Migrants’ access to social protection in Malta

Abstract

This chapter provides an analysis of social security benefits in Malta by paying particular attention to differences in the conditions of access to five types of benefits (unemployment, health care, family benefits, pensions and guaranteed minimum resources) by different groups. Generally speaking, Malta’s welfare system has traditionally been very similar to the Southern European model, sharing many of its key characteristics such as: relatively low overall social expenditure where contributory benefits are considerably more generous than poverty relief; reliance on families as care providers, together with low female employment rates; well-protected employment coexisting however with an irregular and unprotected periphery; and a high involvement of the Catholic Church in the provision of welfare (Ferrera 1996). Similar to other Southern European states, Malta’s welfare system has evolved to promote female employment, to enable the balance of work and care responsibilities, to strengthen work incentives and include those furthest from the labour market through a variety of training and support measures. These changes have mainly been driven by Malta’s accession to the EU in 2004 and the policy convergence it has brought about. Accession has also meant the extension of the Social Security Act to EU nationals residing in Malta on the same terms as Maltese nationals. There have been numerous benefit changes in recent decades, driven by principles of non-discrimination, adequacy, sustainability and activation.