Malta Nomad Residence Permit: who qualifies and how the income is taxed

Figures are for tax year 2026. Malta taxes by year of assessment: income of calendar 2026 is assessed in year of assessment 2027. This Guide covers the Malta Nomad Residence Permit for a non-EU national who lives in Malta and keeps working remotely for an employer or clients outside Malta, and the tax rules that go with it: the Nomad Residence Permits (Income Tax) Rules, S.L. 123.210 (Legal Notice 277 of 2023, heading date 7 December 2023). The permit itself is an immigration permit administered by the Residency Malta Agency. The tax side is in the S.L. and is set out here. This Guide could not read the Residency Malta pages for the immigration conditions (minimum income, health insurance, accommodation, family members, permit length, renewal and fees), so it gives none of those figures. Ordinary residence, domicile and the remittance basis are in moving-to-malta-tax-residence and mt-non-dom; a comparison with the other residence routes is in mt-residence-programmes-for-wealthy-families. The Global Residence Programme is in mt-global-residence-programme and the Malta Permanent Residence Programme in mt-permanent-residence-programme.

The tax figures

Item	Value	Note (verbatim)
Source	all figures below	https://legislation.mt/eli/sl/123.210/eng/pdf
Rate on the main applicant's chargeable income from authorised work, once the exempt period is over (rule 3(1))	10%	"income tax at the rate of ten percent (10%) on his chargeable income derived from authorised work"
Foreign tax rate on that income at or above which the income need not be reported in Malta (rule 4(3))	10%	"he has paid tax in a country outside Malta at a rate of at least ten percent (10%)"

The two rows carry the same number for two different rules. The first is the Malta rate. The second is the foreign-tax test.

The method, step by step

1. Confirm the person holds a valid nomad residence permit and is the main applicant on it. The rules apply only to an "eligible main applicant", defined as "an individual who is in possession of a valid nomad residence permit" (rule 2, S.L. 123.210). A family member on the permit is outside the rules (rule 3(5)).
2. Test each source of work income against the definition of "authorised work" in rule 2 of S.L. 123.210: an employer that is not resident in Malta AND does not carry on business in Malta through a fixed place of business, or clients that do not reside in Malta AND do not carry on business in Malta through a fixed place of business, with the work done remotely by telecommunications technology approved by Residency Malta Agency.
3. Fix the exempt period: twelve months from the later of the permit issue date and 1 January 2024 (rule 3(3), S.L. 123.210). Ask whether the person filed the written declaration that their residence is not merely casual; if so, there is no exempt period.
4. For authorised-work income after the exempt period, apply the rate in the table above to chargeable income from authorised work, less any double taxation relief under Part X of the Income Tax Act (rule 3(1), S.L. 123.210; Act at Cap. 123). No employer withholding under the Final Settlement System applies to that employment income (rule 3(6)).
5. Check the foreign-tax test in rule 4(3) of S.L. 123.210: with official written proof, accepted by Residency Malta Agency, that foreign tax was paid on the authorised-work income at a rate of at least the rate in the table, that income is not reported in Malta.
6. Tax every other item of the person's Malta-chargeable income under the ordinary Income Tax Act (rule 3(4), S.L. 123.210). Use malta-income-tax for the rates and mt-non-dom for the remittance basis.
7. Register the person for income tax and decide whether a return is due under rule 4(1) and 4(2) of S.L. 123.210.

Who the permit and the tax rules cover

The permit. A "nomad residence permit" is a residence permit issued under the Immigration Act (Cap. 217) "that grants a third country national a licence to perform work in Malta consisting exclusively of authorised work" (rule 2, S.L. 123.210). The Residency Malta Agency administers applications for temporary residency rights to third country nationals, "including the Nomad Residence Permit for persons wanting to work from Malta for a temporary period of time" (article 3, S.L. 595.40).

Non-EU only. In the Immigration Regulations, "third country national" means "a person who is not a citizen of the Union" (S.L. 217.04, regulation 2). S.L. 123.210 uses the term without defining it. The permit is for third country nationals, so an EU citizen is outside these rules. That definition is written for the Immigration Regulations ("In these regulations"); S.L. 123.210 does not refer to it. Whether a national of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland can hold the permit is a permit question: refer it to the Agency.

