IM Yearbook 2020/21

Interview with ALEX MUSCAT, Malta’s Parliamentary
Secretary for Citizenship and Communities
THE SPIRIT OF
DIALOGUE
Alex Muscat, Malta’s Parliamentary Secretary for Citizenship and Communities,
provides insights into the country’s decision to revamp its Individual
Investor Programme and shares his thoughts on the European Commission’s
decision to launch infringement procedures against the country.
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Malta’s CBI programme has been
reworked. What changes should
the industry be aware of?
Malta’s Individual Investor Programme
(MIIP) is soon coming to an end,
having reached the pre-determined
capping of 1,800 families who have
successfully invested in the Maltese
Islands. The Agency has stopped
receiving new applications.
We shall continue giving the
opportunity to a number of exceptionally
talented people to invest in the Maltese
Islands. We will do this by completing
the existing programme, closing the
Malta Individual Investor Programme
Agency (MIIPA) and establish a new
agency that will administer all paths
leading to Maltese citizenship, and revise
and reform all residence regulations.
The new regulations will be in the
form of a residency plan that has the
potential for eventual nationality. Under
the new regulations, an applicant must be
a resident in Malta for three years before
applying for citizenship. Exceptionally,
through a higher investment in Malta, this
can be done after one year of residence.
Interested residents who want to
apply for citizenship will be required
to apply for an eligibility assessment
before applying for naturalisation. At this
stage, they will be subject to thorough
due diligence. The new agency will be
implementing the toughest criteria for
due diligence and background verification
reporting around the world. It will
cooperate more with local and foreign
Investment Migration Yearbook 2O2O/2O21
investigative and law enforcement
and tax authorities. An independent
regulator will continue to scrutinise
the application process executed by the
Agency and all resultant decisions.
What are the main drivers behind your
decision to change the programme?
One major driver is certainly a
willingness to innovate and to improve
our practices. The sustainability of
our economic success depends on our
constant readiness to innovate, together
with the diligent manner in which we
do business. Another major driver is
our readiness to distinguish ourselves
from programmes and initiatives that
are offered in Europe and around
the world. The Maltese Government
values a strict policy of due diligence in
order to make sure that only reputable
applicants are admitted to its initiatives.
The EU has long been critical of
Malta’s programme. In what ways
has this criticism influenced your
decision to redesign the programme?
EU legislation is clear in stating that
EU intervention as far as citizenship
goes is outside its legal authority.
However, the Commission and the
other institutions take legitimate steps
to underline the potential risks of
residence- and citizenship-by-investment
programmes, mentioning security
and money laundering concerns in
various reports and statements.
We believe in a spirit of dialogue,
and we have paid special attention
to the criticism that the original
programme received and availed
ourselves of constructive opinions. In fact,
stakeholder consultations were carried
out over the past two years, including
with the European Commission.
Malta has continued to strengthen
the already stringent due diligence
processes in order to make sure that only
reputable applicants are admitted to its
programmes. It is worth noting that when
analysing the previous programme, the
IIP regulator had already stated that it
was miles ahead of similar programmes
operated by other countries. The new
initiative is even more highly vetted than
the previous programme, and every
applicant goes through a detailed process
where their identity and source of funds
are verified by multiple parties, including
police and law enforcement agencies.
In view of the fact that the majority
of the EU members states have
such initiatives in place, we feel it is
important to understand the benefits
as well as the risks that are being
highlighted by EU institutions.
The European Parliament has called
on member states to phase out all
existing citizenship- and residenceby-investment
schemes. What
thoughts would you like to share about
the EP’s opinion on the matter?
The attribution of nationality is an
exclusive competence of individual