Bar owners will receive a one-time payment of up to €2,870 to cover the five-month period they spent shut to help curb the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo told a press conference on Friday that the €2.2million financial aid scheme for bars would be split across three categories: commercial bars, bars that are housed within a club (kazin), and bars owned by clubs. 

Political party clubs have been excluded from the scheme. 

While commercial bars will receive a one-time payment of €2,870, those forming part of a club will receive €1,860. Bars owned by non-political clubs will receive €1,260. 

Video: Matthew Mirabelli

Owners must submit their applications between March 1 and March 15 here, here, or here. 

Bartolo said that applications will be processed within two weeks. 

Bars and social clubs were shuttered in October when the number of new infections spiked. 

They were set to reopen on December 1 but the measures were extended for another two months until the end of January. That date was pushed back yet again by the government earlier this week.

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