Authorised work: two kinds, and both conditions in each. Rule 2 of S.L. 123.210 defines "authorised work" as:

• employment: services under "a contract of employment with an employer who is not resident in Malta and who does not carry on business in Malta through a fixed place of business"; OR
• self-employment: services "in a self- employed capacity for clients who do not reside in Malta and who do not carry on business in Malta through a fixed place of business";
• and in either case the services are "provided remotely by means of telecommunications technology as may be approved by Residency Malta Agency".

The rules print no separate category for a person who owns the foreign company that pays them. Such a person fits the employment limb only if there is a contract of employment and the company meets both parts of the employer test. Whether Residency Malta issues the permit to a company owner without one is a permit question; refer it to the Agency.

Where the company is managed from Malta. Under the Income Tax Act, "resident in Malta", for a body of persons, "means any body of persons the control and management of whose business are exercised in Malta" (article 2, Cap. 123). If the control and management of the paying company's business are exercised in Malta, the company is resident in Malta, and work for it is not authorised work. The same definition goes on: "provided that a company incorporated in Malta on or after 1st July 1994 shall be resident in Malta and any other company incorporated in Malta shall be resident in Malta from 1st January 1995 where the management and control of the business of the company is exercised outside Malta". So a company incorporated in Malta is resident in Malta even when it is managed from abroad, and work for it is not authorised work. Rule 7 does not change this: it says only that the main applicant's presence does not of itself make the employer derive income arising in Malta. Company residence is in mt-company-residence-and-substance.

Not authorised work. Work for an employer that is resident in Malta, or that carries on business in Malta through a fixed place of business, is not authorised work. Neither is self-employed work for a client who resides in Malta or carries on business in Malta through a fixed place of business. The permit licenses work in Malta "consisting exclusively of authorised work" (rule 2), so such work is outside what the permit allows. The nomad rate does not reach it: income other than authorised work "shall be governed by the applicable provisions of the Act" (rule 3(4), S.L. 123.210).

The foreign employer and clients. The presence in Malta of the main applicant doing authorised work "shall not of itself" result in the employer, or the self-employed person's clients, being deemed to derive income arising in Malta (rule 7, S.L. 123.210). The words "of itself" matter: other facts can still give the employer or a client Malta income.

How the income is taxed

The exempt period (rule 3(3)). The main applicant "shall not be liable to tax on income derived from" "authorised work before the end of twelve (12) months from" (a) the date the permit is issued or (b) 1 January 2024, "whichever is the later" (S.L. 123.210). It covers only income from authorised work, only the main applicant, and only income derived before the end of that twelve-month period. The rules do not say how pay earned inside the period but received after it, such as a bonus, is treated. For a permit issued before 1 January 2024 the period ran from 1 January 2024. It is lost in full, not in part, if the person "files with Residency Malta Agency a written declaration that his residence in Malta, even during the said period of twelve (12) months, is not merely of a casual nature".

The rate after the exempt period (rule 3(1)). From the end of the exempt period, the main applicant is chargeable to "income tax at the rate of ten percent (10%) on his chargeable income derived from authorised work, subject to any relief of double taxation as provided in Part X of the Act" (S.L. 123.210). It is a single rate on chargeable income from authorised work; the rules print no bands and no tax-free amount. It applies to the main applicant only while they hold a valid permit (rule 2).

Stacking (rule 3(2)). The authorised-work income for a year of assessment "shall be deemed to constitute the first part of the person's total chargeable income for that year of assessment". Any other income taxed at the ordinary rates under rule 3(4) therefore sits on top of it.

No FSS withholding (rule 3(6)). Income from authorised work under a contract of employment shall not "be subject to the provisions of the Final Settlement System (FSS) Rules" (S.L. 372.14). The foreign employer does not withhold Malta tax on it under those rules; the person accounts for the tax through their own registration and return under rule 4.

The foreign-tax test (rule 4(3)). For any year, or part of a year, in which the main applicant is subject to tax on authorised-work income, if they provide "official written documentation proving to the satisfaction of Residency Malta Agency acting on behalf of the Commissioner" that they paid tax outside Malta on that income at a rate of at least the rate in the second table row, they "shall not be required to report such income for Maltese income tax purposes", because the Malta tax on it "shall be deemed to have been settled by the application of the relief of double taxation provisions of the Act" (S.L. 123.210). The test is "at least": a foreign rate equal to the threshold passes. It is a cliff: below the threshold, or without the documentation, the income is reported and taxed under rule 3(1), with whatever double taxation relief Part X of the Act gives. The Agency forwards the proof to the Commissioner (rule 4(4)).

