Return - IOM Publications - International Organization for Migration

Return Migration: Policies and Practices
any person who has not been granted a residence, movement or transit permit, and lands in
Malta without leave from the Principal Immigration Officer.
Removal
The most common type of expulsion in Malta is the Removal Order. The Principal Immigration
Officer issues a removal order and declares a person a “prohibited immigrant”, when he/she is
found illegally on the island, either because of illegal entry, or expiry of the leave to land, or as
a result of other circumstances outlined in Article 5 of the Immigration Act. Removal orders can
also be issued by the Principal Immigration Officer against any person found guilty of an offence
which is punishable with imprisonment of at least one year. In the case of a crime committed
subsequently, imprisonment may be at least three months until removal is applied.
A deportation order on the other hand, may be issued against any foreigner by the Minister
responsible for Immigration, if it is deemed to be in the public interest, as per Article 22 of the
Immigration Act. A person subject to a deportation order may be placed on board a vessel about
to leave Malta, and brought to any port outside Malta.
Once the Principal Immigration Officer releases a removal order, the police will ensure its
implementation at the earliest opportune time. The person against whom a removal order is
made, has a right of appeal, which should be filed within three days from the serving of the
removal order, to the Immigration Appeals Board.
A legal counsel may assist any person subject to prohibited migrant status and removal order
proceedings. Where destitute persons are unable to meet the costs of such counsel, they will be
covered by the Immigration Appeals Board.
Persons subject to removal orders will be sent back to the country of respective nationality, or to
the country from which they embarked for Malta. In the case of crew members, they can be sent
back either to the country of nationality, or to the country where they were engaged. The Immigration
Law however also makes provisions for the Immigration Minister to instruct removal to
a country other than that of nationality or of last embarkation.
The Immigration Act applies to rejected asylum seekers, who are removed immediately from
Malta, if they have not been granted leave to land upon arrival.
Those removed or deported from Malta are not allowed to return to Malta for a length of time
commensurate with the seriousness of the crime for which they were convicted.
Detention
A person against whom a removal order has been issued shall be kept in legal custody until
departure, either in prison or in any place appointed for the purpose by the Minister. If the person
is detained in prison, he/she will be treated like someone awaiting trial. There is no time limit for
detention. Applicants who have applied for asylum after being apprehended in Malta in an
irregular situation are detained; only once they are considered eligible for refugee status or
temporary protection can they be transferred to a transit shelter.
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