Malta MPRP Requirements 2026: The Full Eligibility Checklist

The Malta golden visa requirements for 2026 are: you must be a non-EU or non-EEA national with a clean criminal record, hold a qualifying property (purchase from EUR 375,000 or rent from EUR 14,000 per year), pay a EUR 37,000 government contribution and a EUR 60,000 administration fee, make a EUR 2,000 NGO donation, meet a EUR 500,000 asset threshold, and pass a multi-tier due diligence check. This checklist sets out every requirement in full.

On this page

• Who is eligible for the Malta MPRP?
• Financial requirements
• The multi-tier due diligence process
• Family eligibility
• Document checklist
• The five-year maintenance requirement
• What changed under Legal Notice 146 of 2025
• Frequently asked questions

This guide is general information about the Malta Permanent Residence Programme and is not legal, tax or immigration advice. Programme terms and figures can change. Obtain independent professional advice before making any application or investment decision.

The Malta Permanent Residence Programme (MPRP) is administered by the Residency Malta Agency (residencymalta.gov.mt). Because every threshold below is a qualifying condition, accuracy matters more here than anywhere else in the process. A file that meets every requirement cleanly moves through approval smoothly. A file that misjudges one of them stalls. For how these requirements fit the wider programme, see our Malta Permanent Residence Programme guide.

Who is eligible for the Malta MPRP?

Nationality and clean-record requirement

The MPRP is open to non-EU and non-EEA nationals who are at least 18 years old and hold a clean criminal record. The available programme sources record no formal nationality exclusions, but this should be treated as an area to confirm with your accredited agent rather than assumed, because sanctions and policy can affect specific profiles. Every applicant must be able to demonstrate the required assets and a lawful source of funds. The clean-record and source-of-funds elements are not box-ticking: they are the core of the multi-tier due diligence that protects the programme’s reputation.

The accredited-agent requirement

You cannot file an MPRP application yourself. Applications must be submitted through a licensed, accredited agent, and this is a deliberate quality-control mechanism. The accredited agent is accountable to the Agency for the accuracy and completeness of your file and for the due diligence that underpins it. In practice this means the choice of agent is a genuine requirement of the programme, not an optional convenience: it determines the quality of your source-of-funds preparation and, ultimately, the smoothness of your approval.

Financial requirements

The MPRP combines a property component with three fixed costs. You choose how to satisfy the property component, and the fixed costs stay the same either way.

Qualifying property: purchase or rental

You satisfy the property requirement by either purchasing a home worth at least EUR 375,000 (EUR 300,000 in the South of Malta or on Gozo) or renting a qualifying property from at least EUR 14,000 per year. Both routes fully qualify. Purchase gives the family a tangible EU asset; rental removes the large capital outlay. Neither is “better” as a requirement, and you do not need to own property to hold the status.

Government contribution and administration fee

Every applicant pays a EUR 37,000 government contribution and a EUR 60,000 administration fee for the main applicant. The administration fee is staged: EUR 15,000 falls due at submission, and the remaining EUR 45,000 falls due on the Letter of Approval in Principle. The government contribution falls due at the approval-in-principle stage alongside the administration fee balance. Budgeting for this staging matters, because the larger payments arrive only once your file has cleared due diligence.

The asset threshold

Separately from the investment, you must prove a minimum level of wealth. This is satisfied by showing one of the following: total assets of at least EUR 500,000, of which at least EUR 150,000 is liquid financial assets, or total assets of at least EUR 650,000, of which at least EUR 75,000 is liquid. This is a capacity test rather than a payment, confirming that the applicant has the financial standing the programme is designed for. For the full route detail, see Malta residency by investment routes and structure.

The multi-tier due diligence process

Due diligence is the requirement that decides most applications. The Residency Malta Agency runs a multi-tier background check covering identity verification, criminal-record and security screening, source-of-wealth and source-of-funds analysis, and sanctions and reputational review. A well-prepared file anticipates every one of these tiers with documentary evidence, rather than responding to queries after the fact.

