investment. The status is residence, not a passport.
On this page
- Can Israeli citizens get the Malta golden visa?
- What Malta residency adds to visa-free travel
- What Israeli investors need to invest
- The Israeli side: funds, reporting and passports
- The application steps and payment milestones
- Malta vs other programmes popular with Israeli investors
- Frequently asked questions
This guide is general information about the Malta Permanent Residence Programme and is not legal, tax or immigration advice. It gives no Israeli tax advice. Programme terms, figures and eligibility lists can change. Obtain independent professional advice, including from a qualified Israeli tax adviser, before making any application or investment decision.
Can Israeli citizens get the Malta golden visa?
Yes. Malta’s Permanent Residence Programme is open to third-country nationals, and Israel is not on Residency Malta’s ineligible list. Applicants meet a capital test, buy or lease a qualifying property, pay the fixed contributions and pass due diligence. The status is permanent residence in Malta, not Maltese citizenship or a passport.
The programme rests on Subsidiary Legislation 217.26, most recently amended by Legal Notice 146 of 2025. It excludes EU, EEA and Swiss nationals and anyone named in international sanctions the Residency Malta Agency follows. As of September 2026, Israel is not on the ineligible-country list in the Agency’s MPRP FAQ (version 2.6.5). The Agency says its list may be revised from time to time, so check the current version when you apply.
Who can be included
One application can cover four generations:
- your spouse, minor children and adult children certified as disabled, at no dependant fee;
- unmarried adult children aged 18 to 28 (under 29 when you apply) who are principally dependent on you, at EUR 7,500 each;
- parents and grandparents of you or your spouse who are not in full-time employment and are principally dependent on you, at EUR 7,500 each.
What Malta residency adds when you already travel visa-free
An Israeli passport already opens short stays in the Schengen Area without a visa. What Malta adds is residence: a legal right to live in Malta, held by you and by the family members on your application. Families look at that for ordinary reasons: children’s schooling and university plans, a business with a European footprint, or a second home they actually intend to live in.
Because Malta residence can cover dependent parents and unmarried adult children under 29, it suits families who want one status for the whole household rather than separate arrangements for each person.
Residence and tax are separate questions. This guide states no Malta tax position; for background, see our guide to how Malta taxes residents.
What Israeli investors need to invest
Property or lease, and the capital test
You choose one property route:
- Buy a property for at least EUR 375,000, or
- Lease one for at least EUR 14,000 a year.
Both thresholds apply anywhere in Malta or Gozo. The regional discount that older guides quote was removed by Legal Notice 310 of 2024 with effect from 1 January 2025. You keep the qualifying property, owned or leased, for at least five years from the grant of residence, and after that you must still hold a residential property in Malta or Gozo, owned or leased.
Separately, you must show assets of at least EUR 500,000, including EUR 150,000 in financial assets, or at least EUR 650,000, including EUR 75,000 in financial assets. This is a wealth test, not a payment, but you must keep that level of capital for five years from the grant of residence.
Public costs in shekels
| Item | EUR (legal amount) | ILS | Paid to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Government contribution (flat, owned or leased) | 37,000 | 128,200 | Government of Malta |
| Administrative fee, main applicant | 60,000 (15,000 + 45,000) | 207,900 | Residency Malta Agency |
| Dependant fee, spouse, minor child or certified-disabled adult child | 0 | 0 | |
| Dependant fee, adult child 18 to 28, or dependent parent or grandparent | 7,500 each | 26,000 each | Residency Malta Agency |
| NGO donation | 2,000 | 6,900 | A Maltese NGO |
| Property purchase (minimum) | 375,000 | 1,299,300 | Seller (asset you keep) |
| or property lease (minimum) | 14,000 a year | 48,500 a year | Landlord |
Converted at EUR 1 = ILS 3.4649, the European Central Bank euro reference rate of 24 September 2026, rounded to the nearest 100. Figures in EUR are the legal amounts; ILS is illustrative and moves with the exchange rate.
Not included, because they vary by case and are not fixed in the programme rules: property purchase taxes, notary and legal costs, insurance, due diligence costs and advisory fees, which are quoted per engagement. We do not estimate them. Also outside the table: Residency Malta’s current programme brochure lists a residence card fee of EUR 500 per person, covering five years.
Worked example: an Israeli family of four
Take a main applicant, a spouse and two children under 18.
| EUR | ILS | |
|---|---|---|
| Government contribution | 37,000 | 128,200 |
| Administrative fee | 60,000 | 207,900 |
| Dependant fees (spouse and minors exempt) | 0 | 0 |
| NGO donation | 2,000 | 6,900 |
| Fixed charges | 99,000 | 343,000 |
| Purchase route: fixed charges + EUR 375,000 property | 474,000 | 1,642,400 |
| Lease route: fixed charges + EUR 14,000 a year for the 5-year minimum | 169,000 | 585,600 |
On the purchase route, EUR 375,000 of the total is a property the family owns. The fixed charges never become an asset.
If the family also includes an unmarried adult child aged 18 to 28 who is principally dependent on you, add EUR 7,500 (about ILS 26,000).
