Every official source this guide relies on, with the institution, purpose, and date last checked.
How we choose sources
When a page on this site makes a claim about a process, requirement, or cost, it is grounded in one of the official sources below, in this order of authority:
- Identità — for Single Permit and employment-related permit requirements.
- Skills Pass official pages — for the Pre-Departure Course and sector-specific Skills Pass operational details.
- Human Rights Directorate — for I Belong Programme updates.
- Other Malta government pages.
Secondary, non-official sources are used only to discover where to look — never as the final authority for a claim shown on this site.
Official sources referenced on this site
- Jobsplus (opens in a new tab)
Opens the official website
https://jobsplus.gov.mt/
Official employment services, job search and course information.
Last checked:
- Identità (opens in a new tab)
Opens the official website
https://identita.gov.mt/about-us/
Current identity-management and migration functions.
Last checked:
- NCPE (opens in a new tab)
Opens the official website
https://ncpe.gov.mt/mt/complaints/
Official discrimination-complaints guidance within the Commission’s remit.
Last checked:
- Human Rights Directorate (opens in a new tab)
Opens the official website
https://humanrights.gov.mt/units/integration-and-anti-racism-unit/i-belong-programme/
Official I Belong Programme overview: the current programme structure (as restructured from 15 June 2026), eligibility, registration conditions, and discontinued courses.
Current claims re-read in a browser 2026-10-01 (unchanged against 2026-09-29, including the eligibility criteria, the registration link and the Important Information paragraph, for the /how-to-apply claim review); previous documented checks were 2026-07-14 and 2026-07-22. The page's "Important Updates" section now records a restructuring under Measure 15 of the Integration Strategy and Action Plan (2025-2030): "As from 15 June 2026, the I Belong programme will only focus on the provision of I Belong 100-hour Cultural Orientation course (previously called as Stage 2 Cultural Orientation)." Stage 2 applications received before 15 June 2026 keep the opportunity to take both the I Belong Maltese Language (MQF Level 2) course and the 100-hour Cultural Orientation course. Discontinued courses: Foundation Courses; I Belong Stage 1 Cultural Orientation (participants directed to the new "New Course on Maltese Language and Culture" under the Malta Labour Migration Policy framework, now a requirement for the 100-hour Cultural Orientation); I Belong Maltese Language (MQF Level 1); I Belong English Language (MQF Level 1); I Belong Maltese Language (MQF Level 2). Successful completion of the I Belong 100-hour Cultural Orientation is one of the requirements for Long-Term Residence (LTR). The current page no longer publishes the historical 50h/65%, 120h/80% attendance/75%, or a combined 170h total. The component figures appear in this guide's 2026-06-14 record; it is unresolved whether HRD itself published their 170h sum. "Further changes may be announced at a later stage." Re-checked 2026-07-22 — unchanged. That re-check also recorded the page's Stage 2 eligibility wording verbatim: applicants must hold a "Valid Residence Permit/Asylum Seeker Document/CIO Document" issued by the Maltese authorities, together with an "I Belong Stage 1 Cultural Orientation certificate or New Course on Maltese Language and Culture certificate" — an either/or prerequisite, an either/or that the older servizz.gov.mt page does not reflect (it still lists only Stage 1 graduates). The page publishes an online registration link and states that submission "does not guarantee eligibility, acceptance, enrolment, or access to any course", with eligibility, access, delivery, modalities AND costs "subject to the applicable legislation, availability of course places, and programme arrangements in force at the time of course delivery". No delivering institution is named for the 100-hour course. NOTE: this host returns HTTP 403 to automated fetches — check it through a browser, not a fetch tool. The page's "the updated list of delivering institutions can be accessed here" link resolves to the Jobsplus approved-provider PDF catalogued below. Re-read directly in a browser 2026-09-23 for the /troubleshooting content-accuracy pass — unchanged against the 2026-07-30 record, claim by claim: the Measure 15 restructuring wording, the discontinued-course list, the either/or Stage 2 eligibility, and no numeric pass mark all still hold. Read again in a browser 2026-09-29 for the PR #59 review: the same claims still hold, and the page's "APPLY HERE: STAGE 2 INTEGRATION CERTIFICATE" link points to the workflow.gov.mt form catalogued below. Read again in a browser 2026-10-02 for the /long-term-residence roadmap: the Measure 15 restructuring wording, the discontinued Maltese Language (MQF Level 2) course with the pre-15-June Stage 2 opportunity, and the sentence that successful completion of the 100-hour Cultural Orientation is one of the requirements for Long-Term Residence are unchanged.
Last checked:
- Jobsplus (opens in a new tab)
Opens the official website
https://jobsplus.gov.mt/media/0mnp0xsa/list_15june2026.pdf
The list of delivering institutions for the New Course on Maltese Language and Culture that the Human Rights Directorate's I Belong page links to.
Read directly (PDF) 2026-08-26. Title block: "New Course on Maltese Language and Culture — Malta Labour Migration Policy" / "List of Approved Providers updated on 15th June 2026". Lists 27 providers with approval dates from 06/04/2026 to 11/06/2026, in a two-column table (Date of Approval, Educational Institute Name). No fee, duration, MQF level, or enrolment channel is published for the course anywhere on this document. Re-read 2026-10-01 (PDF fetched by the WebFetch tool and viewed as an image): unchanged — same title block, same 27 providers, approval dates 06/04/2026 to 11/06/2026, and the same absence of fee, duration, MQF level or enrolment channel.
Last checked:
- Government of Malta — servizz.gov.mt (opens in a new tab)
Opens the official website
https://www.servizz.gov.mt/en/Pages/Inclusion_-Equality-and-Social-Welfare/Civil-Liberties/Equality/WEB06687/default.aspx
Older servizz.gov service description of I Belong Stage 2: application channels, the required document and a processing timeline. Its eligibility and course text pre-dates the 15 June 2026 restructuring.