The single most common reason an otherwise strong applicant is delayed is an incomplete or inconsistent source-of-funds picture. Your accredited agent’s job is to build a file that tells one clean, fully evidenced story about where your wealth came from. For the broader treatment of KYC and background checks across our programmes, see our due diligence and KYC guide.

Family eligibility (who you can include)

Family reach is the MPRP’s standout feature. A single application can include up to four generations.

Spouse, children, parents and grandparents

One MPRP application can cover the main applicant, their spouse or civil partner, dependent children, dependent parents and dependent grandparents. Dependent children can be included beyond the age of 18 where they remain unmarried and financially dependent, though the precise dependency criteria should be confirmed for your family. No competing European programme matches this four-generation reach. Under the current fee position, a spouse and minor children carry no additional government contribution or administration fee; additional adult dependants, including parents and grandparents, are added at EUR 7,500 each. For the detail on older relatives, see our guide to Malta residency for parents and grandparents.

Document checklist

While your accredited agent will confirm the exact list for your circumstances, an MPRP file typically requires:

• Valid passports for every applicant and dependant.
• Birth and marriage certificates establishing family relationships.
• A clean police conduct or criminal-record certificate for each adult applicant.
• Comprehensive source-of-wealth and source-of-funds evidence (bank statements, employment or business income, sale of assets, inheritance, investment records).
• Proof of the qualifying property (a purchase agreement or a registered lease).
• Evidence of the required assets, including the liquid-asset portion.
• Proof of health insurance covering Malta.
• Proof of the NGO donation and payment of the applicable fees.

Every document must be current, consistent with the rest of the file and, where required, apostilled or officially translated. Consistency across documents is itself a requirement in practice, because the due diligence process cross-checks them.

The five-year maintenance requirement

The MPRP is not a one-off transaction. The qualifying property and the required assets must be maintained for five years. After that period, the property may be sold and the assets reallocated, provided a registered Maltese address is retained (a property of any value may be rented for this purpose). The Agency also conducts annual compliance checks, so the requirement is ongoing, not just an entry condition. Falling below the asset threshold or losing the Maltese address during the maintenance period can put the status at risk.

What changed under Legal Notice 146 of 2025

The MPRP was reformed by Legal Notice 146 of 2025. The reform made the programme more affordable for families and more flexible operationally. The headline change relevant to most applicants is that a spouse and minor children no longer attract additional government contributions or administration fees. Independent analysis of the reform is available from Andersen Malta (mt.andersen.com) and PwC Malta (pwc.com/mt). All figures in this checklist reflect the post-reform position and should be confirmed against Residency Malta at the point of application.

Frequently asked questions

What are the requirements for the Malta MPRP?
A qualifying property (purchase from EUR 375,000 or rent from EUR 14,000 per year), a EUR 37,000 government contribution, a EUR 60,000 administration fee, a EUR 2,000 NGO donation, a EUR 500,000 asset threshold, and a clean multi-tier due diligence check. You must be a non-EU or non-EEA national aged 18 or over.

What is the asset requirement for Malta residency?
A minimum of EUR 500,000 in total assets including EUR 150,000 liquid, or EUR 650,000 including EUR 75,000 liquid.

Do I need to buy property in Malta?
No. You can rent a qualifying property from EUR 14,000 per year instead of purchasing. Both routes satisfy the requirement.

Who can I include in my application?
Your spouse or civil partner, dependent children, dependent parents and dependent grandparents, up to four generations. A spouse and minor children carry no additional contribution or fee; additional adult dependants are EUR 7,500 each.

How long must I keep the investment?
The qualifying property and the required assets must be maintained for five years, after which the property may be sold if a registered Maltese address is retained.

The bottom line

The Malta MPRP requirements are demanding but predictable: they reward a clean, complete, well-evidenced file and penalise a rushed one. Every threshold on this page is a qualifying condition, and the difference between a smooth approval and a stalled one is almost always the quality of the source-of-funds preparation. Before committing to any route, the sensible step is a confidential assessment of your family and your file against these requirements. The Aegir Global team advises HNW families and their professional advisors on exactly this, and advisory fees are quoted per engagement. For the next step, see the full Malta MPRP cost breakdown.