The Israeli side: moving funds, reporting and passports
No foreign exchange controls, but reporting remains
Israel has had no foreign exchange controls since the early 2000s. The Bank of Israel puts it plainly: “Today, no control restrictions exist.” Its own timeline records the lifting of outflow restrictions in 1997 to 1998 and the abolition of most foreign exchange supervision procedures in 2003.
Liberalisation moved the system from supervision to reporting. Banks report activity to the Bank of Israel, and individuals whose activity exceeds a set threshold report to it directly. We do not quote the threshold, because we could not confirm the current figure on an official page. Ask your bank. Any duty to report foreign assets for Israeli tax purposes is a question for your Israeli tax adviser.
Israeli tax residency
How a Malta residence status interacts with your Israeli tax residency is a question to take to a qualified Israeli tax adviser before you apply.
If you hold a second citizenship: the passport rule until 31 December 2026
This point matters only to readers who already hold another citizenship, since Malta residence gives no Maltese passport. Under the Nationality Law 5712-1952 (section 14, original text), an Israeli who is also a foreign national is treated as an Israeli national under Israeli law. According to an Israeli Foreign Ministry notice citing the Population and Immigration Authority (last updated 24 August 2026), Israeli citizens must enter and exit Israel on a valid Israeli passport. A temporary exception runs until 31 December 2026: a valid foreign passport may be used, provided the Israeli passport, even if expired, is carried. Check the current notice before you travel.
The application steps and payment milestones
The programme rules fix the payment timetable:
- Submission to the Residency Malta Agency through a licensed agent, with the evidence for the capital test. EUR 15,000 of the administrative fee is due within one month.
- Due diligence on the applicant and every dependant, including against the sanctions lists the Agency follows.
- Letter of Approval in Principle. The remaining EUR 45,000 of the administrative fee is due within two months of this letter.
- Government contribution of EUR 37,000, due within eight months of the Letter of Approval in Principle.
- Property, donation and insurance. Within the same eight months you present title to the qualifying property (purchase or lease), make the EUR 2,000 NGO donation and show health insurance. The Agency may extend these time limits where good cause is shown. Confirm the deadlines for your case against the Agency’s current guidance.
The programme rules fix no total processing time, so we do not quote one.
Malta vs other programmes popular with Israeli investors
Set beside three other EU residence programmes, Malta’s structure differs more than its price does:
- Malta is completed through a property purchase or lease, grants permanent residence, and covers up to four generations.
- Hungary has had no property route since 30 December 2024. Its guest investor route is a EUR 250,000 subscription to a registered real estate fund, or a EUR 1,000,000 donation. As visa-exempt nationals, Israelis can enter Hungary and file the application there.
- Greece runs a property-based investor permit with thresholds of EUR 250,000, EUR 400,000 and EUR 800,000, depending on the property’s location and type.
- Portugal runs a fund-based route at EUR 500,000.
For the closest head-to-head, see Hungary vs Malta golden visa.
Frequently asked questions
Can Israeli citizens get Malta permanent residency?
Yes. The MPRP is open to third-country nationals, and as of September 2026 Israel is not on Residency Malta’s published ineligible list. Applicants must meet the capital test, buy or lease a qualifying property, pay the fixed charges and pass due diligence.
Do Israelis need Malta residency to travel to Europe?
No. Israeli citizens can already visit the Schengen Area without a visa for short stays. Malta residency is about something else: the legal right to live in Malta, for you and the family members on your application.
How much does Malta PR cost an Israeli family of four?
Fixed charges are EUR 99,000 (about ILS 343,000 at the ECB rate of 24 September 2026), with no fees for the spouse and minor children. Add a EUR 375,000 purchase, for EUR 474,000 in total, or a EUR 14,000 a year lease, for EUR 169,000 over five years.
Are there Israeli restrictions on moving money abroad to invest?
Israel has had no foreign exchange controls since the early 2000s. Reporting duties can still apply, through your bank and, above a threshold, directly to the Bank of Israel. Check with your bank and your Israeli tax adviser.
Does Malta residency give me a Maltese passport?
No. The MPRP grants permanent residence only. Malta’s citizenship by investment route closed following the EU Court of Justice judgment in case C-181/23 of 29 April 2025.
Can I enter Israel on a foreign passport?
Israeli citizens must use an Israeli passport. According to the Israeli Foreign Ministry, a temporary exception to 31 December 2026 allows a valid foreign passport if the Israeli passport is carried. This matters only if you already hold another citizenship.
The bottom line
For Israeli citizens, the Malta golden visa is permanent residence under the MPRP: EUR 99,000 in fixed charges for a family of four, plus a EUR 375,000 property or a EUR 14,000 a year lease, with room for four generations on one application. Israelis do not need it to travel. They choose it for the right to live in Malta as a family, and no Israeli foreign exchange controls stand in the way. Tax residency and reporting belong with an Israeli tax adviser. For the full programme context, see the pillar guide to the Malta Permanent Residency Programme, and for every line of the budget, our guide to Malta permanent residency cost. For a family-specific assessment, the Aegir Global team advises Israeli families and their advisers, and advisory fees are quoted per engagement.
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