UK ETA for Maltese Citizens

Malta at a Glance

Three things decide the position for a Maltese passport holder: the passport you travel on, the reason for the trip, and any permission to live, work or study that you already hold in the UK. Membership of the EU and of the Commonwealth does not decide it on its own, and the table below shows how the common cases resolve.

Malta and the 2 April 2025 Group

The ETA National List places nationalities into dated groups. Qatar was the first, the Gulf states followed, and a large group began on 8 January 2025. A further group began on 2 April 2025, and Malta is in that later group, with the other European nationalities on the list. Malta’s travellers therefore entered the scheme alongside the other European nationalities in that group.

Any earlier description that Maltese citizens can enter the UK without a check describes the position before April 2025, or before the scheme reached European nationalities at all. For a visit that begins on or after 2 April 2025, the approval requirement applies unless a status or document exemption covers the trip.

Passport Validity by Age

Official Maltese passport guidance sets validity by age. An adult passport holder aged 16 or over has a passport valid for 10 years. A passport for a child aged 10 to 15 is valid for 5 years, and for a child under 10 it is valid for 2 years. Those periods matter for families, because a young child’s passport can expire quickly, and a short-validity passport can end a trip planned around a longer approval.

The approval has its own clock. It runs for two years from the date it was granted, or until the passport used in the application expires, whichever comes first. A ten-year adult passport therefore does not carry an approval beyond two years, and a child’s five-year passport can end it sooner.

Your passport must also remain valid for the whole stay. Check the expiry date against both the trip and the approval before booking, and do not treat the two dates as the same thing.

Why the Approval Follows One Passport

The Immigration Rules say an ETA is valid, and confers permission to travel, only where the holder travels using the passport specified in the application. The approval is therefore a pairing between one person and one passport number. Official Maltese guidance makes the same point from the travel side: bookings should be made using the valid passport number.

That matters most in two cases. A family member who holds a second passport may have a different position on each document, so decide which passport you will travel on and apply with it. And when a passport is replaced, the approval does not move automatically to the new number. Check the position before the trip and, where needed, apply again with the new document.

The Maltese Identity Card

Maltese law requires every Maltese citizen over the age of 14 to hold a valid identity card, and the Identity Malta service issues the electronic card. Official guidance says the card carries the holder’s name, sex, nationality, date of birth, place of birth, address, facial image and signature, and that fingerprints are captured at application. Adult cards are valid for 10 years, and cards for younger applicants expire on fixed dates tied to their birthdays.

Official guidance also states that the card can be used as a travel document in EU countries within the Schengen zone. That is a Schengen fact, and it does not describe UK entry. For the UK, the rule is narrower. A Maltese ID card is not the approval document for an ETA trip, because the approval is tied to the passport named in the application.

For UK entry, the EU identity card can be used only in specific situations set by the border guidance. These include holding settled or pre-settled status, holding an EU Settlement Scheme family permit, holding a Frontier Worker permit, being an S2 Healthcare Visitor, and a narrow case for a young EU citizen travelling with a French school group. A person waiting for a decision on a settled-status application can use the card if they hold valid proof of that application. Outside those cases, carry the passport.

Settled Status and the Settlement Scheme

Some Maltese citizens living in the UK hold settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme. Holding that status is permission to live in the UK, and the ETA guidance treats it as a reason not to need an approval for travel. A Maltese passport does not, by itself, make a person an ordinary approval applicant.

The same guidance lists people who are waiting for a decision on an EU Settlement Scheme application among those who do not need an ETA. The valid proof of application is what counts, so keep it with the passport.

We do not assess any individual’s status here. Check your position on your UK account before booking. If your records do not show the status you expect, get help from the official service before you assume an exemption.

Automatic Gates and the EU Lane

EU, EEA and Swiss nationals, Maltese citizens among them, use the UK/EEA lane at border control. The lane is usually quicker than the standard passport route, and it is the normal starting point for a Maltese traveller.

Automatic gates are available to those lane users on conditions: the passport has a biometric symbol on the cover, the traveller is 8 or over, and the traveller has valid digital immigration status or a record of a digital exemption. Users aged 8 to 17 must be accompanied by an adult and be at least 120cm tall, and the gates check the passport photo by facial recognition.

The published guidance does not say how a traveller who holds only an ETA, rather than settled status or a digital exemption, is treated against the status condition. Treat the gate as a possibility, not a plan. For how the arrival process works, see our guide to UK border control, eGates and arrival.

Who Does Not Need an Approval

The ETA guidance exempts several groups. These are the ones most likely to matter for Maltese travellers.

• Holders of a valid UK visa for the journey it covers.
• Holders of permission to live, work or study in the UK, including settled or pre-settled status and right of abode.
• Applicants waiting for a decision on an EU Settlement Scheme application, with valid proof.
• British and Irish citizens, who travel on their own nationality’s evidence.
• Holders of a British Overseas Territory Citizen passport or a British National (Overseas) passport.
• Holders of permission to live, work or study in Jersey, Guernsey or the Isle of Man, for travel on that basis.
• People lawfully resident in the Republic of Ireland who meet the Common Travel Area conditions.

