Malta Closed Golden Passports: What Is Citizenship by Merit and Who Qualifies

Malta Citizenship and the EU Court of Justice Decision on April 29, 2025

The EU Court of Justice's Grand Chamber ruled that Malta's citizenship by investment violated Article 20 TFEU and Article 4(3) TEU. Case C-181/23, European Commission v Republic of Malta, judgment of April 29, 2025.

The dispute concerned a specific scheme—Maltese Citizenship by Naturalisation for Exceptional Services by Direct Investment, naturalization for exceptional services through direct investment. It was based on Article 10(9) of the Maltese Citizenship Law (Chapter 188 of Maltese legislation) as amended by Act XXXVIII of 2020 and on subsidiary legislation SL 188.06 of 2020.

The operative part was worded strictly: by instituting and applying an institutionalized investment scheme for citizenship that establishes a transactional procedure for naturalization in exchange for predetermined payments or investments and thereby constitutes a commercialization of the provision of citizenship of a member state and, consequently, of Union citizenship, the Republic of Malta failed to fulfill its obligations.

Why the court called this passport commercialization

The key concept in the judgment was a "genuine link" between the applicant and the state: without it, a person falls outside the circle of beneficiaries of Union citizenship. The court stated this directly—such applicants "are clearly outside the circle of persons which the authors of the Treaties intended as beneficiaries of Union citizenship."

The logic is based not on morality but on the mechanism of trust within the EU. Each state automatically recognizes for citizens of other member states the entire set of Union rights. Such recognition, according to the court's reasoning, rests on a shared understanding: citizenship reflects a genuine link of the state with its citizen, a special relationship of solidarity and good faith.

Systematic issuance of a passport in exchange for a predetermined payment undermines this understanding—and therefore conflicts with the very essence of Union citizenship.

What the court did NOT say. The judgment does not prohibit EU states from determining who receives their passport: this question continues to be decided by national law. Residence programs for investment are not prohibited—the case concerned specifically the passport. The objection is directed at a specific construction: systematic naturalization according to a price list without a genuine link.

What Malta did with citizenship after the judgment

Malta did not contest the judgment and removed the investment basis for the passport from the law within three months. Amendments to the Maltese Citizenship Law (Chapter 188) were published in July 2025, and the subsidiary legislation was rewritten: Legal Notice 159 of 2025 was published in the Maltese government gazette No. 21,478 on July 29, 2025.

The subject matter of SL 188.06 itself changed. The previous name—Granting of Citizenship for Exceptional Services Regulations. The current one—The Granting of Citizenship by Naturalisation on the Basis of Merit Regulations.

The phrase "for exceptional services through direct investment" was removed from the law. Article 10(9) of the main law remains as the legal basis, but its content is now different.

Malta Citizenship by Merit: Who qualifies under the law

Malta citizenship by merit is available to those who have provided an exceptional service to the country or humanity, or made an exceptional contribution. This is how it is stated in an official explanation by Aġenzija Komunità Malta—the state agency responsible for all matters of the Maltese passport.

The fields in which contribution is recognized are listed exhaustively:

• science and research;
• technology;
• sports;
• entrepreneurship, including job creation;
• culture and arts;
• charitable initiatives.

The categories of applicants named by the agency directly: scientists, researchers, athletes and sports professionals, performers and artists, entrepreneurs, philanthropists, technology specialists.

How citizenship by merit is granted: letter, council, minister

The path to a passport does not begin with an application but with a letter of proposal to Aġenzija Komunità Malta—this is required by Article 11A(1) of SL 188.06. In the letter, the applicant outlines their biography and achievements, describes the exceptional service rendered or planned, or the contribution, presents a plan for further contribution after naturalization, and attaches supporting documents. Dependents as provided by law may be included in the same submission.

The proposal then goes to independent assessment:

1. An autonomous specialized council reviews the proposal independently from the agency.
2. The agency simultaneously conducts an in-depth due diligence check.
3. The council provides the agency with a recommendation—to approve or reject.
4. The agency submits the recommendation to the minister.
5. The minister makes a principal decision to approve or reject.

The minister is not required by law to explain the decision, and this decision is final. The wording of the official explanation leaves no room for interpretation. By contrast: in the closed investment scheme, compliance with requirements created a justified expectation of a result. Here there is no such expectation by design.

Only after principal approval is a formal application for a naturalization certificate submitted. At this stage, the assessment council reviews again, after which the minister makes a final decision; if approved, the applicant and included dependents take an oath and receive the certificate.

Requirements at the application stage for a passport: eight months and housing

At the formal stage, the law requires eight months of residence in Malta and legal title to adequate housing. This is the only place where property appears in the new framework—and it appears as a condition of residence, not as the basis for a passport.

