Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2024, published 113rd ILC session (2025)

Malta

Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) (Ratification: 1965)
Protocol of 2014 to the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (Ratification: 2019)

The Committee takes note of the Government’s first report under the Protocol of 2014 to the Forced Labour Convention.

Articles 1(1) and 2(1) of the Convention, and Article 1(2) of the Protocol. National plan and coordinated and systematic action. The Committee notes, according to the profile on Malta on the website of the European Commission, that Malta, after having implemented several national action plans on human trafficking, initiated in 2020 an Anti-Human Trafficking Reform. The Human Rights Initiatives Unit (HRIU), set up within the Human Rights Directorate (HRD) of the Ministry for Home Affairs, Security, Reforms and Equality, as the national coordination body tasked with managing this reform enabled the drafting of the first National Strategy on Combatting Trafficking in Human Beings in Malta 2024-2030 (the “Strategy”) through initiatives which included consulting the relevant stakeholders, gathering of information, drafting of policy proposals, streamlining existing structures and services, and national awareness raising initiatives amongst others.

The Committee notes that the Strategy, adopted in July 2024, centres around five priority areas accompanied by specific objectives and expected outcomes: (1) strengthening the supporting anti-trafficking framework; (2) ensuring targeted prevention and early identification of potential victims and persons at risk; (3) increasing reporting by victims, effective investigation and prosecution; (4) comprehensive victim protection, justice and remedies; and (5) strategic partnerships at regional and international levels. The Strategy will be implemented for a period of seven years with actions of its first National Action Plan over a time frame of four years. It will be subject to a continuous examination of progress achieved to track compliance with the Plan, with the HRD monitoring and presenting progress results in reports and a mid-term evaluation and final evaluation of the Strategy.

The Committee welcomes the development and establishment of a coordinated and systematic approach to combating trafficking in persons through the adoption of the first National Strategy on Combatting Trafficking in Human Beings in Malta 2024-2030. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the implementation and monitoring of the Strategy and to share relevant information on the challenges faced and the results achieved, as identified in the progress reports prepared by the HRD.

Article 1(3) of the Protocol and Article 25 of the Convention. (i) Enforcement and application of effective penalties. The Committee observes that the chapter “On the Traffic of Persons” of the Criminal Code (Cap. 9) contains detailed provisions criminalizing all aspects of trafficking in persons for both sexual and labour exploitation and institutes a penalty of six to twelve years of imprisonment for these offences (in particular articles 248A and 248B of the Criminal Code). Moreover, under section 248E(3) and (4), corporate entities are also liable to fines or other penalties such as exclusion from entitlement to public benefits or aid, suspension or cancellation of any licenses or temporary or permanent closure, if the corporate entity benefits from the offence of trafficking or renders the offence of trafficking possible because of a lack of supervision.

The Committee notes, according to the document of the Strategy, that prosecutors initiated criminal proceedings against 6 suspects for sexual exploitation in 2022; this was an increase compared to the zero prosecutions in 2021, 2 in 2020, and zero in 2019. Further, in March 2023, the Office of the Attorney General initiated criminal proceedings against two persons for trafficking in persons for the purpose of labour exploitation. In May 2024, charges of labour and sexual trafficking combined, for the first time, with money laundering charges, were filed against three perpetrators.

According to the document of the Strategy, despite the legal framework and the two sentences of effective imprisonment in trafficking cases in 2023 by the Court of appeal and the Criminal Court, challenges of delays in the court proceedings and high acquittal rates means that very few victims currently see their traffickers prosecuted. In this regard, the Committee observes that one of the five priorities of the Strategy is to increase effective investigation and prosecution of traffickers, through such actions as modernizing the Malta Police Force and the Criminal Justice Systems to improve the efficiency of investigations and prosecutions; providing more training opportunities to the judiciary on the subject of trafficking; boosting coordination and cooperation between frontline professional, notably from civil society and law enforcement; and improving proactive investigation capability through intelligence-led operations.

