VisaMalta first Single Permit: course certificates and sector checks
Current application guide: first-time workers must check Malta’s pre-departure certificate requirement separately from the employer’s permit application, sector certification and entry visa.
Official source date: 2026-10-29
Edited and checked by the VisaWand editorial team
March verification remains relevant to autumn applicants
Malta’s Identità has verified required pre-departure course certificates in new and Still Abroad work-permit applications since 1 March 2026. The course portal opened on 5 January. This current application guide concerns workers and employers preparing autumn files; it does not present the existing requirement as a new October announcement.
Identità’s 28 February implementation notice identifies exemptions for current or former Single Permit holders, subject to the stated exception for people applying again as first-time or Still Abroad applicants after leaving Schengen. It also identifies third-country nationals who have resided in Malta for eight years or more. Applicants should establish their actual application category and exemption evidence rather than assuming every worker changing jobs needs to repeat the course.
Complete learning and assessment before relying on a certificate
The Home Affairs course page describes two online learning modules: living and working in Malta, and workplace rights and obligations. Each involves approximately ten to twelve hours of learning with assessments. A live interview checks English proficiency and understanding of the material. The published timetable gives candidates up to forty-two days to complete Part 1, with materials available for revision before the interview.
The course costs EUR250. That is a training and assessment charge, not the Single Permit application fee. Use the Home Affairs page and its official Skills Pass link to enter the course process. The guidance describes both online learning and verification at designated assessment centres; applicants should confirm their interview instructions instead of assuming every stage can be completed from home without attendance.
Tourism roles need a specific certificate check
Identità’s current non-EU employment questions and answers distinguishes front-facing and non-front-facing tourism and hospitality jobs. Front-facing applicants must provide a full Skills Pass or the stated combination of pre-departure and tourism Skills Pass certificates. For listed non-front-facing roles, including cleaners, kitchen helpers, dishwashers and back-office work, the page describes the pre-departure course only.
The same questions and answers says students converting to a Single Permit need the course certificate at conversion, while change-of-employer or designation applicants already holding a valid Single Permit are generally not required to provide it. Use that resource to check the exact role and status. The broader February notice describes two certificates for tourism generally, so employers should resolve the role-specific requirement before submission rather than extrapolating from an abbreviated sector label.
The employer still controls the permit submission
The Single Permit application page explains that the Maltese employer ordinarily submits the application online. The worker receives a link to confirm and validate the submitted data, after which the employer completes final submission. Payment must also be made online. Completing the course does not initiate this employer process or establish that Identità has received a complete permit file.
The page lists EUR600 for a first Single Permit and EUR150 per year for renewal, with separate arrangements for authorised live-in carers. Those figures should not be added automatically to every worker’s costs: the current employment questions and answers lists category-specific charges and exceptions. Employers should identify the applicable permit fee independently of the EUR250 course charge and obtain the full document checklist for the chosen application.
Approval, travel and starting work are separate milestones
Identità’s working-and-residing guidance requires a confirmed Maltese job offer and says an application counts as submitted only when all required supporting documents are provided. Its processing-period page describes a legal allowance of four months from a complete application. This should not be treated as a guaranteed interval from course enrolment, a job interview or an unfinished employer draft.
Visa-required Still Abroad workers must obtain the appropriate national entry visa after Approval in Principle and follow the instructions for biometrics and permit completion. The employment questions and answers distinguishes a pending application from authorisation to work. Before travelling or starting duties, the worker should identify the certificate, submitted permit file, entry permission and any interim work authorisation actually held. A training pass or approval email alone cannot answer all four questions.
