Malta’s foreign population increased by over 95,000 people in the past 10 years, according to census data.
There are now over 115,000 non-Maltese nationals in Malta, just over 22 per cent of the total population. This figure stood at a little over 20,000 people in 2011 (under five per cent).
The newly published data from the National Statistics Office provides a detailed insight into Malta’s growing foreign population for the first time.
Foreign nationals living in Malta tend to be male and younger than their Maltese counterparts, at an average age of 34.9 compared to 43.6 for Maltese. Those living in Gozo tend to be slightly older, at 42.1 on average.
Almost three quarters, 72 per cent, are between the ages of 20 and 50. In contrast, only 39 per cent of Maltese nationals are within this age group. There are just over 8,000 non-Maltese children under the age of nine living in Malta.
Third of foreigners are EU citizens
A third of foreigners in Malta are EU citizens. A further seven per cent are from other European countries that are not EU member states.
Italians are the most prevalent foreign nationality at 12 per cent, followed by British residents at just over nine per cent.
Other common nationalities include Indian and Filipino, both at just under seven per cent. Malta also has a sizeable Serbian and Bulgarian community.
The biggest increase since the 2011 census was registered amongst the Italian community, which grew from 947 people in 2011 to almost 14,000 in 2021.
Filipino is the only nationality where women outnumber men, with over 4,500 women.
A total of 171 individuals are listed as stateless, almost half of them children under the age of nine.
Nearly half of all non-Maltese nationals live in the Northern Harbour region, with a further 23 per cent living in the Northern region. St Paul’s Bay alone is home to over 17,000 non-Maltese residents, while 10,000 foreign nationals live in Sliema.
19,000 Maltese have a second citizenship
A little under 3,000 non-Maltese citizens hold multiple citizenships, however, data about their secondary citizenship is not available.
Meanwhile, nearly 19,000 Maltese nationals also hold secondary citizenship.
Almost half of them hold either British or Australian citizenship, an indication of Malta’s ongoing ties with Commonwealth countries. A little under 4,000 Maltese are also Canadian or American citizens.
There are also 759 Maltese-Russian citizens living in Malta, over a third of them under the age of 19.