The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the implementation of the measures of the Strategy aiming to strengthen the capacities of law enforcement bodies in order to ensure proper detection and investigations of cases of trafficking in persons, that could lead to prosecution and imposition of dissuasive penalties to perpetrators, in conformity with article 25 of the Convention. The Committee further requests the Government to provide information on the number of investigations, prosecutions, convictions and penalties imposed under sections 248A, 248B and 248D of the Criminal Code. It also requests the Government to indicate whether any prosecutions have been undertaken under section 248E of the criminal Code against corporate entities for having benefited from trafficking in persons or failed to adequately supervise its activities in a manner that has rendered trafficking in persons possible.

(ii) Labour inspection and collaboration. The Committee notes that labour inspections are conducted by the labour inspectors of the Department for Industrial and Employment Relations (DIER) in relation to the monitoring of working conditions, as well as by Jobsplus, which supervises the existence and conformity of employment contracts and is entrusted with the detection and deterrence of irregular employment. According to the Third Evaluation Report on the implementation by Malta of the Council of Europe Convention against Trafficking in Human Beings by the Group of Experts on Actions against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA report), both Jobsplus and DIER staff appear to receive training on human trafficking. Since 2016, Jobsplus inspectors have referred to the Malta Police Force five possible human trafficking cases. In addition, in 2016, two cases of labour exploitation concerning 24 Filipino victims were identified by the police as a result of the DIER inspectors’ referrals.

Considering the fundamental role of inspections in identifying cases of forced labour, the Committee encourages the Government to continue to take measures to strengthen the capacity of DIER and Jobsplus inspectors in detecting situations of trafficking. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the number of suspected cases of forced labour, including trafficking in persons, identified by the DIER and Jobsplus inspectors and brought to the attention of the Malta Police Force.

Article 2 of the Protocol. Prevention measures. (a). Educating and informing people. The Committee notes the Government’s information, in its report, that awareness sessions have been held with migrants and other vulnerable groups in order to inform them about possible abusive practices and also to make them more aware of their rights. Information sessions have also been held with frontliners who might see such labour exploitation happening, educate them about such signs in order to be then able to refer when they see malpractices, such as sessions were held with the assistance of cultural mediators provided by the Agency for the Welfare of Asylum Seekers (AWAS) to be delivered in a language that attendees could understand. The Committee welcomes the Government’s efforts to inform migrants and other vulnerable groups about potential abuses and their rights, and requests the Government to continue to provide information on measures taken in this regard.

Article 2(b) and (e). Educating and informing employers. The Committee notes, from the Strategy document, that while there is currently no work undertaken in Malta to address the risks of trafficking in supply chains, one of the objectives of the Strategy is to ensure that businesses undertake due diligence throughout their operations and supply chains to reduce risks of trafficking, particularly in sectors known for exploitative practices. The expected result is the introduction by businesses of anti-trafficking measures in their supply chains, such as control mechanisms, fair trade and other responsible measures and sanctions, and use of due diligence and risk assessment measures to lower the risks of being involved, directly or indirectly, in trafficking for labour exploitation. The Committee welcomes the inclusion of this objective in the Strategy and requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken for its implementation and the outcomes achieved, in particular in the sectors known for exploitative practices. Please indicate if the measures encompass all forms of forced labour or only trafficking in persons.

Article 2(d). Protecting persons, particularly migrant workers, from possible abusive and fraudulent practices during the recruitment and placement process. The Committee takes note of the Employment Agencies Regulations Law, 1996, which contains provisions aimed at protecting workers recruited through employment agencies. Section 10 prohibits employment agencies from charging fees to employees or making any deductions from their wages. The law also provides for inspection of employment agencies by the DIER which may lead to withdrawal of an agency’s operating licence and the imposition of a fine. Furthermore, the Employment Agencies Regulations, 2023 (L.N. 270 of 2023) – aims to regulate temping agencies by outlining the criteria and due diligence vetting necessary to the obtention of a license to engage temporary workers. Anyone caught operating without a license will face a fine of up to €30,000. The law expressly prohibits the practice of agencies charging workers or deducting money from their wages for a license. Companies caught engaging workers through an unlicensed agency will also be liable for punishment. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the manner in which the monitoring of employment and placement agencies is conducted in order to ensure the effective application of the Employment Agencies Regulations Law, 1996, and the Employment Agencies Regulations, 2023. It requests the Government to provide information on the number and nature of violations detected and the number of agencies held accountable as a result.

