The Pre-Departure Course for live-in carers — a different application route

The Pre-Departure Course itself doesn’t change

Official materials treat the Pre-Departure Course as a requirement for first-time Single Permit applicants generally — not something that varies by occupation. If you are applying for your first Malta Single Permit as a live-in carer, the course requirement described throughout this site applies to you the same way it applies to any other applicant: the same two online modules, the same 42-day completion window, the same €250 total fee, and the same live interview. See who needs the Pre-Departure Course to confirm the requirement applies to your situation, and what it costs for the full fee breakdown.

What this page covers is different: not the course, but the Single Permit application it feeds into, which official Identità materials describe as working differently for live-in carers than for other applicants.

Where the Single Permit application differs

Identità’s guidance states the general rule plainly: “Single Permit applications may only be submitted by the employer, in the capacity of the Maltese organisation entrusting the carrying out of specific employment to the non-EU national.” Live-in carers are named as the one exception: “Live-in carers may apply directly, provided that the application is endorsed by the employer.”

In practice, this doesn’t mean applying independently of your employer — their endorsement is still required either way. What changes is who can formally initiate and submit the application.

A separate, reduced fee — don’t confuse the two

Official materials describe the standard first-time Single Permit fee as €600. For authorised live-in carers, that figure is different: Identità’s guidance states the “Applicable Fee (Authorised Live-in carers only): €27.50” across every submission route it describes — manual submission, online submission, and a change of employer between spouses.

This is a Single Permit application fee, not a Pre-Departure Course fee. It does not replace, discount, or otherwise change the separate €250 the Pre-Departure Course itself costs — see what the course costs. A live-in carer applicant should expect to budget for both figures as distinct payments to different processes.

The forms and the checklist

Official materials name a specific application form for each live-in carer situation:

• Form C2 — new application
• Form C5 — applicant is still abroad
• Form C1 — renewal
• Form C3 — change of employer

The official checklist for a new live-in carer application lists twelve required items, including the work contract, a position description, Jobsplus’ Declaration of Suitability, health screening approval, and health insurance proof. Item eleven is the Pre-Departure Course Certificate, described as confirming “successful completion of the mandatory Pre-Departure Course”.

One wording detail worth flagging plainly rather than smoothing over: that checklist entry cites the certificate’s legal basis as issued “in terms of the Tourism and Hospitality Skills Pass Regulations” — narrower language than the general Pre-Departure Course materials this site is built on, which describe the same certificate as a sector-agnostic requirement. This guide states both because that is what the official sources say, rather than resolving the difference by assumption. If it matters to your specific application, ask Identità which framing applies to your case.

Manual or online submission

Official materials describe two ways to submit a live-in carer application. Manual submission involves visiting Identità’s offices in person to submit documents and capture biometrics — the exact process differs depending on whether the applicant is already in Malta or still abroad. Online submission runs through singlepermit.gov.mt, where the employer signs in with their personal e-ID, selects the live-in-carer application option, uploads the documents the portal’s own checklist generates, and pays online.

Both routes lead to the same outcome — an Approval in Principle letter, followed by a biometrics appointment and, eventually, a residence document. The official portal is the authoritative source for the exact current steps; this page focuses only on what is genuinely different for live-in carers, not on reproducing the full application walkthrough.