Other income of the main applicant (rule 3(4)). Income "other than income derived from authorised work, that is chargeable to tax in Malta in accordance with the Act, shall be governed by the applicable provisions of the Act" (S.L. 123.210). That includes Malta-source income such as Malta rent or Malta investment income, and foreign income other than authorised-work income where the Act charges it. Whether foreign income is charged depends on residence and domicile under the Act: see mt-non-dom.

Family members (rule 3(5)). Malta-chargeable income of a family member included in the permit "shall not be regulated by these rules, but shall continue to be governed exclusively by the provisions of the Act" (S.L. 123.210). A spouse who is included in the permit as a family member gets no exempt period and no flat rate on their own income under these rules. A spouse who holds their own nomad residence permit is an eligible main applicant in their own right (rule 2).

Losing and regaining the permit (rule 3(7)). The rules cover only a person who holds a valid permit (rule 2). If the main applicant stops holding the permit and is granted a new one within two (2) years of ceasing to hold the original, rule 3 applies again "except for those of sub-rule (3)", so there is no second exempt period. If the new permit comes after more than two (2) years, rule 3 applies again "including those of sub-rule (3)", with a fresh exempt period (S.L. 123.210). For a period in which the person holds no valid permit, these rules print no rate; their Malta tax for that period follows the Income Tax Act (Cap. 123) and the residence tests in moving-to-malta-tax-residence.

The rules do not mention renewal. A new permit granted within two (2) years of ceasing to hold the old one gives no new exempt period (rule 3(7)(a)). Whether a renewed permit is a new permit for rule 3(3), and so a new issue date, is not settled by the rules: refer it.

Anti-abuse (rule 6). Where a main applicant can obtain "an undue advantage" that reduces tax in a way "not reconcilable with the objective and purpose of these rules", the Commissioner determines the liability so as to nullify the advantage, without prejudice to article 51 of the Act (S.L. 123.210).

Registration and returns

• Registration (rule 4(1) and 4(2)(a)). A main applicant with income chargeable to tax in Malta must register for income tax and file a return. Registration is required "even in respect of the activities carried out before the" "end of the period of twelve (12) months" (S.L. 123.210).
• Reporting inside the exempt period (rule 4(2)(b)). The main applicant is not required to report authorised-work income earned up to the end of the twelve-month period, unless they filed the written declaration under rule 3(3).
• No return (rule 4(2)(c)). Unless the Commissioner directs otherwise, no return is required for a basis year if BOTH: the person has no chargeable income other than authorised-work income and income that does not need to be reported in a return, AND the basis year does not extend beyond the end of the twelve-month period. A basis year that runs past the end of the exempt period is outside rule 4(2)(c), so the rule 4(1) duty to file a return applies to a main applicant with income chargeable to tax in Malta.
• Foreign-tax test (rule 4(3)). Authorised-work income that passes the test above is not reported.
• The rules print no filing date. Return dates follow the Income Tax Act and the Income Tax Management Act: see malta-income-tax.

The permit conditions (immigration side)

The Residency Malta Agency runs the permit (S.L. 595.40, article 3; Residency Malta). S.L. 123.210 sets none of the permit conditions, and this Guide states none of them: minimum gross income, the categories of applicant, health insurance, accommodation, family members, the permit length, renewal and the fees. The Residency Malta home page names the Nomad Residence Permit but prints no condition (Residency Malta). An assistant using this Guide must not state an income threshold, fee or permit length from it.

Worked example (hypothetical)

All amounts are hypothetical. Facts: a non-EU national is employed under a contract of employment by a company resident outside Malta that has no fixed place of business in Malta. The permit is issued on 1 April 2025. The person starts the job on 1 April 2025 and from then to 31 December 2026 works only remotely from Malta. They have no other income in 2025 or 2026, file no declaration under rule 3(3), and pay no foreign tax on the salary. Assume the whole salary is chargeable income from authorised work, with no deductions.