The Committee further notes, according to information on the website of Identity Malta, that foreign nationals may apply for a temporary-type permit which authorizes third country nationals to legally reside and take up employment in Malta for a defined period of over 6 months which may be renewed (single permit). Since 2016, third-country nationals applying for a single permit are requested to provide an employment contract signed by their employer to ensure that they are fully aware of the nature of their prospective employment conditions before entering Malta.

The Committee notes that third-country EU nationals are allowed to terminate their employment, with the obligation for the employer to notify Jobsplus within four days of an employment termination (under article 40 of the Employment and Training Services Act). For non-EU nationals, a change of employer application may be submitted by the new employer, prior to the third-country national terminating previous employment. If the third-country national is already terminated from the previous employment, should an application by a new employer be submitted within a 10-day period it may be considered for processing, even though the migration status of the third-country national is considered irregular as per the Immigration Act (Cap 217). According to Identity Malta, the 10-day period is a grace period and does not emanate from any legislation.

The Committee notes that, according to the Strategy, it appears that the direct link between obtaining residence permits and employment contracts via the single work permit seems to contribute to increasing the vulnerability of the migrant workers who are unlikely to report abusive working conditions because of fear of losing their residence permit which is tied to the work permit, and that while third country nationals are permitted to change employment, this does not seem to take place easily in practice. Moreover, in its report of 2024 following its visit to Malta (A/HRC/56/51/Add.2,), the UN Working Group on discrimination against women and girls noted that “administrative and labour requirements in relation to employment relationships of migrant women, such as the single work permit and the extremely short grace period of 10 days to obtain and to inform about a new employer in the case of loss of employment, place women at heightened vulnerability to forced labour and exploitation”.

The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the number of non-EU migrant workers with a single permit who have been able to change employers, as well as specific information regarding the manner in which the 10-day grace period is applied.

Article 2(f). Addressing the root causes and factors that heighten the risks of forced labour. The Committee observes that Goal 2.1 of the Strategy concerns increasing capacities in addressing root causes and reducing vulnerabilities and conducting targeted awareness/outreach activities. Specific objectives include improving understanding of trafficking in human beings through research on at-risk groups and root causes, addressing existing risks of trafficking of labour migrants, collaborating with tech companies to combat online recruitment and exploitation of victims of trafficking, and increasing outreach work in high-risk sectors. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken to achieve the objectives envisaged by the Strategy to address root causes of, and reduce the vulnerabilities to, trafficking in persons.

Article 3 of the Protocol. (i) Identification of victims. The Committee notes that the National Referral Mechanism (NRM), in use since 2014, defines the stakeholders who can be involved in the identification of victims of trafficking and refer them to assistance and support. The NRM contains a list of national indicators for identifying victims and the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) which provide detailed information on the steps to be taken from the identification stage through to assisted voluntary return of victims. According to the document of the Strategy, the NRM is not fully functioning and therefore requires improvement regarding its end-to-end referral pathway and its formal set up and use. To this end, improving the identification of victims of trafficking constitutes one of the main goals of the Strategy. Actions envisaged in this regard include: equipping frontline professionals for early identification of potential victims; and increasing outreach work in high-risk sectors; developing and putting into place a formalized National Referral Mechanism for victim identification and assistance; developing a centralized system for data collection; and enhancing the identification of victims of trafficking among asylum-seekers and irregular migrants by building the capacity of officials.

