Hire Workers in Malta: What Jobsplus Checks Before Your Permit
Malta assesses the employer as well as the vacancy, and a high staff turnover rate can sink an application on its own. We recruit from India, Nepal and Bangladesh and check your position before you file.
- Your termination rate is part of the file
Malta screens the employer, not just the role. Most agencies never mention it.
What You Need to Hire Workers in Malta
Most third-country nationals working in Malta need a Single Permit, issued by Identà and covering both residence and employment. Jobsplus, the national employment agency, is a stakeholder in every application and carries out the labour market test and employment review that sits behind it.
What makes Malta unusual — and what almost no agency will tell you before invoicing — is that Jobsplus also examines the employer. Under the labour migration policy, employer termination rates are checked before Single Permit applications are processed, and applications are rejected where the rate exceeds a threshold set by company size: above 50 per cent for small employers of 10 to 49 staff, above 45 per cent for medium employers of 50 to 249, and above 40 per cent for large employers of 250 or more.
Those thresholds do not apply to Key Employee Initiative applications, sports professionals, students, or healthcare, elderly and disability care roles. For everyone else they are a live constraint, and an employer with a churn problem needs to know that before building a hiring plan on Maltese permits rather than after a refusal.
On the advertising side, the requirements were eased in 2026 for certain categories: applications under the Key Employee Initiative, the Specialist Employee Initiative, the EU Blue Card and the Skilled Occupation List now need only a single advertisement on a local media platform running for two weeks.
Who We Are
Hire Across Euro is an independent international recruitment consultancy with an active sourcing network across India, Nepal and Bangladesh. The founder runs every engagement personally, so a Maltese employer finds out about the termination-rate screen before they file rather than after they are refused.
What We Handle for Maltese Employers
Sourcing and Vetting
We shortlist workers whose training documents and work history stand up to consular scrutiny. Every file is checked for document completeness and practical competence before it reaches you.
- Document verification
- Trade competence check
Employer Screen and Single Permit
We review your position against the Jobsplus employer checks, including the termination-rate threshold for your company size, then assemble and file the Single Permit application with Identà.
- Termination rate review
- Single Permit filing
Advertising and Labour Market Test
We run the advertising the category requires and keep the evidence Jobsplus expects to see, including the shortened requirement that applies to certain categories.
Arrival and Onboarding
Workers are briefed on Maltese employment terms, working-time rules and site safety expectations, and we support registration after arrival.
Sectors Where We Hire Workers in Malta
Four areas where Maltese demand is steady and third-country hiring is established.
Hospitality and Tourism
Kitchen, housekeeping, service and front-of-house staff for hotels, restaurants and catering operators.
Construction and Finishing
Masons, formwork carpenters, tilers and finishing trades for contractors and developers.
Facilities and Cleaning
Cleaning, grounds and facilities staff for property managers, hotels and services contractors.
Care and Support Roles
Care assistants and support staff for elderly and disability care providers, outside the termination-rate thresholds.
The Maltese Route at a Glance
Malta assesses the employer as well as the vacancy. Most guidance omits the first half.
| Permit | Single Permit issued by Identà, covering residence and employment |
|---|---|
| Labour market test | Carried out by Jobsplus; the post must be advertised to a Maltese and EU candidate pool first |
| Processing | Applications may take up to four months for Identà and stakeholders to process |
| Hard rule | It is illegal to employ the worker before the permit is issued |
| Employer screen | Termination rates are checked before applications are processed |
| Threshold: 10–49 staff | Rejected above a 50% termination rate |
| Threshold: 50–249 staff | Rejected above 45% |
| Threshold: 250+ staff | Rejected above 40% |
| Outside the thresholds | Key Employee Initiative, sports professionals, students, and healthcare, elderly and disability care roles |
| Advertising (2026) | KEI, SEI, EU Blue Card and Skilled Occupation List applications need one local advert for two weeks |
How to Hire Workers in Malta and Pass the Jobsplus Screen
Malta is a small labour market with a large dependence on third-country workers, particularly in hospitality, construction and care. That combination has produced an administration that is experienced at processing these applications and increasingly selective about which employers it processes them for.
The permit is the Single Permit, issued by Identà and covering residence and employment together. Jobsplus conducts the labour market test and employment review. The part employers do not expect is that Jobsplus also assesses them. Under the labour migration policy, employer termination rates are checked before Single Permit applications are processed, with rejection thresholds set by company size — above 50 per cent for employers of 10 to 49 staff, above 45 per cent for 50 to 249, and above 40 per cent for 250 or more.
