Work permits for third country nationals

ahhhh more Malta bullshit. I honestly wouldn't take it seriously for a second though. I don't know why Malta tries to put on this front of being so friendly and welcoming towards tourists/expats,  when it seems that all they want to do sometimes is drive them away. I think they'd rather send everyone home, only Maltese allowed, close the country. Just try it, then you'll see the island die.

Don't get me wrong though, I love it here haha there are just so many stupid and ridiculous things here. Just frustrating is all.

Update- I sent them my current address(not a hotel) and they updated my work permit without a comment. I don't think the left hand and the right hand are speaking

typical lol. GLad its all okay though!

I am an american just starting on all this myself....   because I am married to a Polish national it seems like I fall into a whole new set of laws that nobody is quite sure of, and in January the laws are about to change again...  I am so very excited .   Do you all have any recommendations as to where to start or how to make the process of working there less painful?

Hi,

Welcome to the forum.

As you are married to a Polish(EU) citizen you are to be treated like an EU citizen yourself. This is not new and will not change until next April when the work permit application for EU citizens should be dropped altogether.

Your first step will be for your Polish husband to apply for a work permit and temporary residency in Malta for himself and for you.When the residency is approved you will receive a sticker in your US passport and then be free to find a job and have your employer apply for a work permit for you.

This should be done right away on arrival in Malta as you can only stay for 3 months on a tourist visa.

At this stage you can also get your Maltese ID card.

I don't know of any change in January !

Check out past posts for more info.

Regards

Ricky

Thank You!!  This information is extremely helpful and clears up several issues all in 1 swoop...

My wife and I have been reading the documentation about this for months and have just gotten more and more confused in the process to the point where I was about ready to hire a lawyer,,,, ( and I am not a fan of lawyers )

Now off the topic...  Because of your screen name, I have to ask if you are an animator? I graduated from a US school for 2 & 3D graphics and computer animation, and am always interested in going out for a beer and meeting people of a like mind...  Once I am back in country can I buy you a pint at L'aroma or something since you are in Sliema?  If so I can send you a PM once I get back.

After the WONDERFUL posts from you all I finally ( after many many phone transfers ) found the Malta ex-patriot office -

Ricky was 98% correct  

1. move to malta with my wonderful wife
2. stay and search jobs for in malta for 90 days, if successful life is good
3. if not successful register with ETC and I am granted 6 more months to search for jobs without leaving the country.
4. once a job is found no matter the time-frame register with etc
5. get ID card and passport stamped

phone # for ex-patriot affairs is +356 2200 1827

Ricky, I definitely owe you one.  THANK YOU VERY MUCH!


Ill be flying back to Malta next week. 

Sorry I got you and your wife mixed up with the nationalities -))

So you (husband) are American and your wife is Polish. So you depend on her status to stay in Malta ( or the EU for that matter).

Just make sure that before the initial 3 months stay (on tourist visa) expires you get your own visa extended from Castille in Valletta. It should not be a problem as your wife is an EU citizen but make sure she goes with you with all the documents required including health insurance for both of you.

ETC is responsible for work permits but the Expat office at Castille grants the permission to stay legally in Malta.So the ETC will give you a document showing that you applied for a work permit or are registered with them .With this you then go to Castille for the Temporary Residency Permit.This should be the correct way to go about things in your situation.

see also:http://www.foreign.gov.mt/Library/Citizenship%20Forms%20and%20Templates/CEA8-URP.pdf

Be aware that your future employer has to apply for your work permit.

You will need the Temp. Residency Permit sticker in your US passport BEFORE you can go and apply for the ID card.

Wish you luck looking for a job.

PS What kind of job are looking for?

Ricky

As to the 'Animator' status - that is just given on the basis of me being a regular poster here on the forum and has nothing to do with my work here in Malta.

Send me a PM when you are on the island. I'll be away to Germany until the 18 th November though. But otherwise look forward to a Cisk and a chat.

My 'family member' ( female partner) as her official status here in Malta is -))) is from the US so that is why I'm aware of some or maybe all the problems and discussions that can come up and know many but maybe not all the solutions.

Ricky

I was wondering how you knew so much, but figured I wouldn't ask...   It would definitely be interesting to talk to another American over there,  Mostly I run into British when I am on the Island.  I'll definitely let you know when we get to town, My wife and I are looking at tickets right now, but looks like we should stay in Poland through the 19th so we can be here for a friends Surprise party.