The Committee further notes that, from the Government’s reply to the Committee of the Parties, that the Agency for the Welfare of Asylum Seekers (AWAS) which manages Open Reception Centres for asylum-seekers and migrants, has an Assessment Team, which is responsible for the screening of asylum-seekers for vulnerability, including for potential involvement in human trafficking cases. Those who are identified as potential victims are referred to appropriate entities.

The Committee welcomes the measures taken to ensure proper identification of victims of trafficking for both sexual and labour exploitation and requests the Government to pursue its action in this regard, through the implementation of the relevant objective and actions of the Strategy, in particular the development and implementation of the new formalized National Referral Mechanism. In this context, the Committee requests the Government to indicate if frontliners have identified victims of practices of forced labour that are not related to trafficking. Furthermore, the Committee requests the Government to provide statistical information, disaggregated by age and gender, on the number of victims of trafficking in persons that have been identified, and by which law enforcement body.

(ii) Protection of victims. Assistance and rehabilitation. The Committee takes note of the Victims of Crime Act, 2015 (Cap. 539) (VCA), which constitutes the legal basis upon which the framework of assistance to victims of crime is offered, including how and under which conditions they can have access to the existing support services, in particular medical care, psychological support, accommodation, legal aid, interpretation and translation services, protection measures and compensation.

According to the GRETA report, the Malta Police Force established the Victim Support Unit in 2017, which provides a single point of contact for victims of crime, especially the most vulnerable. The services offered include crisis counselling, information about victims’ rights and referrals to other government and non-government agencies for ongoing support. Moreover, there is a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Malta Police and the Appoġġ Agency (the country’s social welfare agency), according to which the Agency provides all the assistance required to keep the persons concerned – either nationals or non-nationals – safe and secure and refers them to relevant support services. The Appoġġ Agency assisted 28 victims of trafficking in 2017, 48 in 2018, 48 in 2019 and 25 in 2020, most were victims of labour exploitation.

The Committee takes due note that the Strategy includes further objectives to strengthen victim protection, including setting up specialized accommodation facilities. It requests the Government to provide information on the implementation of the measures envisaged in this regard. It also requests the Government to provide information on the number of victims of trafficking for the purposes of labour and sexual exploitation who have benefited from support, accommodation and social rehabilitation services, and the nature of the services provided.

Recovery and reflection period. The Committee notes that, pursuant to the SOPs, police officers who come into contact with potential victims of trafficking should inform them of the possibility to avail themselves of a recovery and reflection period. Under section 3 of the Subsidiary Legislation 217.07 on “Permission to reside for victims of trafficking or illegal immigration who co-operate with the Maltese authorities regulations” of 2007 (S.L. 217.07), third-country nationals are granted a reflection period of no more than 2 months, to detach themselves from the influence of the perpetrators of the offence and enable them to take an informed decision on the possibility of co-operating. Furthermore, under section 5, a residence permit may be issued when it appears that it may present an opportunity for the investigations or judicial proceedings or that the third-country national is co-operating in the fight against human trafficking or that he or she has severed all relations with the persons suspected of committing the offences of trafficking. The residence period is valid for a period of six months, renewable if the conditions justifying said residence subsist.

If victims of trafficking no longer satisfy the conditions of S.L 217.07, they are freely allowed to change to another permit under national legislation, such as the single permit, provided that they meet the eligibility criteria. According to the document of the Strategy, it is unclear whether victims are in practice able to be considered under S.L 217.17. While this permit would result in victims of trafficking having the right to remain in Malta for the length of their employment contract, procedures for approval under S.L. 217.07 can take several months, which create a lot of distress and uncertainty for victims of trafficking. In this regard, the Committee observes that, under the Strategy, it is envisaged to assess the possibility of expanding the grounds for granting temporary residence permits to victims of trafficking.

The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the number of victims of trafficking or other forms of forced labour who have been granted: (i) a period of reflection; (ii) temporary residence permits, and for how long; and (iii) single permits pursuant to S.L. 217.07. It also requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken, if any, to expand the ground for granting temporary residence permits to victims of trafficking.

