Trade Polish winters for year-round sunshine, and you’ll still be within a three-hour flight of home. Moving to Malta from Poland is refreshingly uncomplicated for an EU citizen: no visa queue, no waiting on a work permit, just a passport and a plan. Here’s what to expect once you start looking seriously for your next rental or at property for sale.
You keep every right that comes with your EU passport, but trade Poland’s climate for the Mediterranean’s. It’s Europe without the compromise many people expect when relocating somewhere warmer, and getting home is easy too. Warsaw has long had direct flights to Malta, but it’s Katowice that’s really opened things up; new direct routes from there now carry around 40% of all Polish air traffic to the island. Add in seasonal connections from a few other Polish cities, and getting home for a weekend or a holiday is rarely a hassle.
You won’t be the only one making this move. Somewhere between 2,000 and 3,000 Poles already live in Malta, and plenty more are getting a taste for the island each year, Poland was actually Malta’s top source of tourists in January 2026, making up close to a fifth of all visitors that month. There’s no dedicated Polish expat society here, but you’ll find Poles well represented across general expat groups, embassy events, and the everyday overlap of workplaces and neighbourhoods.
Malta is small, low-crime and politically stable, and everyday life runs at a noticeably gentler pace than in Poland’s larger cities.
Malta’s iGaming, financial services and tech sectors are used to hiring across the EU, so plenty of Polish professionals move here for the job itself rather than just the lifestyle.
Poland and Malta are both EU member states, so freedom of movement applies in full. You can enter and live in Malta for up to three months on nothing more than a valid Polish passport or ID card. Once you’re past that three-month mark, you’ll need to register for an eResidence Document with Identità, Malta’s residency agency, based on one of the routes below.
Polish citizens don’t need a work permit to take up employment in Malta. Once you’ve got a job lined up, registering your Malta Residence Document is the only formality, a much shorter process than the one non-EU applicants face through routes like the Key Employment Initiative.
If you’re freelancing or running your own business, you’ll need to register with Jobsplus, and for VAT too if your turnover requires it. When you apply for residence, Identità will also ask for evidence that you’re actively trading, so keep invoices or contracts on hand.
If you’re looking to retire in Malta, you don’t need any special immigration route, your EU citizenship already covers your right to live here, so registering an eResidence Document under the self-sufficiency or pension-income basis is enough. The Malta Retirement Programme is a separate, optional scheme open to EU, EEA and Swiss nationals (and, since 2020, non-EU nationals too), offering a flat 15% tax rate on foreign pension income for those who meet the property and income conditions. It’s worth a look for the tax benefit, but it isn’t something Poles need in order to retire in Malta.
If you’re moving for university, enrolment plus proof of sufficient funds is enough to register as a student. Many international and postgraduate students look at the Malta University Residence in Lija, a serviced student housing option with a shuttle service to the University of Malta campus in Msida.
If you live in Malta lawfully and continuously for five years, you can apply for permanent resident status on the same terms as any other EU national.
This is different from the Malta Permanent Residence Programme you may see advertised online. That is a paid, investment-linked scheme aimed at wealthy non-EU applicants.
Moving to Malta as an EU citizen is easier from an immigration point of view, but it still helps to plan the move in stages. Your property search, residence registration, healthcare, tax position, social security contributions and family arrangements all need to fit together.
A scouting trip lets you compare a few towns side by side, sit in on some viewings, and get a feel for commute times before you commit to anything. Malta Property can arrange viewings across the island, so you leave with a real sense of life in Malta.
By the time you’ve done a few viewings, patterns tend to show themselves: maybe you liked the buzz of Sliema, or how close Bugibba put you to the beach. That’s usually the point where talking it through with your agent helps more than booking in another viewing, weighing up what you actually liked in person against your original non-negotiables, whether that’s proximity to the sea, parking, or a good school catchment, rather than starting the search from scratch. Once you’ve settled on the right place, your estate agent can move quickly to get it secured, whether that’s putting down a deposit on a rental or getting a Promise of Sale in motion.
Get your passport, proof of income or employment contract, and health insurance details in order early. A registered lease and a Housing Authority Confirmation Letter are usually needed before Identità will process your eResidence application.
Moving day is rarely stress-free, but at least you’re not fighting jet lag on top of everything else as Poland and Malta share the same time zone. Once you’ve picked up the keys and dropped your bags, take an evening to walk around your new neighbourhood before diving into admin.
You’ll need to register for utilities with ARMS, consider opening a local bank account, and if you’ve brought a car, sort out its registration and roadworthiness check. After that, it’s less about paperwork and more about finding your favourite café, working out the bus routes, and slowly turning a new address into an actual home.
Renting is a great way to get your bearings, and plenty of people are happy to stay that way for years. But if you’ve found an area you love and you’re ready to put down roots, here’s what the buying process actually looks like.
Polish citizens can buy property in Malta as their main home without an AIP permit. This exemption removes one of the biggest hurdles other foreign buyers face when purchasing property for sale in Malta.
Special Designated Areas (also called Lifestyle Developments), such as Portomaso and Tigné Point, come with fewer restrictions on foreign ownership and are worth a look if you want a managed development with shared amenities, though they carry a premium over standard property elsewhere on the island.