Each exemption depends on the document or status it names. Confirm the one that fits you before booking, and carry the evidence.

EU and Commonwealth Membership in Practice

Malta is an EU member and also a Commonwealth member. The practical UK effects are narrower than the two labels suggest. EU nationality places a Maltese citizen in the UK/EEA lane and brings the EU ID-card conditions into play. Commonwealth membership does not, by itself, confer right of abode, and it does not remove the ETA requirement.

The only way Commonwealth nationality becomes decisive is through the narrow right-of-abode routes described below, or through a separate status such as a British Overseas Territory Citizen passport. Neither follows from being Maltese.

Right of Abode and Narrow Historical Routes

A person with right of abode can live and work in the UK without restriction, and needs neither a visa nor an ETA. UK guidance says that some Commonwealth citizens have it, and it sets out the conditions. Malta’s membership of the Commonwealth is not one of those conditions.

The first narrow route runs through a parent. The guidance says a person may have right of abode if a parent was born in the UK and was a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies when the person was born or adopted, the person was a Commonwealth citizen on 31 December 1982, and they have not at any point since stopped being a Commonwealth citizen. The second route is marriage. It is limited to a female Commonwealth citizen married to someone with right of abode before 1 January 1983, and it carries further conditions about earlier marriages.

We cannot say whether any reader meets those tests, and this guide does not assess individuals. If you think you may qualify, check the official right-of-abode pages and the certificate of entitlement process before you travel. Our UK visa guide sets out the other status routes.

Dual Nationals

A Maltese citizen who also holds another nationality should decide which passport they will travel on, and whether British or Irish citizenship is part of the picture, before looking at the approval.

A Maltese and British dual citizen cannot obtain an ETA. The guidance says such a person can prove British citizenship with a valid British passport, with another valid passport and a certificate of entitlement showing right of abode, or with a valid Irish passport. They travel on that evidence and do not apply as ordinary applicants. The same applies to a Maltese and Irish dual citizen.

A Maltese citizen with a second nationality from the ETA National List applies with the passport they will use, and the approval covers only that document. A Maltese citizen with a second nationality that requires a UK visa should check the visa rules for that passport. This guide offers no Maltese nationality-law advice, because the UK answer turns on the passport used and on any British or Irish citizenship held.

For the full British and Irish position, see our dual citizens article.

Children and Mixed Statuses

Families are where statuses and passports diverge. One parent may hold settled status and need nothing; another may hold a Maltese passport without UK permission and need an approval; a child may hold a British passport and need nothing at all. Work out each person separately.

Every traveller who needs an approval needs an individual one, including babies. A parent can apply for a child, but the approval belongs to the child’s own passport. Decisions can arrive on different days, so book the trip around the last approval rather than the first.

Short child passports bring an extra check. A passport issued to a child under 10 lasts only 2 years, and one for a child aged 10 to 15 lasts 5 years. Confirm that every passport remains valid for the whole stay. For wider guidance, see our children, babies and families article.

What an ETA Allows

An approval covers short visits within the Visitor framework, with stays of up to six months on each occasion. It can cover several journeys while it remains valid, and each journey must still fit those limits.

• Tourism. See UK ETA for tourism.
• Family and friends. See visiting family and friends.
• Permitted business. Meetings, conferences and similar activity. See UK ETA for business visits.
• Qualifying short-term study. See UK ETA for short-term study.
• Permitted paid engagements. See permitted paid engagements.
• Transit. Passing through the UK where an approval is needed. See the transit section below.

What an ETA Does Not Allow

An approval is not a work permit, a student visa or a route to settle. Activities outside the Visitor rules can lead to refusal or cancellation.

• Ordinary employment. Paid work for a UK employer falls outside the approval.
• Living in the UK through repeated visits. Repeated trips do not create a residence right. See how often you can visit on an ETA.
• Long-term study. Study beyond the Visitor rules needs a different route.

Compare the routes before you apply if your plans fall outside these lines. The comparison of ETA and visa routes is the place to start.

Renewal, Replacement and the Approval

Renewal is where Maltese travellers most often lose track of the approval. A renewed passport has a new number, and the approval belongs to the old one. Check the approval against the new document before you travel, and apply again where it no longer matches.

Adults generally apply for a Maltese passport in person at the Passport Office, or at a Maltese mission abroad. Official guidance also requires an in-person visit for applicants except minors under six. Plan the renewal well ahead of any trip, so the approval and the passport are both in order on the day you fly.

For the wider rules, see our ETA validity and new passport article.

Collecting a Maltese Passport and Applying From Abroad

Official Maltese guidance sets out how a passport is collected, and the rules are worth knowing before you travel. An adult collects their own passport with a valid original identity card. For a child’s passport, the parent collecting it must show their own original identity card or a valid passport, and a child aged 12 or over must attend with a parent. Passport photographs are required only for children under 14, and for Maltese citizens living abroad who do not hold a Maltese identity card.

