(last updated 12th April 2024)
KINDLY NOTE THAT THERE HAVE BEEN SOME CHANGES/UPDATES MADE TO THE CONTENT AND TO THE APPLICATION FORMS.
PLEASE ENSURE THAT YOU READ THROUGH THE INFORMATION BELOW AND USE THE CORRECT APPLICATION FORMS.
HEALTH SCREENING FOR WORK PERMITS FOR NEW APPLICATIONS
The medical section of the form can be completed by ONE (1) doctor only
To reside and work legally in Malta, prospective employees who do not form part of the European Union Member States (also known, as third country nationals) need to apply for Health Screening approval as part of their work permit application form.
Guidelines on what Health Screening is required and further information are available on this website and on the application form.
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Who DOES NOT need to fill the Health Screening form for first-time application for Work Permits?
Those applicants who are NOT from these countries or did not spend 6 months or more in one of them, and are working in the below jobs, DO NOT need to apply for health screening approval and can go directly to Identity Malta for work permit approval.
a. Administrative jobs
b. Construction / Manual workers
c. Footballers
d. Hairdressers/Makeup artists
e. Working in transport
f. Cleaners/Housekeepers
g. Security guards
h. Delivery persons
i. Laboratory technicians working in a non-medical field (e.g. construction, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, etc)
THE GUIDELINES AND INFORMATION BELOW ARE RELEVANT TO INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE REQUIRED TO APPLY FOR HEALTH SCREENING APPROVAL AS PART OF THEIR WORK PERMIT APPLICATION FORM
The requested health screening and relevant investigations are to be carried out LOCALLY in the PRIVATE SECTOR.
PROCEDURE FOR APPLICATION (ALL DOCUMENTATION MUST BE IN ENGLISH)
Ensure the form is the latest one available on this website.
Old forms will not be processed. Merging of old and new application forms is not allowed and will not be accepted for processing.
- Download the appropriate form according to the job being applied for.
- Forms should be filled in by the employee, employer, and Medical Doctor (only 1 medical doctor can complete the form) in their respective sections
- Forms should preferably be typed or written in BLOCK LETTERS. Forms not legibly filled will not be processed.
- Forms should be saved in PDF format as one (1) rolling document.
- Forms are to be sent by the employer on workpermit.idcu@gov.mt. Applications sent by employees, relatives or friends will not be accepted.
- ALL pages of the application are to be sent in PDF file attachment and in order in ONE (1) email.
- When sending the email, in the email’s subject box, the employee’s name should be specified together with the job being applied for, e.g., Patel Singh – Food Handler.
- Only ONE (1) application should be sent per email.
- Queries in relation to health screening for work permits are to be directed to workpermitqueries.idcu@gov.mt.
PREGNANT EMPLOYEES
When applying for a work permit for an employee who is pregnant the employer is requested to write an email providing the applicant’s details and any other relevant documentation/medical records, including a contact number and email address, to workpermitqueries.idcu@gov.mt. for further guidance on how to proceed with their screening.
VACCINATIONS & BLOOD INVESTIGATIONS
N.B. All vaccination records/blood investigation results are to be shown to the medical doctor and scans sent with the application form.
Where vaccination records are not provided a booster dose will be required, as indicated below.
Polio and Diphtheria
It is obligatory, according to Maltese law, that all individuals residing in the Maltese islands should be immune against Polio and Diphtheria.
Therefore, all employees (irrespective of the job they are applying for) are required to have full immunity against Polio and Diphtheria.
Applicants can either take 1 dose of Polio/Diphtheria vaccination in Malta or else take the Poliovirus and Diphtheria immunity test in Malta. Should blood levels show low immunity/no immunity, they are required to receive one dose of vaccine.
Failure to comply with the above will result in rejection of the submission.
Measles (required for certain jobs)
There are certain jobs for which applicants are required (compulsory) to have full immunity against Measles. These categories are:
- Doctors, Dentists, Nurses and Midwives
- Professions Complementary to Medicine
- Carers (including carers within Healthcare, Homes for the Elderly, Institutions, etc)
- Nannies and Child Carers
In these cases, applicants can either take the blood test for IgG Measles (in Malta) to confirm that they have immunity, or else take 2 doses of the Measles vaccine.
If 2 doses of the Measles vaccine are required, the second dose has to be taken as scheduled. If not taken prior to renewal, the renewal application will not be approved.
