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The foreign spouse of a Maltese citizen can register as a Maltese citizen after five years of marriage and living together. Mirabello Consultancy assembles the civil documents, prepares Form B and follows your application with Aġenzija Komunità Malta, so your file is complete the first time.
Book a free consultationThe short answer
A foreign spouse can register as a Maltese citizen under article 6 of the Maltese Citizenship Act after being married to, and living with, a Maltese citizen for at least five years. The application is made on Form B to Aġenzija Komunità Malta. It costs €150, plus €50 for the certificate if approved.
Evidence: Official source · Mirabello MCP data · As of 2026-10-16
At a glance
| Basis | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Marriage | Married to a person who is, or becomes, a citizen of Malta, whether by birth, descent, registration or naturalisation |
| Duration | At least five years of marriage and living together on the date of application, counted from the date of the marriage |
| Continuing relationship | Still married and living together on the date of registration |
| Widow or widower | Eligible where the couple lived together until the death and the fifth wedding anniversary has passed, or had five years of marriage and cohabitation at the death |
| Public interest and oath | The grant must not be contrary to the public interest, and the applicant takes the oath of allegiance |
| Dual citizenship | Permitted since 10 February 2000. You keep your existing nationality where its own law allows |
Step by step
In detail
A foreign national married to a Maltese citizen can apply to be registered as a citizen of Malta under article 6 of the Maltese Citizenship Act (Cap. 188). The Maltese spouse can hold citizenship by birth, by descent, by registration or by naturalisation; the route is open to the spouse of any Maltese citizen. On the date of application, the couple must have been married and living together for at least five years, and they must still be married and living together when the registration is made.
The five years run from the date of the marriage, not from the start of the relationship. A couple who lived together for many years before marrying still counts the qualifying period from the wedding. The marriage must be genuine and subsisting, and the authorities assess the relationship as part of the application.
Since 1 September 2017, marriage in Malta has been open to same-sex couples, and same-sex spouses apply under the same article 6 conditions. Malta has allowed dual citizenship since 10 February 2000, so registering as a Maltese citizen does not require you to give up your existing nationality under Maltese law; check whether your other country of nationality allows it.
The spouse of a Maltese citizen who has died can still apply. A widow or widower qualifies where the couple had been married and living together for at least five years at the time of the death, or where they lived together from the marriage until the death and the fifth anniversary of the marriage has passed by the time of the application. These applications need the death certificate and two affidavits from immediate family members.
Spouses who have separated after living together for five years or more face a harder question. Form B includes an option for an applicant who lived with the spouse for at least five years after the marriage, while the statute speaks of spouses who are still living together. A separated spouse's case needs an individual legal assessment before an application is made, and we refer those cases to a warranted Maltese advocate.
If you married outside Malta, the marriage must first be registered in Malta with the Identità Public Registry. The registration costs €2.60 and needs the original marriage certificate with an apostille, unless the certificate was issued in another EU member state. Form B cannot be processed without a marriage certificate registered in Malta, and applicants who discover this at the counter lose months.
Form B is the Application for Registration as a Citizen of Malta by a Person Married to a Citizen of Malta. The Agency asks for originals with a photocopy of each document:
The Agency may ask for further documents where a case requires it. The certificates of the Maltese spouse's parents are often the hardest to obtain, especially for families whose records sit in parish archives or who left Malta generations ago.
The application fee for Form B is €150. If the application is approved, a further €50 is paid when you collect the certificate of registration. Each oath, affidavit or declaration sworn at the Agency costs €10. Every applicant takes the oath of allegiance, either at Aġenzija Komunità Malta in Valletta or before an authorised official at a Maltese mission abroad.
There is no paid or official fast track for citizenship by marriage, and no published processing time. The decision belongs to the Minister, who must be satisfied that the grant is not contrary to the public interest, and some applicants are invited to an interview. A complete, consistent file is the only lever on timing: an application that has to be corrected or supplemented simply waits longer.
You do not have to travel to Malta to apply. Spouses living in Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States and elsewhere submit Form B through a Maltese embassy, high commission or consulate, where the affidavit and oath are sworn before a mission official or a person authorised under local law. Missions add their own charges, and documents issued outside the EU need apostilles and, where they are not in English or Maltese, certified translations.
Once you hold the certificate of registration, you apply for a Maltese identity card and a Maltese passport in the usual way. If you have children, check whether they are already Maltese by descent or need to be registered; our guide to registering a child and the first passport explains the rules.
Mirabello Consultancy is a Swiss advisory firm with offices in Zurich, Dubai and Hong Kong SAR, supporting Maltese families remotely. You can file Form B yourself; our role is to make the file complete and consistent. We confirm eligibility, arrange registration of a foreign marriage, source certificates from the Malta Public Registry and parish records, coordinate apostilles and certified translations, prepare Form B and the joint affidavit, book the appointment at the Agency or the right mission, and follow the application with the authorities until the certificate is issued. Matters that need a legal opinion are referred to a warranted Maltese advocate.
Marriage is a family route, open only to spouses of Maltese citizens and decided on eligibility, not on any payment for citizenship. All of our Maltese family services are brought together on our Maltese citizen services page, and you can compare marriage routes in other countries on our citizenship by marriage hub.
Questions
You need at least five years of marriage to, and living together with, a Maltese citizen on the date you apply, and you must still be married and living together when the registration is made. The five years are counted from the date of the marriage, not from the start of the relationship.
Form B, the Application for Registration as a Citizen of Malta by a Person Married to a Citizen of Malta, submitted to Aġenzija Komunità Malta. It is used for marriages under both article 4 and article 6 of the Maltese Citizenship Act; almost all applicants today apply under article 6.
The government fees are €150 for the Form B application and €50 for the certificate if the application is approved, plus €10 for each oath, affidavit or declaration sworn at the Agency. Registering a foreign marriage in Malta costs €2.60. Mission charges, apostilles and translations are additional.
The Maltese Citizenship Act requires five years of marriage and living together, and does not itself say the cohabitation must take place in Malta. Many applicants live abroad and apply through a Maltese mission. Because practice can vary, we confirm your position with the Agency before you apply.
Yes. You can submit Form B through a Maltese embassy, high commission or consulate, where the joint affidavit and the oath of allegiance are sworn before a mission official or another person authorised under local law. Documents issued outside the EU need an apostille and, where needed, a certified translation.
Yes. A marriage celebrated outside Malta must be registered with the Identità Public Registry before Form B can be processed. The registration costs €2.60 and needs the original marriage certificate with an apostille, unless it was issued in another EU member state.
Yes, where the couple had five years of marriage and cohabitation at the time of the death, or lived together from the marriage until the death and the fifth wedding anniversary has passed by the application date. The application adds the death certificate and two affidavits from immediate family.
Not under Maltese law: Malta has permitted dual citizenship since 10 February 2000. Whether you keep your existing nationality depends on the law of that country, which you should check before applying.
There is no official processing time and no paid fast track. The Minister decides each application, and some applicants are interviewed. A complete, consistent file avoids the requests for further documents that cause most delays.
Book a free consultation through our contact page. We confirm your eligibility, tell you which documents you need and where to obtain them, and prepare your Form B file. Government fees are paid at cost and our service fee is confirmed per case before you commit.
Information, not legal advice. Government fees and rules can change; a specialist confirms your case against current official sources.
A free, confidential conversation with a Mirabello specialist. We confirm what applies to you, list the documents you need, and prepare your file.
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