Read directly via browser on 2026-07-22 (this host returns HTTP 403 to automated fetches). Publishes the application channels — an online application form, the Human Rights Directorate office at "A3 Tower, Level 0, Triq L Arkata, Paola", and 'Servizz.gov' hubs — the required document, and a processing timeline: "Vetting of Application — 8 days; Assessment of Application — 5 days; Approval of Application — 5 days; Delivery of Service — 5 days". IMPORTANT: the page is otherwise STALE. It still describes Stage 2 as two courses ("Maltese Language MQF Level 2", "Cultural Orientation MQF Level 2") and states eligibility as "I Belong Stage 1 Graduates" with an "I Belong Stage 1 Certificate" required — both superseded by the Human Rights Directorate's 15 June 2026 restructuring. Cite this source for application mechanics only, always dated, and never as authority on eligibility or course structure. Re-read in a browser 2026-09-29 for the full claim review of /stage-2: still unchanged and still stale (two Stage 2 courses, eligibility "I Belong Stage 1 Graduates", required document "I Belong Stage 1 Certificate", same 8/5/5/5-day timeline, an email address for the Directorate). /stage-2 now cites it only as the older page that still lists the narrower eligibility. Re-read in a browser 2026-10-01 for the full claim review of /how-to-apply: unchanged, including the three channels listed under How to apply (an online application form, the Directorate office address, Servizz.gov hubs), the 8/5/5/5-day timeline and the contact email ibelongcourses@gov.mt. Read again later the same day for the TODO restructuring recheck: still unchanged and still pre-15-June (two Stage 2 courses, eligibility "I Belong Stage 1 Graduates", document "I Belong Stage 1 Certificate"). On 2026-10-02 this address redirected to the Servizz.gov home page in a browser, and a site search for I Belong found no replacement page, so the older description could not be re-read; treat it as unavailable until it is found again.
Last checked:
- Identità (opens in a new tab)
Opens the official website
https://identita.gov.mt/frequently-asked-questions/expatriates/non-eu-non-employment/long-term/
Official Identità guidance on Long-Term Residence eligibility for non-EU nationals, including the documentation requirements that name the I Belong Integration Certificate.
Re-read in a browser 2026-09-29 (the FAQ answers are present in the page even while the accordion is closed): the figures below are unchanged, and the page adds that the I Belong certificate must not be older than one year at submission. Earlier check: re-checked directly on 2026-06-14 (Identità wording unchanged since). States the Long-Term Residence integration-certificate requirement as "completing Malta's official 'I Belong' Integration Course (100 hours) and achieving a minimum score of 75% in the final exam", plus a separate Maltese-language certificate (MQF Level 2) at 65% — read on 2026-06-14 as "both required within twelve months of application", a reading the 2026-09-29 text does not support: the one-year limit is stated for the I Belong certificate only, and the language-test answer states no validity period. The Human Rights Directorate's current page describes its 100-hour Cultural Orientation course; Identità describes an I Belong Integration Course at 100 hours. The pages use different course names, and matching hours do not establish that they describe the same course or settle the separate Maltese-language requirement. The guide's 2026-06-14 record lists earlier 50- and 120-hour figures, which add to 170, but it is unresolved whether HRD published that total; neither the component figures nor combined total appear on HRD's current page. HRD no longer publishes a numeric pass mark for the 100-hour course — only Identità's LTR FAQ still cites 75%. See the updated discrepancy note in OFFICIAL_SOURCES.md. Re-read in full in a browser 2026-10-02 for the /long-term-residence roadmap (eligibility, the five-year and absence rules, the categories whose time does not count, refugees, financial resources including the extra 20% per family member, integration and Maltese-language requirements, the document list, the online process, the €500 fee, six-month processing extendable by six, approval and card, refusal and appeal, renewal, loss of status, rights and the separate EU-mobility category): the integration figures are unchanged. The page is internally inconsistent on two points, both stated on the guide page: the appeal period (the decision letter's period in one answer, 3 working days in another) and renewal timing (at least one month before expiry in one answer, one to three months in another).
Last checked:
- Human Rights Directorate (opens in a new tab)
Opens the official website
https://humanrights.gov.mt/contact-us-antiracism/
Published contact page for the Integration and Anti-Racism Unit, which the Directorate's I Belong Programme page names for further assistance.
Re-checked directly on 2026-06-14. The URL redirects to /units/integration-and-anti-racism-unit/contact-us-antiracism/ and publishes the Integration & Anti-Racism Unit address, dedicated I Belong Programme email, general integration and anti-racism emails, telephone number, and social links. Re-read in a browser 2026-10-01 for the /official-contacts claim review: unchanged in substance — postal address (Human Rights Directorate, A3 Towers, Triq l-Arkata, Paola PLA 1211), emails (I Belong Programme: ibelongcourses@gov.mt; general integration queries: integration@gov.mt; anti-racism: antiracism.hrd@gov.mt), telephone +356 2226 3210, and Facebook pages "Human Rights Directorate" and "END-RACISM-MT". The page does not describe the Unit's role in the I Belong Programme; the Directorate I Belong page names the Unit for further assistance.
Last checked:
When official pages disagree
Occasionally, two official pages describe the same detail differently — for example, how a course fee is broken down. When that happens, we say so in plain language on the relevant page, show both versions, and note that the point needs further verification, rather than inventing a single reconciliation that no official source actually states.
We never collect official login details, documents, or payment data. Use this guide for context, then take action only on the official portal. Full citations are listed at the end of this page.
Read the official I Belong Programme pageOpens the official website