For certain professions employees will be requested to show that they have immunity against Measles. If they are not immune, it is recommended that they take the Measles Vaccine. These categories are:
- Food Handlers
- Tattooists Beauty Therapists, Beauticians, Spa Therapists and Massage Therapists
- Tattooists
- Other Jobs
Hepatitis B (required for certain jobs – refer to specific pages below for more information)
Employees who require immunity against Hepatitis B for their line of work must either take the complete course of vaccinations against Hepatitis B or else present a blood test for Hepatitis B antibody, which needs to be taken in Malta. This can be omitted if the employee received Hepatitis B vaccines in Malta within a 10-year period from the date of application form.
Should the Hepatitis B antibody show low immunity, the employee is required to complete the vaccination schedule for Hepatitis B at a local private clinic.
Applicants will be required to provide proof of certification as follows:
i. Carers/Child carers – proof of completion of relevant course as approved by MQRIC
ii. Doctors, Dentists, Midwives, Nurses, other Regulated Healthcare Professionals - copy of Maltese Registration Certificate with relevant Council
iii. Food handlers – copy of certificate of food handling course
CHEST X-RAYS
N.B. The Chest X-Ray report is to be shown to the medical doctor and a scan of the report is to be sent with the application form.
Individuals who were born or who have lived for 6 months or more in a country reported as High / Very High Risk for TB need to take a Chest X-Ray.
- Chest X-Rays need to be taken within the last 6 weeks from the date of application form.
- Employees who are changing job can present their previous chest x-ray if this was taken within the past year. If the Chest X-Ray was taken more than 1 year ago, a repeat of Chest X-Ray is required.
- The date when the Chest X-Ray was taken has to be filled in.
- A copy of the Chest X-Ray report must be attached with the application form.
ABNORMAL RESULTS
If medical findings show abnormalities, a copy of the investigation report needs to be submitted together with the application form. You will then be guided accordingly.
PROCEDURE FOR APPROVAL
Once the documentation has been reviewed and found to be satisfactory, an approval email will be sent to the employer.
The employee can then proceed to Identity Malta with this email - it is important that they take a printed copy of the approval email with them.
The appointment with Identity Malta is to be made only AFTER health screening approval has been received.
APPLYING FOR CHANGE OF JOB
If an employee is changing jobs, they may still need to reapply for a new work permit and additional investigations might be required.
- Chest X-Rays are only accepted if taken within 1 year from date of this application.
The Chest X-Ray report must be attached
- Other blood investigations are accepted if taken within 2 years from date of this application.
CHANGE OF EMPLOYER
If an employee is changing employer but keeping the same job (within the 1-year period), there is no need to reapply for Health Screening. Another Health Screening would then be required when applying for renewal of the yearly work permit.
RENEWALS
There are certain situations whereby applicants will need to undergo one (1) repeated health screening, depending on the countries they have resided in or the jobs they have applied for. Further information can be found on the page Health Screening for Renewal of Work Permit.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION:
- It is the employee’s responsibility to:
- Keep a copy of their medical reports, blood test results and vaccination cards for future reference.
- Take all required medical reports, blood test results, vaccination cards and identification documents with them when attending for a health screening. Failure to do so may result in the health screening not taking place.
- If health screening is incomplete or results are unsatisfactory, applications will not be processed, and approval may not be granted.
- Vetting of applications may take up to 15 working days from when the correctly completed form is received to be processed. It is the responsibility of the employer and employee to ensure that properly completed submissions, as per guidelines provided in this website and on the application forms, are made in good time.
- REQUESTS FOR URGENT VETTING OF APPLICATIONS WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED.
Application Forms, together with further information about each job category, can be found and downloaded as follows:
FORM A1 - Doctors, Dentists, Midwives, Nurses
FORM A2 - Professions Complementary To Medicine
FORM A3 - Carers (including carers within Healthcare, Homes for the Elderly, Institutions, etc )
FORM A4 - Nannies & Child Carers
FORM A5 - Food Handlers
FORM A6 - Beauty Therapists, Beauticians, Spa Therapists & Massage Therapists
FORM A7 - Tattooists
FORM B - Other Jobs
Thank you for your co-operation,
Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Unit (IDCU)
Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Directorate
Email: workpermit.idcu@gov.mt
workpermitqueries.idcu@gov.mt