The complete set of requirements for the formal stage:

• at least eight months of residency in Malta with confirmed title to adequate housing;
• confirmation of exceptional service, contribution, or interest certified by a competent authority able to assess the likelihood of actual fulfillment;
• knowledge of Maltese or English;
• evidence of all other connections with Malta claimed in the letter of proposal.

Separately, consequences of non-fulfillment of the promised commitment are set out: the minister may revoke citizenship granted by merit if the person has not fulfilled material obligations established by law or recorded in the approval letter.

What Citizenship by Merit is not

There is no sum for which the Maltese passport is issued—neither in law nor in the agency's guidance—only processing fees for the application. The agency sets their amount, and they pay for the procedure, not the result.

Three things that the new framework lacks compared to the closed program:

• No price list. Predetermined payments and investments for which naturalization follows are no longer contained in the legislation—this connection was precisely what the EU Court objected to.
• No guarantee. The decision is discretionary and considered individually; meeting conditions does not create a right to a passport.
• No promotion. Aġenzija Komunità Malta is authorized to issue guidance on merit-based citizenship procedures and prohibits any marketing related to these procedures.

An applicant may conduct the process independently or engage competent professionals—companies or private practitioners authorized by the agency. These are not the "licensed agents" of the old program who sold passports turnkey.

What search results say about the Maltese passport and why they cannot be trusted

Half of the first page of search results for "Malta citizenship by investment" as of September 2026 continues to sell the passport that the law no longer issues. This is a verifiable statement: we captured search results from Google and Yandex on September 2, 2026.

Typical formulations from current snippets and what is wrong with them:

Few sources on the first page cover the topic correctly—those that directly state the program has closed and explain the shift to the merit-based scheme. Check by one indicator: whether the EU Court judgment of April 29, 2025 and the repeal of the basis in July that year are mentioned. If the material promises a passport for a specific sum, it describes law that is no longer in force.

What remains for a property owner: residence instead of a passport

Malta closed the passport route but kept a permanent residence program with mandatory property—and this is a fundamentally different product. The Malta Permanent Residence Programme has been in effect since 2016 and is administered by Residency Malta agency. By itself, it does not lead to Maltese citizenship: it is a residence status, not a path to a passport.

The property requirement is met by purchasing qualifying housing from €375,000 or renting from €14,000 per year—the threshold is the same for Malta and Gozo. The property is retained for at least five years, after which an obligation to maintain housing in Malta continues. Beyond housing, the program requires proof of capital—at least €500,000, of which €150,000 in financial assets, or at least €650,000, of which €75,000 in financial assets—and includes an administrative fee of €60,000, a government contribution of €37,000, a €2,000 donation to a local NGO, and a residence card fee of €500 per person for five years; for each adult dependent other than a spouse, an additional €7,500 is added.

Why this is not "a Maltese passport on installments." After the EU Court judgment, residence and citizenship have parted ways definitively: the judgment does not affect residence programs for investment, but they do not serve as a bridge to merit-based naturalization. MPRP should be compared with residence programs in other countries, not with the closed passport scheme.

Citizens of Russia and Belarus: a separate passport restriction

Access to both the Malta passport and residence program is closed to applicants from sanctioned countries: Residency Malta announces the list from time to time. The wording on the agency website does not name countries—the agency maintains the list itself and changes it at its discretion.

The factual situation as of September 2026: applications from citizens of Russia and Belarus have been suspended by Maltese agencies since March 2022—the decision was explained by the impossibility of conducting due diligence to the proper extent. Extension of status for those who obtained it earlier is considered individually.

This is the first thing to check, not the last. None of the thresholds and fees above matter if the applicant does not pass by citizenship. The current status of the list is confirmed only by a request to Residency Malta—publications by intermediaries, including this one, reflect the situation on the check date, not on the day of your application.

Citizenship or residence: what is correct to compare Malta with

The Maltese route should be compared correctly not with passport programs but with residence programs through property. Direct comparison "passport for passport" has lost meaning after the EU Court judgment: no EU program issues a European passport for a contribution anymore.

Thresholds and legal bases by countries where property purchase remains the effective basis for residence are collected in our [summary of residence programs for investment](/residence/): each line specifies the legal act and the date of verification with the primary source. A separate [summary of citizenship programs](/citizenship/) is maintained—it shows how narrow this list in Europe has become after the Malta decision.

Malta is not in our catalog. Among European destinations with properties in our selection, [property in Cyprus](/cyprus/) and [property in Greece](/greece/) are available in particular—both countries have their own residence programs with their own thresholds, and their conditions must be reviewed separately, not transferred from Malta.

