Identità moves ahead with controversial lease attestation form

Foreigners applying for a residency permit in Malta will have to present a lease agreement attestation form starting from Monday 23 September, if the application involves a new lease.

A foreigner renewing their residency permit with the same lease agreement will not have to present this lease attestation form.

According to Identità, the lease attestation form will serve to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the information provided by the agency while preventing abuse.

The identity agency announced this new measure last month, but gave applicants a day’s notice to start filling in this new form.

The measure prompted Malta’s Notarial Council and Chamber of Advocates to issue directives advising notaries and lawyers not to sign or fill in the new form.

This new practice was introduced by Identità in the middle of a scandal involving ID cards and residence permits issued on the basis of fraudulent documents.