Armed with a whiteboard and clipboard, activist Patricia Graham stood alone on Monday morning, in a one-woman protest against delays at Identity Malta.

“I am here on behalf of all the third-country nationals who are terrified to be here,” she said.

People were keen on the idea of a protest but have backed out of fear, Graham said.

The demonstration had been initially planned as a larger-scale protest. An October 18 post on the Facebook group Expats Malta calling for action garnered 506 likes.

As she stood in front of Identity Malta offices in Msida, Graham asked those entering or leaving to mark how long they have waited for a work permit.  

Of those who contributed thirteen had waited between five and seven months and 17 had waited between seven and 12 months. None had waited less than four months, she said.

Without a work permit, people from countries outside the EU cannot legally work, access publicly funded healthcare or travel outside the country.

Times of Malta reported how one Serbian woman who has lived in Malta for over four years missed her father’s funeral because of work permit delays. 

“I hear of people using their last euros to find a back door to getting their paperwork,” Graham said.  

It seemed not to matter whether someone had applied for the first time or was renewing their work permit. Eleven people Graham had waited over seven months when applying for a renewal of their status in Malta. 

A work permit application can be submitted after a third-country national has found a job in Malta. The employer then applies on behalf of the future employee. Identity Malta, together with the Immigration police and Jobs Plus process the application.

Immigration police vet the employee and Jobs Plus ensures that no Maltese or EU national can do the job instead of the TCN. 

All those who participated in an impromptu survey said they waited at least five months for their work permit Photo: Johnathan Borg

She also said that 86 Identity Malta court appeal cases are pending, showing printouts from pending court cases.  

These are often opened by Identity Malta after third-country nationals are denied a work permit but have their decision overturned by the immigration appeals board. The court then acts as the arena of last appeal.