Item	Value	Note (verbatim)
Source	all figures below	https://legislation.mt/eli/sl/123.210/eng/pdf
Monthly salary (hypothetical)	EUR 5,000	assumption, not from the rules
Salary April to December 2025, inside the exempt period: no Malta tax (rule 3(3))	EUR 45,000	"authorised work before the end of twelve (12) months from"
Salary January to March 2026, still inside the exempt period: no Malta tax (rule 3(3))	EUR 15,000	"the date on which the nomad residence permit is issued"
Salary April to December 2026, after the exempt period (rule 3(1))	EUR 45,000	"chargeable income derived from authorised work"
Tax on the April to December 2026 salary at the rate in the first table (rule 3(1))	EUR 4,500	"at the rate of ten percent (10%)"

How it runs:

• Exempt period. Twelve months from 1 April 2025, the later of the issue date and 1 January 2024. It ends on 31 March 2026 (rule 3(3), S.L. 123.210).
• Calendar 2025 (year of assessment 2026). The whole basis year falls inside the exempt period. The person registers for income tax (rule 4(2)(a)), but is not required to report the salary (rule 4(2)(b)), and no return is required unless the Commissioner directs one, because there is no other income and the basis year ends before the exempt period does (rule 4(2)(c)).
• Calendar 2026 (year of assessment 2027). The basis year runs past 31 March 2026, so rule 4(2)(c) no longer removes the return. The January to March salary is still exempt and need not be reported (rule 4(2)(b)). The April to December salary is taxed at the rate in the first table: the tax in the example table. It is the first part of chargeable income (rule 3(2)); there is no other income to stack on it. No FSS withholding applies (rule 3(6)).
• Variation: foreign tax. If the person instead pays tax on the 2026 salary abroad at a rate of at least the rate in the second row of the first table, and Residency Malta accepts the official proof, the April to December salary is not reported in Malta (rule 4(3), S.L. 123.210).
• Variation: Malta rent. If the person also lets a flat they own in Malta, that rent is taxed under the Income Tax Act, not at the nomad rate (rule 3(4)); see malta-income-tax and mt-rental-income.

Ask the client first

• Who is the employer or who are the clients, where are they resident, and do any of them have an office or other fixed place of business in Malta? This decides whether the work is authorised work at all.
• On what date was the permit issued, and are you the main applicant or a family member on it? This sets the exempt period, or takes you out of the rules.
• Did you file a written declaration with Residency Malta that your residence is not merely casual? If yes, there is no exempt period.
• Do you pay tax on this income in another country, at what rate, and can you get official written proof? A rate of at least the threshold in the table, with proof, removes the Malta reporting duty.
• Do you have any other income: Malta rent, Malta investments, other foreign income, or any work for someone in Malta? That income follows the ordinary Act.
• Have you ever held a nomad residence permit before, and when did it end? A new permit within two years gives no new exempt period.

When to refuse or refer

• Refuse to state the permit's minimum income, fees, permit length, renewal terms, health-insurance or accommodation conditions from this Guide: no page readable for it prints them. Refer to the Residency Malta Agency.
• Work for a Malta employer or a Malta client while on the permit: refer. It is outside authorised work and outside what the permit licenses (rule 2, S.L. 123.210).
• A company owner paid by their own foreign company without a contract of employment, or whose company is managed and controlled from Malta: refer the permit question to the Agency and the tax question to an accountant.
• Whether the person is resident, ordinarily resident or domiciled in Malta, and how foreign income other than authorised work is taxed: use moving-to-malta-tax-residence and mt-non-dom, and refer contested cases.
• Double tax treaties, the foreign country's own tax on the salary, and the rule 4(3) documentation: refer to an adviser with the treaty and the foreign assessment in hand.
• Social security in Malta or the home country: not covered by S.L. 123.210; refer.
• Anything that looks like using the permit to shift Malta income into the flat rate: rule 6 lets the Commissioner nullify the advantage; refer.

Sources

• Nomad Residence Permits (Income Tax) Rules, S.L. 123.210: https://legislation.mt/eli/sl/123.210/eng/pdf
• Income Tax Act, Cap. 123 (consolidated): https://legislation.mt/eli/cap/123/eng/pdf
• Residency Malta Agency (Establishment) Order, S.L. 595.40: https://legislation.mt/eli/sl/595.40/eng/pdf
• Immigration Regulations, S.L. 217.04: https://legislation.mt/eli/sl/217.4/eng/pdf
• Residency Malta Agency home page: https://residencymalta.gov.mt/

This Guide is general information for tax year 2026, not advice on a particular person's affairs. Confirm current figures on the official sources above before acting.