Residency Malta is forecast to triple its income to €25 million next year, according to Budget estimates.
Last year, the government agency that provides residency programmes for high-earning non-EU workers estimated a revenue of €7.5 million and the previous year it was just over €10 million.
These figures emerge from the Budget estimates published last Monday.
According to its website, Residency Malta is responsible for managing “highly sought-after” residency programmes for non-EU nationals.
The agency is responsible for three residency programmes – the Nomad Residence Permit, the Malta Startup Residence Programme and the Malta Permanent Residency Programme (MPRP).
The programmes are targeted at high-earning remote workers and are different from the Maltese citizenship scheme, where applicants purchase a Maltese passport.
To apply for the MPRP, people must buy or rent property and give a direct contribution of either €58,000 if they rent a home or €28,000 if they buy.
People with a net worth of at least half a million can apply for the MPRP.
Launched back in 2021, people who work remotely and are employed by a foreign company or are self-employed can apply for the Nomad programme if they earn at least €32,400 per year.
The Malta Startup Residence Programme is for non-Europeans who want to bring their start-ups to the island. It grants them a three-year residence permit, extendable for an additional five years.
The start-up is required to place a tangible investment or paid-up share capital of not less than €25,000.
€21m in cash-for-passports income
On the other hand, the Ministry for Home Affairs is expecting no changes in how much money it will earn through the controversial sale of passports.
Just like the previous year, it is projected to bring in €21 million from the Individual Investor Programme, better known as the golden passport scheme.
The State-run agency responsible for ID cards, passports, visas, residence documents and work permits is expecting to see a two-thirds rise in income next year.
According to the estimates, Identità, the newly branded Identity Malta, is expected to bring in €26 million in 2024. The estimate for this year is €15.5 million.
Questions have been sent to the ministry to explain the expected increase in revenue.
During last Monday’s Budget speech, Finance Minister Clyde Caruana said there were plans to make it more expensive to get a work permit than to renew an existing one, but he provided no details.