Malta residence card - Spouse of EU Citizen

No, it won't be a problem.

Hi Fionn,

Many Thanks for your reply , If I manage to find a job in Malta Can I apply for residence Immediately for my wife and I or would we need to live 3 months on the island prior to applying?

Whereas EU law stipulates that ‘The deadline for registration may not be less than three months from the date of arrival’, the practice in Malta appears to be that you may notify the Maltese authorities that you are exercising your right of residence - and registering for an ‘e-Residence Card’ - WITHIN three months of arrival.

In addition, please see the following excerpts from recent reportage:

‘……Identity Malta representative Ryan Spagnol……He said third country nationals married to EU citizens apply as family members of EU nationals. "It's a card and they have rights of free movement, the same rights as an EU citizen……Asked about the need for an ID card and employment, he said that "the card is a formality, so it cant inhibit a person. Employment is not dependent on the card, the fact that a person is married to an EU national gives them the rights."………......Marcel Bonnici from Jobs Plus…..He stressed that a non-EU national married to an EU national follow the same employment procedure as an EU national, and a Maltese person.  The procedure is that when employed by a company, the employer will open an engagement form with Jobs Plus. He said that one does not necessarily need an ID card, and passports are also accepted. As for National Insurance, he said that one can apply for a national insurance number through the engagement form.……’

Hi Fionn,

Thanks again for your reply , Much appreciated

So I can apply for my residency card along with my wife even though I am Unemployed in Malta is this correct? or would I need to have a job then apply ?
The issue is My wife's visa is only valid for 6 weeks and I need to apply for residency prior to her visa expiry.

When you apply for your residence card you will have to show that you are self sufficient with regards to an income if you are not employed.

Hi GozoMo

Many thanks for your reply , Yes I might just register via the self Sufficient route , Can you let me know if I can apply immediately for residence card or do I have to live 3 months on the island then apply??

Ramsay88 wrote:

Hi GozoMo

Many thanks for your reply , Yes I might just register via the self Sufficient route , Can you let me know if I can apply immediately for residence card or do I have to live 3 months on the island then apply??

You can do it as soon as you like!
If you are lucky you might get your cards through in as little as 4 weeks but this year coincides with the introduction of the card 5 years ago, so a lot of people may be renewing and it might take longer.

Ray

Hi Ray,

Thanks for your reply , Can I apply for myself (EU citizen) and my wife(non EU) at the same time?

Many Thanks

Not 100% sure but I think you can, best check with Citizenship office:- https://identitymalta.com/citizenships-expatriates/

I would think you can submit paperwork using 'form J' for yourself and 'form F' for your spouse at the same time as they are both submitted by you.

Ray

Ramsay88 wrote:

Hi Fionn,

Thanks again for your reply , Much appreciated

So I can apply for my residency card along with my wife even though I am Unemployed in Malta is this correct? or would I need to have a job then apply ?
The issue is My wife's visa is only valid for 6 weeks and I need to apply for residency prior to her visa expiry.

Re: Jobseekers, please see excerpt: ‘………There is an obligation to register one’s presence with the Department for Citizenship and Expatriate Affairs if one intends to reside in Malta for more than 3 months in exercise of a Treaty Right (article 3(1) of the Free Movement of European Union Nationals and their Family Members Order (LN 191 of 2007) ) OR in case of job seekers after 6 months of residence…….’

Source: https://www.gov.mt/en/Life%20Events/res … ities.aspx

Hi Ramsay
My partner , French citizen and I (NZ citizen) are planning on taking the same route as you sometime in September 2018.
I would really appreciate it if you could please share your experience. Each of the questions you asked in this forum and the answers have been extremely relevant and useful.

I wish you all the best in your endeavor in this.

Best wishes
Enid

Hi Enid,

This is my experience so far in Malta,

I came to Malta in mid April with my wife (non Eu) , I managed to get a job within 2 weeks , I then rented an apartment and included my wife on the lease , My employer provided me with a letter directed to the Social Security and IRD , ( I took my passport and the employment letter to the Social Security office and obtained a social security number within 10 mins , then you go to IDP with the same documents plus your SS number and apply for a tax number this issued on the spot) I then provided the SS number and Tax registration number to my employer they registered me with Jobplus and provided me with an acknowledgement  document which is need for applying for Maltese residency.

