What you need to enter Malta with a Swedish passport

Authorization system

None operational yet (ETIAS delayed)

Malta is part of the Schengen area and of the future European ETIAS system (a travel authorization for nationalities exempt from a Schengen visa). As of the verification date, ETIAS is NOT operational. Once launched: cost €20, validity 3 years, applicable to passport holders from countries exempt from a Schengen visa. Short-stay Schengen visas for Malta are handled by Identità's Central Visa Unit.

What ETIAS is, who it will affect and when it starts →

Fee

Doesn't apply until ETIAS is operational. Schengen visas issued by Malta are paid according to the fee schedule of Fee Ordinance L.N. 287 of 2020, applied by Identità's Central Visa Unit; the specific amount per visa type has not been verified field by field.

Required documents

• A valid passport or travel document, issued within the previous ten years and valid for at least three months beyond the date you plan to leave the Schengen area (Regulation (EU) 2016/399, Art. 6(1)(a))
• A valid visa, if your nationality requires one. It is not needed if you hold a valid residence permit or long-stay visa issued by a Schengen State (Art. 6(1)(b))
• Documents justifying the purpose and conditions of the intended stay: an accommodation booking or a declaration of invitation from your host, and a return or onward ticket (Art. 6(1)(c) and Art. 6(3), which points to the non-exhaustive list in Annex I)
• Proof of sufficient means of subsistence: Malta has notified the European Commission a reference amount of €48 per day of stay, which is what border control checks (Annex 25 of the Practical Handbook for Border Guards). Cash, traveller's cheques, credit cards and declarations of invitation or of sponsorship all count as proof (Regulation (EU) 2016/399, Art. 6(4))

Vaccinations

• No mandatory vaccines for entry: no international certificate of vaccination (yellow fever included) is required under the International Health Regulations.

Health insurance

Not mandatory for this visa-exempt entry, though it's strongly recommended. The border officer may still ask for proof of sufficient funds and accommodation for your stay — a separate requirement from insurance.

Transit rules

Schengen rule: a maximum stay of 90 days within any 180-day period across the whole Schengen area. Malta is an archipelago with no land borders: you arrive through the international airport or by sea. The ferry from Sicily (Pozzallo or Catania) is an internal Schengen connection, so there is no external border check, but you must carry a valid ID document or passport and the ferry operator checks it at boarding anyway.

Why isn't your passport being stamped? The EES system →

Customs limits

Cash

Declare to Maltese customs if entering, leaving or transiting with €10,000 or more in cash (or the equivalent in another currency, including commodities used as highly liquid stores of value), using the common EU cash declaration form — a threshold harmonized across the whole EU by Regulation (EU) 2018/1672.

Alcohol

Arriving from outside the EU (age 17+): 1 litre of drinks over 22% alcohol, or 2 litres at 22% or under; plus 4 litres of still wine and 16 litres of beer — allowances of the Malta Tax and Customs Administration, matching the floor limits of Directive 2007/74/EC.

Tobacco

Arriving from outside the EU: 200 cigarettes, or 100 cigarillos, or 50 cigars, or 250 grams of smoking tobacco, plus other goods worth up to €175. Watch out for meat and dairy products from outside the EU: they must be declared, and carrying them undeclared can lead to a fine or criminal prosecution.

Overstay penalties

Anyone in Malta without the leave of the Principal Immigration Officer — including anyone staying beyond the authorized period — becomes a "prohibited immigrant" under Article 5 of the Immigration Act (Cap. 217), with a removal order as the typical consequence; the same article applies that status to anyone unable to show means of supporting themselves. Article 32 sets the Act's general penalty for offences with no specific penalty: a fine of up to €11,646.87, up to two years' imprisonment, or both. On top of that, as Malta is a Schengen State, an irregular stay can lead to a return decision and an entry ban with an alert in the Schengen Information System, valid across the whole area.

What happens if you stay past 90 days →

Common reasons for denial

• Producing a false or falsified travel document, or reasonable doubts arising about the authenticity of the supporting documents submitted or the truthfulness of their content (Regulation (EC) 810/2009, Art. 32(1)(a)(i) and 32(1)(b)).
• Failing to justify the purpose and conditions of the intended stay (Art. 32(1)(a)(ii); the same entry condition appears in Art. 6(1)(c) of Regulation (EU) 2016/399, so it is also checked at the border).
• Failing to provide proof of sufficient means of subsistence — Malta uses €48 per day as its reference — for the whole intended stay and for the return, and not being in a position to acquire such means lawfully (Art. 32(1)(a)(iii)).
• Having already used up the 90 days of stay within the current 180-day period on the territory of the Member States (Art. 32(1)(a)(iv)).
• Being the subject of an alert in the Schengen Information System (SIS) for the purpose of refusing entry (Art. 32(1)(a)(v)).
• Being considered a threat to public policy, internal security, public health or the international relations of any Member State (Art. 32(1)(a)(vi)).
• Failing to provide proof of adequate and valid travel medical insurance, where applicable (Art. 32(1)(a)(vii)).
• Reasonable doubts arising about the reliability of the statements made or about the applicant's intention to leave the territory of the Member States before the visa applied for expires (Art. 32(1)(b)).