The working from home rules Malta employers must follow are not a grey area or a pandemic leftover. They sit in a specific piece of law, the Telework National Standard Order, and they cover who pays for your laptop, whether your boss can send you home or call you back to the office, and how you can be monitored from your own living room. If you have just signed a hybrid contract in Sliema or been offered a remote role before you have even landed, knowing these rules saves a lot of awkward conversations later.
I have watched plenty of newcomers sign contracts that say “flexible working” without a single line explaining what that means. Six months in, the questions start: who covers the extra on the bills, can the company insist I come in more often, and what happens if I want my desk back? Most of the answers are already written down. This guide walks through them in plain English, quoting the law where the exact wording matters.
One honest caveat before we start: this is a practical overview for people new to Malta, not legal advice. If you are in a dispute with an employer, read the full text and speak to a qualified professional or a trade union.
The law behind working from home in Malta
Telework in Malta is regulated by the Telework National Standard Order, Subsidiary Legislation 452.104, made under the Employment and Industrial Relations Act, Cap. 452 (legislation.mt). The order defines telework as “a form of organising and/or performing work, using information technology, in the context of an employment contract or relationship, where work, which could also be performed at the employer’s premises, is carried out away from those premises on a regular basis.”
Three parts of that definition matter in day-to-day life:
- “Using information technology”: this is about laptop-and-internet work, not jobs that are physical by nature.
- “Could also be performed at the employer’s premises”: the work has to be office-capable. If your job can only be done on site, the telework rules are not really the framework you are dealing with.
- “On a regular basis”: a one-off morning at home while you wait for the landlord’s plumber is different from a fixed pattern, such as two set days at home every week. The regular pattern is what the order is written around.
Who this is mainly about
The order is built around an employment contract or relationship, so it is most relevant if you are employed by a company in Malta. If you are self-employed, you set your own arrangements with clients. If you are living here while working for a company abroad, for example on a nomad-style permit, the question of which employment rules apply to your contract is one to clarify with your employer; our digital nomad guide to permits, coworking and costs covers the residence side.
Working from home rules Malta employers must put in writing
Telework cannot be a quick nod in the corridor. Under the order, “telework may be required by the employer as a condition of employment in an employment contract, or it may be introduced by specific agreement between the employer and the employee during the course of the employment relationship.” Either way, the arrangement belongs in writing, from the start of employment or later on.
In practice this gives you two routes:
- Remote or hybrid from day one: the telework element is part of the job offer and your contract. You accept it when you sign, so read that clause carefully before you do.
- Agreed later: you start in the office and then you and your employer agree a home-working pattern. This should be a specific written agreement, not an email saying “sure, work from home on Fridays”.
A good written agreement answers the practical questions before they become arguments. Look for:
- Which days or what proportion of your time is remote, and whether that can change.
- Your expected working hours and when you need to be reachable.
- What equipment the company provides, and who repairs or replaces it.
- Whether there is any allowance towards costs such as internet or utilities.
- Whether any monitoring tools are used, and what they track.
- How either side can end the arrangement.
Expat tip: if your offer letter just says “hybrid” or “flexible”, ask HR for the written telework terms before your start date. A polite request at offer stage is far easier than a negotiation six months in.
Can your employer make you work from home, or refuse it?
This is where the working from home rules Malta employers apply tend to surprise people, because the law protects both sides from being forced into a change.
If telework is offered during an ongoing job, the order says that “an employee’s refusal to accept an offer of telework made by the employer does not, in itself, constitute a valid reason for terminating the employment contract or changing the terms and conditions of employment of the employee.” It is equally clear in the other direction: “if an employee expresses the wish to opt for telework, the employer may accept or refuse that request.”
There is also a route back. Where telework was agreed after the job started, “either party may terminate the telework arrangement and the employee shall have the right to return to his pre-telework post.”
| Situation | What the order says | What it means for you |
|---|---|---|
| Remote work written into your contract from day one | Telework may be required as a condition of employment | You agreed to it when you signed, so check the terms before signing |
| Employer offers telework mid-contract | Refusal is not, in itself, a valid reason to dismiss you or change your conditions | You can say no and keep your current set-up |
| You ask to work from home | The employer may accept or refuse | There is no automatic right, so make a clear case |
| Telework agreed mid-contract and one side wants to stop | Either party may end it; you can return to your pre-telework post | You have a way back to your desk, and so does your employer |
Note the scope of that last row: the order frames the right to return for arrangements agreed after the employment started. If your role was remote from the very beginning, what your contract says carries more weight, so read it closely.