Oh you asked about my work....  thats where the conversation gets interesting...  I am formerly a systems admin / Network admin for the US government in Iraq/Afghanistan along with IT country manager in afghanistan for a private company.  I am thinking with all the technology there I wont have many issues finding work, I have already had a few offers, I am just looking forward to starting.

Till then take care and we'll do the "Cisk and a chat" soon.

Thank you again and take care.

Hi me3512 - There are a few Americans in Malta - heck, I'm even married to one and lived most of the last 20 years in Minnesota Also, "Dr. Fitness" at the Hilton is one - I know because he bumped into us, literally when his car hit ours with my wife driving - 2 Americans in a car accident in Malta..hilarity ensued. My son is in a drama group with a boy from New Mexico and we have some (Italian) friends who moved here from Florida.

Tim

Too many coincidences, I grew up in Brainerd, MN, and spent many years throughout Minneapolis, St Cloud and Duluth..  I also at one point worked in a tattoo shop in Ft. Walton Beach Florida  ...  It really is a small world.

I am just happy to hear after your accident that it was Hilarity that ensued and not Jailarity....     In some countries you never know what will happen. 

I am working on getting tickets back to Malta now, I'll post something here when I am back and mabey we can all meet up somewhere.  I am a big fan of Andrews in St. Julian...  What do you think?


Chad

Dear Sarafima!!! how are u? Can I ask where u come from? i live in Russia right now and im extremly looking for a job in Malta but who can provide a work permit, can u help with that? Do u have any contacts? Thank u a lot!!!

Sarafima, I also saw this same or simmilar username in the itunes ibook store recommending a book on malta ...   I think the book was "Knight's of malta 1523-1798"...   I was just wondering if your the same guy I'm taking recommendation from in the ibook store. 

lol. Malta.

ehhhhhh   never know....   it is a good book    and free

oh no. I was just saying lolMalta @ all this work permit and residence permit crap. And other stuff in general. I am sure its a good book although I prefer to read hmm how to say..real? books, not e-ones

real ???   you mean those archaic paper things....  Do we still have libraries or are all the paper ones in museums ??? 

Just kidding, I have a lot of friends who love the big... heavy ... paper ones    it's just not for me .

By the way, Welcome to the Forum, I hope you find some good info here. 

LOL! archaic paper things! How old are you anyway Oh well I just joined this blog more out of interest rather than any need for info. Been living here for ages. Was actually looking up this policy of not giving the 5th working permit and stumbled onto this site. Trying to figure out what to do now. Everyone is telling me to find a Maltese boyfriend lol *sighs*

HAHAHHAHAA...   I haven't heard anything about the 5th work permit thing but my guess is if there's info out there someone on here will know something.  I fell on this site the same way you did, I was just digging for specifics and ran across it, there's some good people here and they have been very helpful ones as well.

As for your potential Maltese boyfriend... All I can say is I have met a few maltese guys and they are always in the pub....   you can start looking there.  haha  I wish you luck

As for the ebook thing Im 36 and I love anything electronic, which is funny because my wife hates all my toys...  oh well 

Have a great day and please post anything you find on the 5 year rule..  If I'm going to get beat up by politics in a few years I'd like to have some warning.

Chad

This is what I was talking about -
https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=18592
They only give you 4 work permits, i.e. the 5th is refused.
I doubt that would apply to you since your wife is Polish i.e. EU citizen and you are American.

As for the potential Maltese boyfriend I seriously doubt that my current non Maltese boyfriend would approve lol
Not into Maltese guys anymore anyway...mentality is just too different.
and yeah us girls are more into shoes and bags and shiny things

oh that policy is a b***h, wow..   Most people I know don't have the ability financially to leave the country for 6 months then return and start looking for work again, and the permanent residence scheme does not allow you to get a job.    Have you called etc to confirm this? 

Tel: +356 2165 4940

With some of the regulations I have heard about it wouldn't surprise me though, but there has to be a way around it..

now you may have a point about your current man not approving of a competitor...  hmmmmmmmmm   cant help you there, I dont think my wife would go for it either   

Now about Maltese women, I have a question...   What's with the high heals on the beach?   I understand getting all pimped out to go out on occasion but the beach????   I just dont understand, but of course I am a relaxed tattoo'd jeans and t-shirt kind of guy.

LOL @pimped out.