Pros and cons of the Maltese passport route now

After the reform, the Maltese route has split into two different stories: residence with clear figures and citizenship without them. Evaluating them together is a typical mistake.

What speaks in favor of MPRP:

• Thresholds and payments are officially published and verifiable before submission.
• Property satisfies the requirement by purchase or lease—entry is possible without a purchase.
• The status is permanent, not time-limited, with an obligation to maintain housing after the five-year period.

What needs to be weighed:

• The combination of mandatory payments is comparable to the cost of the property itself at the lower threshold.
• Capital requirement is checked separately from housing cost and is not replaced by it.
• For citizens of Russia and Belarus, applications have been suspended, and extension of previously issued status is considered individually.
• Citizenship by Merit is not a product: without an exceptional contribution in the fields named by law, this door is closed regardless of the sum.

How we verify data

Dates, provisions, and amounts are drawn from the EU Court judgment, publications by Maltese state agencies and the government gazette, not from intermediaries' offers. The search results snapshot on which the market section relies was captured on September 2, 2026, and is presented as a verifiable observation with a date.

Not a single amount named in the text relates to the provision of a passport: the MPRP figures are parameters of the residence program, and on naturalization by merit the legislation contains no fixed amounts.

Homzer is a marketplace for foreign property with transaction support. We do not arrange passports and residence permits, do not act as an intermediary for Maltese programs, and do not promote naturalization by merit—promoting such procedures is directly prohibited by the Maltese agency. This material is for reference and does not replace consultation with a Maltese lawyer.

Sources:

• EU Court of Justice (Grand Chamber), case C-181/23, European Commission v Republic of Malta, judgment of 29.04.2025—operative part on violation of Art. 20 TFEU and Art. 4(3) TEU
• Maltese Citizenship Law, Chapter 188 of Maltese legislation, Article 10(9)
• Legal Notice 159 of 2025—Granting of Citizenship for Exceptional Services (Amendment) Regulations, Maltese government gazette No. 21,478 of 29.07.2025
• SL 188.06 in the current version—The Granting of Citizenship by Naturalisation on the Basis of Merit Regulations, Article 11A(1)
• Aġenzija Komunità Malta—official explanation "Citizenship by Naturalisation on the Basis of Merit": legal basis, procedure, requirements, prohibition of marketing
• Residency Malta Agency—legal framework of MPRP: thresholds for property, capital, fees and contributions, condition on sanctioned countries
• Snapshot of Google and Yandex search results for "Malta citizenship by investment", captured 02.09.2026
• Summary of residence programs for investment homzer.com—thresholds by country with legal act and verification date

Frequently asked questions

Can you buy Malta citizenship in 2026?

No. The basis that allowed obtaining a Maltese passport for predetermined payments and investments was repealed in July 2025 following the EU Court judgment of April 29, 2025. Current legislation contains no fixed amounts for citizenship.

What is Citizenship by Merit in simple terms?

It is naturalization by merit: a passport may be granted to someone who has provided an exceptional service to Malta or humanity, made an exceptional contribution, or whose naturalization represents exceptional interest to the country—in science, technology, sports, entrepreneurship, culture, or charity. The decision is discretionary.

How much does Malta citizenship by merit cost?

The legislation does not establish sums for granting the status. The agency charges fees for processing stages of the application—they cover the procedure, not the result.

Does buying property in Malta give citizenship?

No. Property appears in two places: as a condition of residence at the formal stage of merit-based naturalization (title to adequate housing plus at least eight months of residence) and as a mandatory requirement of the MPRP permanent residence program. In neither case does the purchase itself lead to a passport.

How much does property cost for MPRP?

The requirement is met by purchasing qualifying housing from €375,000 or renting from €14,000 per year, including Gozo. The property is retained for at least five years, after which an obligation to maintain housing in Malta continues.

Can Russians apply for Malta programs?

The official condition of MPRP is that an applicant must not come from sanctioned countries per the list announced by Residency Malta from time to time. Applications from citizens of Russia and Belarus have been suspended by Maltese agencies since March 2022; the current status must be confirmed by a request to the agency.

Will the EU Court judgment revoke already-issued Maltese passports?

The judgment established a breach of obligations by the state and resulted in repeal of the basis going forward. Separately, current legislation gives the minister the right to revoke status granted by merit if the person has not fulfilled material obligations from the approval letter or law.

Does the EU Court judgment prohibit residence programs for investment?

No. The case concerned the passport, not residence. Residence programs for investment are not affected by the judgment—including the Maltese MPRP, which continues to operate.