The city streets of Valetta, Malta
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Have you ever dreamed of moving to Europe? Many expats are choosing Malta, with its growing culinary status, cobbled streets, sublime diving sites and great climate. It is also has one of the fastest growing millionaire populations in the world. Here’s what to know about how you fit in financially, the cost of living, and what it means to be wealthy in Malta.
Malta is known for the warmth of its people, as noted in the Book of Apostles when St. Paul was said to have been shipwrecked off the island coast in 60CE and found a welcoming community of locals.
Located strategically in the middle of the Mediterranean, between Italy and Libya, it has been influenced over the centuries by Phoenicians, Romans, Greeks, Arabs, Normans, Sicilians, Swabians, Aragonese, Hospitallers, French, and British. Indeed, the Allies used Malta as a base in World War Two. It became a republic in 1974 and joined the EU in 2004.
There are five islands in total. Malta is the largest, and Gozo and Comino are habitable. Kemmunett (Comminotto) and Filfla are uninhabited.
For anglophones, there are incentives in that everyone speaks English, plus for the British, everyone drives on the left-hand side of the road. The sun shines 300 days every year, and it has some of the best diving in the Mediterranean, with many Second World War shipwrecks.
Being Wealthy In Malta—Malta’s Cost Of Living
When taken globally, a comparison of the cost of living in Malta is lower than it is in many other countries such as the U.S., the U.K., and France:
France: $1,200 per month for a single person, not including rent.
U.S.: $1,166 per month for a single person, not including rent.
Canada: $1023 per month for a single person, not including rent.
Malta: $801 per month for a single person, not including rent.
Thailand: $650 per month for a single person, not including rent.
Portugal: $592 per month for a single person, not including rent.
The cost of living is 18% cheaper in Malta than in France, for example, but when you factor in rent, it becomes clear that Malta costs a little more. Per square meter, rent in Malta is 20% more than in France.
Being Wealthy In Malta—Malta’s Average Annual Salary
Malta has one of the lowest average annual salaries in Europe. In 2022, this was $21,500 (€21,000), according to Malta’s Office of National Statistics.
In comparison, average annual salaries throughout the European Union varied considerably in the same year. Eurostat figures show an annual average wage of $110,000 (€106,839.33) in Switzerland, the highest, to $13,250 (€12,923.66) in Bulgaria, the lowest.
Malta’s average salary is considerably lower than that of Canada, where the average salary for someone working full-time is about $45,000 a year (CAD 63,013). However, this varies according to the Canadian province.
Average salaries vary across the U.S. according to states. Still, compared with Malta, Forbes reports average salaries range from $76,000 per year in Massachusetts, New York, and California to the lowest average salary of $45-49,000 in Mississippi, Arkansas, and West Virginia.
Being Wealthy In Malta—The Top 10%
According to Henley & Partners, between 2013 and 2023, Malta gained a 74% increase in its millionaire population, taking the number of millionaires up to 10,000. This is due to the favorable conditions for High Net Worth Individuals to join the citizenship-by-investment program.
Indeed, a Henley & Partners’ 2024 report found that Malta’s millionaire population was the sixth fastest growing in the world after Vietnam, China, Mauritius, India, and the United Arab Emirates.
The report noted that Malta has 45 centi-millionaires (worth €100 million) and three billionaires living in the country.
Being Wealthy In Malta—Malta’s Average Net Worth
The European Central Bank’s Household Finance and Consumption Survey (HFCS) found that in 2020, the lowest fifth of the Maltese population had a reported median net wealth of $15,177 (€14,800) and the top 10% had about $1.2 million per household. This makes the top 10% of people in Malta 80 times richer than the bottom 20% of people.
Being Wealthy In Malta—How To Ask For Residency
It is possible to apply for a passport through a family connection but there are other options.
Non-European nationals can obtain a residence card through the Malta Permanent Residence Programme (MPRP) if you rent or buy a property, pay a government contribution of €30,000, and prove you have assets of at least €500,000.
Otherwise, somewhat controversially, you could obtain the Malta Citizenship for Exceptional Services by Direct Investment (MESDI) by renting or buying a property, paying a government contribution of €590,000 to €740,000, and donating €10,000 to charity. You would also have to pay €50,000 more for each dependent.
This option would allow someone to have EU citizenship with unrestricted travel across Europe, which has been discouraged at the EU-wide level, and many countries no longer offer these kind of citizenship programs. Many politicians and residents have argued that “European citizenship must not be up for sale” in this way. Some believe that this type of ‘golden passport’ encourages money laundering and tax evasion.
The final option to move to Malta permanently would be the Malta Retirement Programme, for over 55s from the EU or outside. You must live in Malta for 90 days per year and cannot live in another country for more than 183, and you must have health insurance.
To be eligible financially, you must own a property in Malta that is worth between €220,000 to €275,000, depending on the location, or you must rent a property that is between €9,600 and €8,750. This residency has a 15% tax rate on foreign income, subject to a minimum tax liability of €7,500.
It’s clear then that Malta is an attractive proposition for expats and what it means to be wealthy in Malta is also significantly lower than in other European countries, as well as compared to the U.S. You can find more information on the U.S. government embassy website in Malta.
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Publish date : 2025-01-12 04:39:00
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