How to ask for home working
Because the employer may refuse, a vague “can I work from home?” rarely lands well. Propose specific days, explain how you will stay reachable, and offer a trial period with a review date. Managers in Malta tend to respond better to a concrete plan than to a general request, a pattern you will notice in our guide to jobs, salaries and work culture in Malta.
Equal rights, workload and Malta working hours at home
Working from your flat in Gżira should not make you a second-class employee. The order states that “a teleworker shall enjoy the same conditions of employment, and shall have the same rights as a comparable worker at the employer’s premises.” Workload and performance standards must also be equivalent to those of comparable office-based colleagues.
What that looks like in everyday terms:
- Same leave and benefits: annual leave, sick leave and any company benefits apply just as they would in the office.
- Same workload: being at home is not a reason to pile on extra tasks, and it is not a reason for lower expectations either.
- Same appraisal standards: you should be judged against the same criteria as comparable colleagues on site.
- Same access to training and progression: if office staff are put forward for courses or promotion, remote staff should not be quietly overlooked.
Malta working hours when your office is your kitchen
Malta working hours do not change because your commute has disappeared. The hours, breaks and overtime arrangements in your contract apply at home exactly as they do at your desk in St Julian’s or Birkirkara. The real risk for remote staff is drift: answering messages over dinner, starting early because the laptop is right there, and slowly working longer days than colleagues who leave the building.
A few habits help: agree in writing when you need to be online, keep a simple log of your hours if you are regularly contacted outside them, and close the laptop at a set time. If extra hours become the norm, raise it on the basis that a teleworker has the same rights as a comparable office worker.
Equipment, internet and Malta electricity and water bills
Unless your written agreement says otherwise, the order puts the equipment burden on the employer: “the employer shall be responsible for providing, installing and maintaining the equipment necessary for telework, as well as for taking the measures necessary to ensure that the equipment is in good working order.” It continues: “the employer shall compensate or cover the costs directly caused by the work, in particular those relating to communication.”
In practice, that usually means:
- Hardware: the laptop, and often a headset or monitor, supplied and maintained by the company.
- Repairs: if company equipment breaks, fixing or replacing it is the employer’s job, not a trip to a repair shop at your expense.
- Communication costs: the law specifically names these, which is why internet and phone costs are the most common items covered by a home-working allowance.
What about electricity and water?
Malta electricity and water bills are where many home workers start doing the maths, especially in the hot months when the air conditioning runs all day. The order does not list electricity or water by name; it refers to costs “directly caused by the work, in particular those relating to communication.” Whether part of your utility bill falls under that wording depends on your agreement and how it is interpreted, so do not assume either way.
Two important words sit at the start of all this: “unless otherwise agreed”. Your contract can set different terms, for example a fixed monthly allowance instead of reimbursing actual costs, or no allowance at all. Read that clause before signing, and if it is silent, ask HR how home-working costs are handled.
Renters, check your lease: in many Maltese flats the utility account is in the landlord’s name and costs are passed on to the tenant. Make sure you understand how your bills are calculated before you commit to working from home full time. Our guide on where to live in Malta, with areas, rents and bus links covers what to ask when viewing a flat.
Monitoring and privacy at home
Remote work has brought a wave of tracking tools, from activity monitors to screen captures. Maltese telework rules set a clear limit: any monitoring system “shall be proportionate to the objective and can only be introduced if agreed upon in the written agreement.”
Two practical takeaways follow from that wording. First, monitoring has to be proportionate, so there should be a genuine purpose and the tool should not go further than that purpose needs. Second, it belongs in the written agreement rather than being switched on quietly after you start.
Questions worth asking before you sign:
- What software is installed on the company laptop, and what does it record?
- Is your camera ever expected to be on outside meetings?
- Who can see the data, and for how long is it kept?
Data protection rules under the GDPR also apply to how your personal data is handled, separately from the telework order.