Citizens living abroad have two routes. Where a Maltese mission is nearby, the application can be made there. Where there is no nearby embassy, the official guidance says to travel to the nearest Maltese embassy, or to travel to Malta and apply at the Passport Office. An urgent collection service is offered for an additional charge. Whichever route you use, the passport number that results is the one your approval will need, so record it.

Transit

A traveller needs an approval if the route passes through border control at a UK airport before the onward journey. A connection that stays airside and never passes through border control does not need one for that purpose.

The question is about routing, not about how long you stay in the terminal. A booking can be airside on one leg and landside on another, so ask the airline how your ticket is routed before you book. We do not name airlines, airports or Malta-specific routes, because the answer depends on each itinerary. The general rules are in our transit and layovers article.

Ireland and Northern Ireland

Four terms need care. The Republic of Ireland is an independent state. Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom is the state that sets the approval rule. The Common Travel Area is the arrangement that eases movement between the UK, the Republic, the Isle of Man, Jersey and Guernsey.

The Common Travel Area does not cancel the approval requirement for people who need one. The exemption for travel from within the Common Travel Area covers people lawfully resident in the Republic who satisfy the relevant conditions, and evidence can be requested from those aged 16 and over. A Maltese traveller who is simply passing through Ireland is not covered by that exemption.

For the full picture, see our Ireland and Common Travel Area article.

Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man

The three islands are Crown Dependencies outside the UK. Current UK guidance describes an ETA as covering travel to the UK together with Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man, so a single approval may cover a visit to more than one of those places within its validity.

Holding permission to live, work or study on one of the islands is a separate exemption. Check the rules for the island you plan to visit close to travel, because island arrangements can change.

The Border on Arrival

Maltese passport holders use the UK/EEA lane, which the guidance describes as usually faster than the other channels. The officer checks your document and the permission you hold, and may ask why you are visiting.

Have the passport ready and out of any holder, and remove sunglasses or a face covering if you are wearing them. Families pass through control together. Keep your accommodation address and onward travel details available, and any settled-status proof you rely on.

The officer decides whether you may enter. The approval is permission to travel, not a promise of admission. If you are refused, see our guide to refused and rejected applications.

Preparing the Application

The form is quicker to complete when the documents are to hand. Most delays come from a passport number typed wrongly, a photograph that fails the rules, or a trip date that changed after the booking.

• The passport you will travel on. Check its expiry against the trip and the approval.
• An email address you check regularly. Decisions come by email, including to junk folders.
• A compliant photograph. Follow the rules on our requirements page.
• Travel details. Arrival date, departure date and where you will stay.
• Settled-status proof, if relied on. The reference and any proof of a pending application.

For timing, see our UK ETA processing time guide. The basics are in the UK ETA requirements article.

Steps in the Online Form

The online form follows the same order for every passport holder.

1. Select the passport you will travel on and enter its number.
2. Enter your name and details exactly as the passport data page shows them.
3. Upload a compliant photograph and check the preview before continuing.
4. Answer the travel and purpose questions accurately.
5. Pay the service fee where one applies, and keep the confirmation.
6. Check for the decision email, and bring the passport you applied with.

Be cautious with sites that imitate government services or ask for more than the official route does.

Mistakes to Avoid

1. Using the identity card as the travel document. The approval is tied to the passport.
2. Forgetting the two-year limit. A ten-year passport does not stretch the approval.
3. Ignoring a child’s shorter passport. A child’s 2-year or 5-year passport can expire before the trip ends.
4. Treating EU membership as an exemption. It brings the EU lane, not an approval waiver.
5. Treating Commonwealth membership as right of abode. The narrow routes have their own conditions.
6. Applying as an ordinary applicant with British or Irish citizenship. Such a dual citizen cannot obtain an approval.
7. Relying on an eGate without checking the conditions. Access is not assured.
8. Letting a pending settled-status proof lapse. Check it is still valid before you travel.
9. Forgetting Northern Ireland. The approval rule applies to it.
10. Treating approval as a guarantee. The officer at the border has the final decision.

Final Checks

• ✓You know which passport you are using, and the approval names it.
• ✓Each passport in your party is valid for the whole stay.
• ✓You have checked settled status, visas and other exemptions.
• ✓British or Irish citizens are travelling on that evidence.
• ✓Children’s passports, including shorter-validity ones, are checked.
• ✓The name on the application matches the passport data page.
• ✓Every connection has been checked for an airside or landside route.
• ✓You are not depending on the identity card for entry.
• ✓You are not relying on an eGate without the conditions in view.
• ✓Any trip to Northern Ireland, Jersey, Guernsey or the Isle of Man has been allowed for.
• ✓The activities you plan sit within the Visitor rules.

UK ETA FAQs for Maltese Citizens

Want more answers? Browse our UK ETA FAQs or contact us. You can also go back to the eligibility checker.