Buying property in Malta is straightforward but has three main phases:
Beyond the purchase price, budget for notary fees, property tax, and possibly a mortgage arrangement fee if you’re financing the purchase. First-time buyers may be eligible for reduced rates on part of the price, so check with your notary before finalising your budget.
Whatever your budget or stage of life, Malta has a wide range of homes for Polish buyers. Options include:
See the full range of property for sale in Malta right now, filterable by area, price and property type.
Sliema, Gżira and St Julian’s sit right along the water and put you within walking distance of offices, restaurants and the ferry into Valletta.
Gozo trades a short ferry crossing for bigger properties, lower prices and a genuinely rural pace of life, popular with remote workers and retirees alike.
Mellieħa, St Paul’s Bay and Qawra give you a proper seafront lifestyle without Sliema’s price tag or density.
Instead of the 9% NFZ contribution you’d pay in Poland, Malta funds its public healthcare through social security contributions, and the system has a genuinely strong international reputation. As in Poland, most residents pair public cover with a private policy for quicker specialist appointments, so it’s worth building into your budget alongside rent and utilities from the outset.
Malta’s school system starts a little earlier than Poland’s; compulsory education runs from age 5 to 16, versus 7 to 18 back home, with SEC exams under the MATSEC board taking the place of the Matura.
As Polish schools teach English as the main foreign language, children usually arrive well placed for lessons taught in English from day one, whether that’s in a state school, a church school, or one of Malta’s international schools running British or IB curricula.
Places at the more sought-after international schools go quickly, so it’s worth applying as soon as your move date is confirmed.
The switch from driving on the right in Poland to driving on the left in Malta takes a bit of getting used to, and Malta’s roads tend to be narrower than Poland’s, given how densely built the island is.
Moving to Malta with a car means arranging local registration and a roadworthiness test, though with distances so short across Malta, many people find it’s just as easy to sell up at home and buy something once they’ve settled in.
Poland’s own tradition of parish feast days, known as odpust, has a lot in common with Malta’s village festas, so the rhythm of the Catholic calendar here won’t feel like a big departure. Sunday still matters, church bells still mark the week, and the overlap in tradition tends to make daily life feel familiar.
Numbers alone don’t tell the whole story when working out living costs, but they’re a useful starting point. We’ve benchmarked Warsaw against Sliema below, since both attract a similar international, socially active crowd. Bear in mind, though, that Sliema is one of Malta’s pricier addresses, so don’t assume these figures apply island-wide.
Expense | Warsaw, Poland | Sliema, Malta |
3-bed apartment rent (monthly) | 8,147.06 zł | 11,845.44 zł |
Utilities (monthly) | 1,279.80 zł | 392.95 zł |
Cinema ticket | 36.00 zł | 38.60 zł |
Cappuccino | 17.03 zł | 10.39 zł |
Mid-range dinner for two | 240.00 zł | 321.63 zł |
Private full-day preschool (monthly per child) | 2,268.75 zł | 1,405.73 zł |
International primary school (annual tuition) | 56,991.34 zł | 42,633.93 zł |
Figures are based on data supplied from Numbeo. Actual costs vary depending on personal spending habits, school choice and the area you choose in Malta.
EU and EEA citizens can move to Malta visa-free. Once you are in Malta and registered as a resident, you have the same standing as any other employee. Companies in Malta across iGaming, financial services, tourism and technology regularly hire from EU countries and with English an official language alongside Maltese, there’s rarely a language barrier.
Salaries in Malta are taxed and paid the same way for you as for a Maltese national, and since travel to Malta is visa-free and quick from Poland, it’s easy to fly out for an interview before you commit to the move.
Malta taxes residents on a progressive scale running from 0% up to 35%, with the first €9,100 of income tax-free for single filers and €12,700 for married couples, plus wider bands for parents with qualifying children. How the Malta–Poland double taxation treaty applies to your specific situation depends on where your income is coming from, so it’s worth getting advice from a tax professional before you move rather than assuming a default position.
Malta stays considerably warmer than Poland year-round, with winter temperatures rarely dropping below 10°C and summers regularly into the 30s, compared with Poland’s cold winters and shorter warm season.
Pets can travel with you from Poland to Malta under standard EU pet travel rules, provided they’re microchipped, vaccinated against rabies and travelling with an EU pet passport.
Where you choose to settle will depend on what you’re after: Gozo suits families wanting space, quiet and lower costs, while mainland Malta offers more schools, jobs and social opportunities within easy reach.
Most new arrivals in Malta connect through workplace networks, expat meetup groups, or online communities such as Internations Malta. There are many expats living in the north of Malta, and around the northern harbour areas, so you are likely to find these areas very welcoming.
As an EU licence holder, you can drive in Malta on your Polish licence without converting it, though you’ll need to register any car you bring over.
Polish citizens don’t need a Nomad Residence Permit to work remotely from Malta. That permit exists specifically for non-EU remote workers who wouldn’t otherwise have the right to live in Malta; as an EU citizen, freedom of movement already covers you, and you’d register under the self-sufficiency route instead.
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Start browsing today, or get in touch and our team will help you narrow down the right area and property type for your move from Poland.
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