Lawyer colleagues of mine called the citizenship department and confirmed this. However its not necessarily 6 months, there is no minimum time, the imp. thing is that the residence permit expires (the 1 year one). But it would take sometime yes because the (ex) employer would need to apply for a work permit from scratch and that will take about 3 months, then it will be sent to that person who has to apply for a visa to Malta and you know all this will take at least 4 months.

To tell you the truth financially this would not be a problem for me as I have a lot of family back home (I'd just need to stay out of the shops hehe!) but it is just a really really really REALLY HUGE and GREAT inconvenience. Besides being totally retarded. But oh well.

As I was saying...I actually called a friend of ours who works at citizenship and he said this is the first he's ever heard of it lol. Which I find strange. In fact this happened 2 friend of ours, so it is being done. But he has to get back to me anyway.
The I will talk it over with my employer and is lawyers.

Re the pimpled out women. I honestly have no clue. I'd never go the beach with heels!! I mean it really makes no sense lol. I mean WHY? Honestly I haven't seen any women like that but I've only been to the beach 2 or 3 times this year, and nearly froze to death in the water thanks very much! Not a big fan of the sea..and well the sun lol. It is evil

Oh you have tattoos then? That's awesome I am thinking of getting 2...as in..I am not thinking should I get them or not but thinking about what exactly I want. I have a sorta clearish idea for one and a vagueish for the other.
Also not sure where to go now. Was thinking of Bobby's...but well..R.I.P.

ah! so many problems! it's a complicated life we lead lol

As with everything in Malta you cannot rely on anything being set in concrete!

The ' leaving the Schengen area for 6 months ' if you let your visa expire is EU law!
But I know of both options - non-EU's overstaying their visa for 7 months and still getting a work permit from the ETC ( they probably didn't check out the passport or the company had influence)
and non- EU's being denied a work permit because of not leaving Malta for 6 months and just flying to Tunis for a few days.

From my experience the Citizenship department doesn't care what procedures the ETC has implimented.If you turn up with a work permit at Castille you will be granted residence for 1 year as a non-EU citizen.If ETC extends your work permit after 1 year your residency will be extended.

With the ETC it all boils down to who you know and which company you are working for.If you are not replaceable for a larger company you will get your work permit whatever passport you hold.

Please post any new aspects as things change all the time.

Ricky

thanks ricky

"With the ETC it all boils down to who you know"...although I think this applies to EVERYTHING in Malta
Well we will see how it goes. Friends of ours had to go with a lawyer to ETC where he basically had to force them to accept their permit application. Hm. I wonder if we can sue someone. Although I doubt any EU law is being broken and since we are Non-EUs the EU wouldnt particularly give a rat's arse hehe.

I am only hoping that I dont run into this problem, but since I am married to an EU citizen I think I fall under different rules...   I need to get back to malta and find a job asap, so if any of you know of anyone that needs an experienced IT guy hey I'm a looking.... 

Now as for the tattoo's and I shouldn't put this under the "looking for work" statement yeah I started on them when i was 17 and working at a tattoo shop in Ft. Walton Beach, Florida.  Now being 36 you could say I have a couple more... Fortunately i have been smart enough to make them easily hidden when its time for work and interviews. 

My suggestion to anyone looking to get one...   Get what you want, where you want in henna before actually going through the inking process...  that way you have to look at it for a week or 2 till the henna wears off so you will know if you want it to be permanent or not...

Hey thats a good suggestion I guess. *thinks*

Nah you definitely won't have this problem. Being married to an EU citizen is basically like being one - you will have freedom of movement and everything.

Why dont you just send you C.V. to all the big companies?
They might need someone. They could always use experts in Malta.

I'll be doing that once I get back there on the 27th....   I am still making a list of companies and trying to get specific contacts in each one.   I have also been using the pentasia site as guidance...   they do have a lot of good info on their site....   I only wish I could come back before the 27th, but I have another 8 hour tattoo appointment on the 22nd here in Poland and a couple other things to get done before I head back there...

  I am really looking forward to sitting at Andrews and having a pint of CISK..  teather the iphone to the laptop so I have internet and send resume's from there. 

lol thats cute. My boyfriend has an iphone and I really suck at the racing games. when i move the phone i just swerve too much and crash into everything. I am a bit better when playing on the playstation though heh.
Well why dont you search for "vacancies Malta"..(unless you already did).. it will give you more sites with companies looking to hire someone. More choice. I think I used a couple of them. Although they didn't help.
I don't really think my employer is hiring anyone heh, although I never really know what goes on in our IT Department. I just know there are a couple of rows of towers and its really cold
And beer...yuck. Seriously lol