TCNs Hoping To Come To Malta Should Verify ‘Approval In Principle’ Letters Or Risk Being Defrauded
TCN Malta – a support group for Third Country Nationals residing and working in Malta – has issued a warning about the circulation of fake ‘Approval in Principle’ letters, designed to trick people who want to come and live and work in Malta into handing over their money.
The organisation told Lovin Malta that fake letters like these are being circulated by predatory agents in countries such as Bangladesh, Nepal, India, Pakistan and the Philippines – where there are promises of Malta being a gateway to Europe.
“Agents usually charge thousands of euro for these documents,” a representative of TCN Malta told Lovin Malta.
TCN Malta aims to raise awareness on common immigration and employment issues in Malta – assisting and supporting people on matters of immigration and employment.
The organisation’s Facebook page is run by Sciberras Advocates and Belgravia Advisory – law firms collaborating to specialise in immigration and employment law.
Though Identity Malta is charged with managing labour immigration in Malta, many feel that the entity has proven to be less concerned with protecting than those coming to live and work here than they have been ‘protecting Malta’ from them.
Examples of people abusing TCNs through abusive employment practices are shockingly prevalent in modern Malta.
“We recommend that those who want to come to work in Malta using agency services make sure that these agencies are trustworthy. Do not be afraid to ask questions like ‘who is the Malta agent?’ – or check with people already in Malta who might be able to do background checks on these agents.”
TCN Malta’s representative continued. “Identity Malta runs background checks on the applicants, so candidates should do the same on the people they are trusting with their money”.
“Agent cover fees are administrative – and candidates should not pay thousands in administration fees given that there are no surcharge payments for fast-track services, and the only fee to paid to Identity Malta for a work permit is €280.50.”
Navigating Malta’s work permit bureaucracy – especially whilst trying to keep earning a living – would already be difficult without scammers, an unwelcome additional obstacle.
“Any other fees are over and above and should be reasonable. If they are not, the candidate is likely being subjected to scams or fraud – or could even be subjected to victimisation of financial crimes or human trafficking,” TCN Malta told Lovin Malta.
The organisation cannot determine with certainty who the source of these fake documents might be.
“While community members often refer to them as ‘agents’ – they are often people pretending they can obtain work permits – before actually forging documents,” said the organisation.
“Even though the government is the injured party, as a document of Identity Malta Agency is being forged, it is difficult to find the culprit since they do not usually reside here.”
Identity Malta has been subject to scams similar to this one in the past.
TCN Malta has had several community members get in contact after being victimised by this scam. They issued the following advice.
“Any letter issued by Identity Malta has a unique QR Code, a link and a unique code number to verify the integrity of the document. Click on the link and input the unique code found on the letter to verify the document.”
Despite the prevalence of stories showcasing deeply normalised exploitative practices – Malta has maintained a positive reputation for offering attractive wages and decent living standards.
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