Updated 5.15pm, adds MHRA statement
Non-EU workers in hotels, bars and restaurants will need to get a skills card in 2024 to work in the tourism sector, under a plan presented to industry stakeholders by the government on Thursday.
The plan, which is open to consultation for the next three weeks, is to then make skills cards mandatory for Maltese and EU workers in the hospitality sector by 2025.
Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo said the “bold” move would drastically improve the quality of workers in the sector and ensure only those really needed were incentivised to move to Malta.
Under the plan, third-country nationals applying for a visa to work within Malta's tourism sector from January 2024 onwards will need to pass an initial skills card assessment before their visa and work permit applications can be processed.
Getting a skills card will not come cheap: the mandatory training course and assessment will cost €450, and applicants will also have to fork out an additional €125 for an in-person assessment they must undergo once they reach Malta.
The skills card requirement will then be phased in for other workers in the sector.
In a statement later, the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association agreed it was important that those seeking work in Malta had the necessary skills before they arrived but said solutions had to be well-planned and sufficiently practical.
This was necessary to avoid precipitating existing challenges linked to labour supply shortages in the hotel and restaurant sector.
As of October 2024, non-EU workers who do not need a visa to come to Malta will also need a skills card. So too will third-country nationals currently working in Malta’s tourism sector and who are getting their work permit renewed.
And from January 2025, the requirement will become mandatory for all Maltese and EU nationals working within the tourism industry.
The course leading to a skills card will include an English language proficiency test and basic courses in customer care, hospitality and what Malta offers tourists. Applicants will need to pass a final assessment to get the card, enabling them to work in hotels, bars, restaurants, kitchen staff, housekeeping and front office posts.
'Quality not quantity'
Institute for Tourism Studies chief executive Pierre Fenech explained that the measure will address the skills level of those working in the tourism industry and will lead to improved quality of those working in the sector.
"It's about quality rather than quantity," he stressed.
Third-country nationals must follow a training course while still in their home country. Following completion, they will sit for an online assessment and obtain a pass mark for their application for a work permit to be processed by Identità, formerly Identity Malta.
Applicants who fail can apply for a resit, subject to an additional fee. Work permit applications will only start being processed once the applicant obtains a pass mark. Passing the assessment does not automatically entitle the person to a work permit.
If a work permit is granted, the applicant must then inform the ITS of their arrival three weeks prior to arrival in Malta. They will receive an appointment for an in-person assessment within three days of landing. If they fail, they will be repatriated immediately and the work permit withdrawn, Fenech said.
Third-country nationals from visa-exempt countries can follow the course in Malta within 90 days of their arrival.
Skills cards will be granted according to their qualification and experience. There will be seven different levels, depending on qualifications and experience.
The ITS will assess applicants, Fenech said, but skills cards will be issued by the Malta Tourism Authority.
MHRA said it will be reviewing in further detail the proposed process for implementation to ensure that it will not burden "the rightful recruitment of foreign workers to Malta".
It said it would discuss the announced modus operandi of the scheme and related costs with the relevant authorities as this was bound to increase operational costs and make the process of recruitment more difficult.
"MHRA needs to also ensure that the process related to the issuing of the skills card is an efficient and expedient one," it said.
Bartolo said the new rules will be open to public consultation until November 16, while discussions with stakeholders in the sector are ongoing.
"The time for a free-for-all system is over. We need to get people with the skills we need as a country," he said, adding that this new system will lead to improved quality of the people who work in the industry.