Which jobs in Malta actually offer remote or hybrid work
In my experience, hybrid arrangements are most common in office-based sectors: iGaming, financial services, tech, marketing and some customer support teams. If you are in or targeting that world, our guide to iGaming jobs in Malta, roles and life after work explains what the day-to-day tends to look like. Even in these sectors, fully remote roles for people living in Malta are less common than hybrid set-ups with fixed office days, so ask early in the interview process.
Hospitality and on-site roles
If you are looking at hospitality jobs in Malta as a foreigner, expect the work to be on site. Hotel, restaurant, bar and kitchen roles are physical by nature, so they do not fit the legal definition of telework, which covers work that could be done at the employer’s premises but is carried out elsewhere using information technology. The same goes for retail, care work and most trades. Some back-office roles in larger hotel groups may offer flexibility, but treat that as something to confirm in writing rather than assume.
Checklist before you sign a remote or hybrid contract
Use this list to check the working from home rules Malta employers have built into your offer:
- Is the telework arrangement in writing? Either in the contract itself or in a separate signed agreement.
- Is it a condition of the job or an agreed extra? This affects your options if you later want to change it.
- Which days are remote, and can they change? Look for who decides and how much notice is given.
- What hours must you be available? Core hours, breaks and overtime should match office colleagues.
- What equipment is provided? Laptop, monitor, headset, and who handles repairs.
- Are costs covered? Internet and phone in particular, and whether there is an allowance for anything else.
- Is there monitoring? If so, it should be described in the written agreement.
- How can the arrangement end? Notice periods and your right to return to your previous post if telework is agreed mid-contract.
- Are appraisals and promotion criteria the same? They should be equivalent to comparable office staff.
Not legal advice: this checklist is a starting point. For the full wording, read the Telework National Standard Order, Subsidiary Legislation 452.104, on legislation.mt. If something in your contract worries you, speak to an employment lawyer, your union or the Department for Industrial and Employment Relations (DIER) before signing.
Working from home without working alone
The rules cover your laptop and your hours. They do not cover the quieter problem many newcomers mention: working from home in a country where you do not know anyone yet can get lonely fast, especially if you arrived alone and your colleagues are mostly on video calls.
A few things that genuinely help:
- Split the week: if your contract allows remote work from anywhere, a couple of days at a coworking space gives you structure and faces. Our coworking space guide with prices and who each space suits compares the options.
- Change your scenery: a morning in a laptop-friendly café beats another day at the kitchen table. See our cafés with wifi in Malta, listed by area.
- Build an end to the day: a walk along the Sliema or Gżira promenade, a gym class or a weekly lunch with someone new marks the line between work and home.
If you do arrange to meet someone new, keep it simple and safe: choose a public place, tell a friend where you are going, sort out your own way home and leave if anything feels uncomfortable.
Want to turn this into an actual plan? MeetNow is a free app for meeting people in person: a host posts a plan at a public place, says who pays (host pays, split, pay your own or free) and picks who joins. It is live on the web and works in your browser, starting in Malta. The Android app is on Google Play; the iPhone app is not in the App Store yet. Open MeetNow and see the plans posted in Malta.
FAQ
Is working from home a legal right in Malta?
No, not automatically. Under Malta’s Telework National Standard Order, if you ask to work from home the employer may accept or refuse the request. Your options depend on your contract and any written telework agreement.
Can my employer make me work from home?
If telework is written into your contract as a condition of employment from the start, you agreed to it when you signed. If your employer offers telework during an ongoing job, your refusal is not, in itself, a valid reason to dismiss you or change your terms and conditions.
Who pays for my laptop and internet when I work from home?
Unless your written agreement says otherwise, the employer is responsible for providing, installing and maintaining the equipment needed for telework, and for covering costs directly caused by the work, in particular communication costs such as internet and phone.
Does my employer have to pay part of my electricity bill?
The law does not name electricity or water specifically. It refers to costs directly caused by the work, in particular communication costs, and the contract can set different terms. Check your agreement and ask HR whether a home-working allowance applies.
Can I go back to the office after agreeing to work from home?
Yes, if the telework arrangement was agreed after your employment started. In that case either party may end the arrangement, and you have the right to return to your pre-telework post.
Can my employer monitor me while I work from home?
Only within limits. Any monitoring system must be proportionate to its objective and can only be introduced if it is agreed in the written telework agreement, so ask what is tracked before you sign.