We then went to the residency building in Valletta (Evans Building)  We included the following supporting documents :
Copy of my British passport
Wife's Passport
Rental agreement contract
Employment confirmation from JobPlus
Marriage Certificate
along with all the relevant  forms which can be downloaded from Identity Malta website.

We were then told our ID cards will be issued in 5 to 6 weeks.

All the Best
Ramsay

Contrary to what is frequently suggested, there is NO requirement for a lease agreement / rental contract in respect of non-Maltese EU / EEA / Swiss citizens OR their non-EU family members applying for an ‘e-Residence Card’ / 'e-Residence Documentation' - according to law.

Further to a formal complaint concerning the alleged misconduct of the Maltese authorities in this regard, the European Commission reported as follows on 3rd June, 2016:

Excerpts: ‘……..According to Article 8 of Directive 2004/38/EC, EU citizens who reside in another Member State for a period of longer than three months may be obliged to register with the competent authorities.

The mentioned article of the Directive establishes an exhaustive list of documents which can be requested by the national authorities to that end.

A lease agreement and a copy of the identity card of the landlord are not included in this list.

Consequently, such a requirement would be contrary to EU law.

Article 8 of Directive 2004/3 8/EC has been correctly transposed into Maltese law by Free Movement of European Union nationals and their Family Members Order 2007 (LN 191/07)……….

……….Furthermore, according to the information available on the website of the Maltese Department of Citizenship and Expatriate Affairs, the submission of such documents is not required………’

Article 8 of Directive 2004/38/EC - Administrative formalities for Union citizens -

Please see page 19:

http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/Lex … 123:en:PDF

Yet again you are on here going on about EU laws when everyone knows they will be ignored.

People should realise that EU law is only national law when it's adopted by that countries legislation.  Some EU countries seem to conveniently forget bits of EU law they don't like very much.

Hi Ramsay

Thank you for your prompt reply. That was very useful. Philippe and I are taking the self sufficiency option in applying for the resident card.

I’ll contact Fionn for specific advice relating to our situation.

All the best of luck for you and your wife.

Best regards
Enid

GozoMo wrote:

Yet again you are on here going on about EU laws when everyone knows they will be ignored.

Incorrect. Those citizens who enforce EU laws benefit from them.

Fionn wrote:

Contrary to what is frequently suggested, there is NO requirement for a lease agreement / rental contract in respect of non-Maltese EU / EEA / Swiss citizens OR their non-EU family members applying for an ‘e-Residence Card’ / 'e-Residence Documentation' - according to law.

Further to a formal complaint concerning the alleged misconduct of the Maltese authorities in this regard, the European Commission reported as follows on 3rd June, 2016:

Excerpts: ‘……..According to Article 8 of Directive 2004/38/EC, EU citizens who reside in another Member State for a period of longer than three months may be obliged to register with the competent authorities.

The mentioned article of the Directive establishes an exhaustive list of documents which can be requested by the national authorities to that end.

A lease agreement and a copy of the identity card of the landlord are not included in this list.

Consequently, such a requirement would be contrary to EU law.

Article 8 of Directive 2004/3 8/EC has been correctly transposed into Maltese law by Free Movement of European Union nationals and their Family Members Order 2007 (LN 191/07)……….

……….Furthermore, according to the information available on the website of the Maltese Department of Citizenship and Expatriate Affairs, the submission of such documents is not required………’

Article 8 of Directive 2004/38/EC - Administrative formalities for Union citizens -

Please see page 19:

http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/Lex … 123:en:PDF

That is no doubt correct, but you always like to conveniently forget that Malta will follow it's own rules and the interpretation of these rules can vary from one Maltese official to another.  Whether that is inline with EU legislation does not seem to concern them!

Ray

@F0xgl0ve.

Contrary to what you suggest, Malta has been forced to comply with the rule of EU law in many instances at the instigation those non-Maltese EU individuals with the will and courage to enforce it - not only to safeguard their own interests, but for the lasting benefit of their compatriots, such as yourself. 

As regards, the Maltese authorities, their inconsistent ‘interpretation’ of the law is now of major concern to them - in view of the following:   

Excerpt: ‘Malta is moving towards having Article 7 triggered against it, which would suspend its voting rights in the EU, MEP Monica Macovei has warned.

“We don’t want Malta out of the EU, just for it to respect the rules and include a real separation of powers and efficient law enforcement,” the Romanian MEP said……’

Source: Malta inching closer to being stripped of EU voting rights - MEP - The Times of Malta, Saturday, 5th May, 2018 -:

https://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/v … mep.678250