For a hospitality or construction employer with seasonal churn, that is not a footnote. It is a potential bar that has nothing to do with the quality of the candidate or the vacancy, and it is worth checking before a hiring plan is built on Maltese permits. Certain categories are outside it — Key Employee Initiative applications, sports professionals, students, and healthcare, elderly and disability care roles — which is one reason care roles are often a more predictable Maltese route than hospitality.
The advertising burden eased in 2026 for some categories, with Key Employee Initiative, Specialist Employee Initiative, EU Blue Card and Skilled Occupation List applications now requiring only a single two-week advertisement on a local media platform. Our live roles are on the vacancies board, our fee and treatment standards are set out in ethical recruitment compliant with EU labour law, and employers running Mediterranean operations often also read Greece, Spain and Portugal.
How the Process Works
Six steps, beginning with whether your company clears the employer screen.
Requirement Call
We go through headcount, roles, worksite location, contract length and the start date you are working back from.
Shortlist
We present vetted workers from India, Nepal, Bangladesh or Pakistan with their training and work-history evidence attached.
Permit Filing
We run the required advertising and file the Single Permit application with Identà for the Jobsplus review.
Visa Application
We prepare the consular file and the employer-side documents your HR team is asked to produce, and track it to decision.
Arrival
We coordinate travel and the first days in Malta, including registration and the practical basics.
Onboarding
We support induction at the worksite and stay reachable through the first weeks of the placement.
Quick Answers
What is the Malta Single Permit?
It is a permit issued by Identà covering both residence and employment, required by most third-country nationals working in Malta. Jobsplus carries out the labour market test and the employment review that sit behind it.
Why can our staff turnover refuse a good application?
Because Jobsplus checks employer termination rates before processing Single Permit applications, and rejects where the rate exceeds the threshold for your company size. It has nothing to do with the candidate or the vacancy, which is exactly why it blindsides employers who only prepared the role.
How can we improve our chances before applying in Malta?
Check your own termination rate against the threshold for your headcount band before you recruit anyone. It is the one factor that can refuse an otherwise perfect file, it depends on your records rather than the vacancy, and it is far cheaper to establish now than to discover after a refusal.
Official Sources and Further Reading
The employer thresholds sit in Malta’s labour migration policy rather than in the visa guidance most employers read.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can our staff turnover stop us getting permits in Malta?
Yes. Jobsplus checks employer termination rates before processing Single Permit applications, and rejects where the rate exceeds the threshold for your company size — above 50 per cent for 10 to 49 staff, above 45 per cent for 50 to 249, and above 40 per cent for 250 or more.
Are any roles outside the termination-rate thresholds?
Yes. Key Employee Initiative applications, sports professionals, students, and healthcare, elderly and disability care roles sit outside them. That is one reason care roles are often a more predictable Maltese route than hospitality.
What is the Single Permit?
A permit issued by Identà covering both residence and employment, required by most third-country nationals working in Malta. Jobsplus carries out the labour market test and employment review behind it.
How much advertising do we have to do?
It depends on the category. For Key Employee Initiative, Specialist Employee Initiative, EU Blue Card and Skilled Occupation List applications, 2026 changes reduced it to a single advertisement on a local media platform running for two weeks.
Should we check anything before we start recruiting?
Your termination rate, first. It is the one factor that can refuse an otherwise perfect application, it depends on your own records rather than the vacancy, and it is much cheaper to check now than to discover later.
What does a Maltese Single Permit cost and how long does it take?
The fees are modest next to the real cost, which is a refused application at the end of a recruitment cycle. That is why we run the employer screen before sourcing rather than after: establishing your termination position takes an afternoon, and repeating a failed hiring round takes a quarter.
Our turnover is above the threshold. Are we blocked entirely?
Not entirely, but you need to pick your route deliberately. Care roles for elderly and disability providers sit outside the termination-rate thresholds, as do Key Employee Initiative applications, which is why care staffing is often a more predictable Maltese route than hospitality for an employer with seasonal churn.
Request Workers for Malta
Tell us the roles, the headcount and your approximate headcount and turnover. A consultant replies within one business day with the employer position and what the file will take.
Talk to Us
If your operation in Malta needs workers from India, Nepal or Bangladesh, send us the requirement and a consultant replies within one business day with the route, the employer position and a quote.