Article 4(1) of the Protocol. Access to remedies, including compensation. The Committee takes note of two possibilities, under Maltese law, for victims of trafficking or other forms of forced labour to obtain compensation. First, once convicted, the criminal court may order the offender to pay material damages to the victim (articles 15A (1), 28H (1) and 532A of the Criminal Code). Article 15A(1) of the Criminal Code allows a criminal court to ex officio order the offender to pay damages. The victim is also entitled, under articles 1031, 1045 and 1046 of the Civil Code, to claim damages in a separate civil procedure. In April 2018, the possibility of being awarded moral damages up to a maximum amount of €10,000 in trafficking cases was introduced to the Criminal and Civil Codes.

Second, victims of trafficking may claim compensation through the State, as regulated under S.L. 9.12 on Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme Regulations. However, only Maltese citizens, other EU citizens and persons who are habitual residents of Malta are entitled to state compensation. The victim must submit an application along with a police report to the Claims Officer, i.e. the Attorney General. As it is expressly laid out in S.L. 9.12 that an applicant may be accompanied by his/her legal adviser at his/her own cost (Article 14), no free legal aid is available for compensation claims. S.L. 9.12 allows for a maximum payment of €23,300 to any individual victim or group of victims of the same crime (Article 18).

The Committee notes, according to both the GRETA report and the Government’s reply to the Committee of the Parties, that despite the possibilities existing in law, no victim of trafficking has ever been granted compensation, be it from the perpetrators or the State. In this regard, the Committee observes that, in the context of the implementation of the Strategy, it is envisaged to increase the availability of training for judges and lawyers on access to compensation, to build the capacity of lawyers to seek compensation on behalf of the victims in criminal and civil proceedings and through the State fund, and to consider the adoption of a procedure through which victims of trafficking are entitled to obtain a decision on compensation by the offender, for material and non-material damage, as part of the criminal trial.

Moreover, according to the information in the Government’s reply to the Committee of the Parties, the Technical Working Group on Criminal Justice and Legislative Amendments (CJLAWG), established by the HRIU in June 2023, is reviewing proposed amendments to S.L. 9.12 including: (1) Making compensation available to all victims of trafficking when the offence was committed in Malta, irrespective of their nationality or residence status; and (2) Making the €23,300 limit applicable to each claimant, not each claim relating to the same crime.

The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken to facilitate information on and access to appropriate and effective remedies, particularly compensation, to all victims of trafficking in persons and other offenses amounting to forced labour. Please indicate the progress made in the adoption of the amendments proposed by CJLAWG. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken to raise awareness among judges, lawyers and law enforcement officialstoseek compensation on behalf of the victims in criminal and civil proceedings and through the State fund, as well as statistical data on the compensation effectively granted to victims of forced labour, including asylum-seekers or irregular migrant workers.

Article 4(2) of the Protocol. Non prosecution of victims. The Committee notes that article 248E(6) of the Criminal Code provides that offences under the subtitle VIIIbis (on trafficking in persons) are not liable to punishment if the offender was compelled thereto by another person. The Committee recalls that Article 4(2) of the Protocol provides that victims of trafficking or forced labour should not be prosecuted for any involvement in unlawful activities which they have been compelled to commit as a direct consequence of being subjected to forced or compulsory labour. In addition, the Committee observes that according to the document of the Strategy, the non-punishment principle is not consistently applied, and victims who were compelled to commit criminal offences as a result of being trafficked are punished.

The Committee requests the Government to ensure that the non-punishment principle is consistently applied, in law and in practice, and that victims of forced labour who have been compelled to commit any unlawful activities are not subject to prosecution or penalties, including through the issuance of instructions to that effect to prosecutors.

Article 6 of the Protocol. Consultation with social partners. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the manner in which social partners are consulted and involved in the development and implementation of the Strategy.