Tax measures

• A two-month deferral to enterprises, including the self-employed, to pay Provisional Tax, VAT and National Insurance Contribution on salaries.
• This will apply for taxes owed until the end of April. All tax forms should be submitted according to normal deadlines. The incentive is primarily aimed, but not limited to, the tourism and hospitality, entertainment, transport, and manufacturing sectors.  Enterprises will still collect National Insurance on their employees’ wages but will keep these dues for the duration of the deferral.
• These deferrals are estimated to improve liquidity by €700 million. After these two months, Government will be studying possible extensions of this measure depending on the prevailing economic conditions.

This measure is granted to Enterprises and Self-Employed persons whose turnover has significantly decreased due to the adverse impact of COVID -19.

Covid Wage supplement

The Covid Wage Supplement provides employee with a basic wage cover to address the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. In order to simplify administrative processes funds will be forwarded to employers who will be obliged to guarantee that the Covid Wage Supplement as established below is forwarded to the employee.

• Full time employees of enterprises operating in sectors that suffered drastically due to the COVID-19 pandemic or had to temporarily suspend operations on the order of the Superintendent of Public Health will be entitled to up to five days’ salary based on a monthly wage of €800. This includes all self-employed. Part-time employees will be eligible €500 per month.
• Full time employees of enterprises in other adversely affected sectors, will be entitled to one days’ salary per week equivalent to €160 per month. Part-time employees will be eligible to one day’s salary per week, equivalent to €100 per month. In the case of Gozo based enterprises this will increase to two days’ salary per week equivalent to €320 per month for full time employees, and €200 per month for part time employees.
• In case of full-time self-employed in other adversely affected sectors who have employees will be entitled to two-days’ salary per week equivalent to €320 per month, part-time self-employed shall be entitled for €200 per month.
• Full-time self-employed based in Gozo operating in other adversely affected sectors will be entitled to €320 per month. This will increase to €480, for those self-employed who employ staff, and the employees will be entitled to 2 days salary calculated on €800 a month.  Part-time self-employed based in Gozo operating in other adversely affected sectors will be entitled to €200 per month. This will increase to €300, for those part time self-employed who employ staff, and the employees will be entitled to 2 days salary calculated on €800 a month.

Further liquidity measures

• Malta Development Bank ‘COVID-19 Guarantee Scheme’
  The MDB COVID-19 Guarantee Scheme (CGS) provides guarantees to commercial banks in order to enhance access to bank financing for the working capital requirements of businesses in Malta facing a sudden acute liquidity shortage as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak.
  The CGS has been approved by the European Commission under the Temporary Framework for State aid measures to support the economy in the current COVID-19 outbreak.
• Six-month moratorium on both capital and Interest from banks for business or personal loans. This will alleviate the burden of bank loans for ALL persons and businesses in this challenging period. Please contact your local bank for assistance.

Social measures

• Parents who both work in the private sector requiring one of the parents to stay at home to take care of school-aged children will receive a direct payment of €166.15 per week if working fulltime or €103.85 per week if working part-time provided that they cannot carry out their functions through teleworking arrangements. This measure also applies for single parent families who have school-aged children.
• Persons with Disability who work in the private sector and are duly registered with Jobsplus, may opt to stay home for health and safety reasons will receive a direct payment of €166.15 per week if working fulltime or €103.85 per week if working part-time.
• Employees who had their full-time employment terminated as of 9th March 2020, including those who were self-employed, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic will be eligible for the Contributory Unemployment Benefit and will receive a direct payment of €166.15 if work was in full-time before you became unemployed or €103.85 per week if work was part-time before becoming unemployed.
• Government will increase rent subsidies for individuals who have their job terminated.

Medical benefit

Persons employed in the private sector, who after 27th March 2020, due to the impact of COVID-19 are not going to work because they are ordered by the Superintendent of Public Health not to leave their home, are not able to work from home and are not being paid by their employer during their absence from work.

Quarantine leave

• Employers who have or had a member of their staff (including themselves) on mandatory quarantine leave in accordance with the directives of the Superintendent of Public Health are entitled to a one-off lump sum grant of €350.
• The grant is also applicable for members of staff who had to quarantine themselves in view of possible contact with individuals who were directly at risk of infection, such as living in the same dwelling or in the same workplace.
• This measure only covers grants for full-time employees.

Facilitating teleworking activities

• This call supports employers and self-employed individuals to invest in technology that enables teleworking and to partially cover the costs of teleworking solutions.
• Support shall be limited up to €500 per teleworking agreement and €4,000 per undertaking. The grant shall be awarded against 45% of the eligible cost. This call is eligible for costs incurred between 15th of February and 8th May 2020.
• In order to be eligible, the employee should not have had an active teleworking agreement prior to the 15th of February 2020. All costs must be incurred after this date.