Maltese on electoral register and foreigners with residence permit to receive €100 vouchers

Government confirms foreigners with a residence permit will be receiving €100 vouchers announced in its stimulus package

Maltese on the electoral register and foreigners with a residence permit will be receiving the €100 vouchers, the government clarified on Thursday.

The vouchers form part of government's economic stimulus package and can be spent on restaurants, hotels, bars and shops that were forcefully shut.

The government was reacting to backlash on social media that the vouchers will only be made available to Maltese citizens.

“These vouchers represent money (not a cheque) which can be used directly at establishments which qualify for the scheme. That is why government needed to find a secure way to disseminate the vouchers, in the same secure way that voting documents are distributed,” the government statement read.

It clarified that the vouchers will be distirbuted to all those on the general elections register and holders of a residence document according to Identity Malta’s updated database. The vouchers will be distributed by Maltapost.

As part of its recovery package announced in early June, government had announced that all persons aged 16 and over, will be receiving €100 in vouchers. The vouchers will be in multiples of €20.

Four vouchers can be spent in hotels, restaurants and bars, while one voucher can be spent at retail outlets that were forcefully closed during the pandemic.

The scheme will cost government €32 million.