When your mum or dad needs a carer, there are two broad ways to find one in Malta: employ someone directly, or go through an agency. Jobsplus, the public employment service, puts it simply: household workers "might be hired directly by you, the homeowner, or through an agency" (source: Jobsplus: household employees). Both are legal. This guide explains what changes between them, how to check that an agency is licensed, and the questions to settle before you sign anything.
Two ways to hire, both legal
- Directly. Your parent (or you) finds a carer, agrees the terms and becomes the employer. Families find carers through friends and neighbours, Facebook groups, job sites and listing sites such as CarerMalta.
- Through an agency. A licensed employment agency finds candidates for you or, in some arrangements, employs the carer itself and places them in your home.
Neither route is "official" or "unofficial". What matters is who the employer is, who pays what, and whether the agency holds a licence.
What an agency does, and who the employer is
Malta's Employment Agencies Regulations (S.L. 452.130) cover three kinds of business (source: S.L. 452.130, Employment Agencies Regulations):
- Recruitment: an agency that recruits people "for employment in Malta or outside Malta". You or your parent then employs the carer. A recruitment agency may not register the people it places "under its own name" (source: S.L. 452.130, Employment Agencies Regulations).
- A temporary work agency: it "enters into contracts of employment" with workers and assigns them to a user "to work temporarily under its supervision, direction and control" (source: S.L. 452.130, Employment Agencies Regulations).
- An outsourcing agency: it also employs the workers itself and assigns them to users, but they work "under the supervision, direction and control of the outsourcing agency" (source: S.L. 452.130, Employment Agencies Regulations).
So the first question to ask any agency is: "Will my parent be the employer, or will you?" The answer changes who registers the carer with Jobsplus, who runs payroll, who the carer can complain to, and whether your parent can claim Carer at Home (see below). Ask for the answer in writing.
How to check an agency's DIER licence
No one may operate an employment agency in Malta without a licence (source: S.L. 452.130, Employment Agencies Regulations). The Department for Industrial and Employment Relations (DIER) issues licences, and the law sets two visible tests:
- The licence number must be in its adverts. Agencies must include "the licence number or any other identification registration number issued by the Director" in adverts for vacancies, in any publicity, and in agreements (source: S.L. 452.130, Employment Agencies Regulations).
- The licence must be on show. It must be displayed at the agency's premises and "displayed prominently on any website" the agency uses (source: S.L. 452.130, Employment Agencies Regulations).
To check a licence:
- Ask the agency for its DIER licence number, and look for it on its adverts and website.
- Check the number with DIER: call 1576, DIER's line for employers, or email info.dier@gov.mt (source: DIER: contact). DIER's website also links to an employment agencies portal (source: DIER: home page).
- Write down the number, who you spoke to and the date.
Identità, which issues work permits, says that "Unlicensed agencies will NOT be permitted to submit applications" for permits (source: Identità: new employment agency regulations).
Who pays: carers never do
Maltese law says: "No payments or charges shall be demanded or levied on any applicant for any employment services", and "No deductions shall be made from the wages of any employee for any services rendered by an employment agency or employment business" (source: S.L. 452.130, Employment Agencies Regulations).
In plain terms:
- A carer must never pay an agency to get a job, and an agency's fee must never come out of the carer's wages.
- Families pay agency fees. Agencies don't publish standard fees, so ask for the full cost in writing: the placement fee, any monthly fee, what happens if the placement ends early, and whether a replacement is included.
- If anyone asks a carer you're considering for a "registration" or "processing" fee, treat it as a serious warning sign.
Hiring directly: what you take on
Employing a carer yourself needs no licence. Identità's FAQ says: "No DIER licensing is required for Household Employers, but they must provide valid employment contracts and register the employee with Jobsplus" (source: Identità: non-EU employment FAQ). Jobsplus adds that household employers need a PE number from the tax office and must file engagement and termination forms for each worker (source: Jobsplus: household employers).
When you hire directly, you or your parent:
- find and choose the carer, interview them and check their documents (our interview guide covers the checks);
- become the employer, with a PE number, a written contract, the Jobsplus engagement form, monthly payroll and at least the legal minimum pay (our step-by-step employer guide);
- plan cover for the carer's weekly rest day and leave;
- deal with permits yourselves if the carer is from outside the EU (our single permit guide).
What you save is the agency's fee. What you take on is the paperwork and the responsibility for the choice.
Carer at Home and agency carers
The government's Carer at Home scheme pays an older person up to €9,000 a year in 2026 towards employing a carer (source: servizz.gov.mt: Carer at Home). Among the documents it asks for is "An official document from JobsPlus or Identity Malta (for third-country nationals) indicating that the carer is in regular employment with the applicant" (source: servizz.gov.mt: Carer at Home). The applicant is your parent.
If an agency employs the carer, the carer isn't employed by your parent, and the official pages don't say whether that qualifies. Ask AACC before you choose an agency arrangement if your parent plans to claim the scheme. Our Carer at Home guide sets out the other conditions, including the carer's recognised qualification and a notarised employment agreement (source: servizz.gov.mt: Carer at Home).
Permits: who can act for you
If the carer is from outside the EU, the employer applies to Identità for a single permit. Identità's FAQ says household employers "can mandate a licensed agency to submit applications through the portal by issuing a mandate" (source: Identità: non-EU employment FAQ). A lawyer can also help with the paperwork.
Whoever acts for you, the employer stays responsible for the application being true and complete. Never share your e-ID login with anyone; give a formal mandate instead.
CarerMalta never prepares, submits or tracks permit applications, and never acts under a mandate or power of attorney.
Side by side
| Hiring directly | Through a recruitment agency | Through a temporary work or outsourcing agency | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who is the employer | Your parent (or you) | Your parent (or you) | The agency (source: S.L. 452.130, Employment Agencies Regulations) |
| Who finds and chooses the carer | You | The agency puts forward candidates; you choose | The agency assigns the carer |
| Licence needed | None (source: Identità: non-EU employment FAQ) | DIER licence (source: S.L. 452.130, Employment Agencies Regulations) | DIER licence (source: S.L. 452.130, Employment Agencies Regulations) |
| Jobsplus forms and payroll | You (source: Jobsplus: household employers) | You | The agency |
| Fees | None to a third party | Agency fee, paid by the family | Agency charges, paid by the family |
| Carer pays anything | Never (source: S.L. 452.130, Employment Agencies Regulations) | Never (source: S.L. 452.130, Employment Agencies Regulations) | Never (source: S.L. 452.130, Employment Agencies Regulations) |
| Carer at Home | Fits "employment with the applicant" (source: servizz.gov.mt: Carer at Home) | Fits if your parent employs the carer (source: servizz.gov.mt: Carer at Home) | Not stated; ask AACC (source: servizz.gov.mt: Carer at Home) |
Where CarerMalta fits
CarerMalta is not an agency. It's a listing site:
- Carers create their own free profiles. Every profile is created by the carer themselves, and CarerMalta carries no adverts from agencies.
- Families contact carers directly, or post a job describing the hours and arrangement. Profiles are listed by most recent activity; we don't put anyone forward.
- We're not part of the employment. We don't employ carers, check documents, run payroll or handle permits.
- Carers never pay to use CarerMalta.
If you decide to hire directly, browse carer profiles or post a job with the hours, live-in or live-out arrangement and pay, using the button below.
Sources we checked
Every figure and rule in this guide links to the official page it comes from. We re-check them when the rules or the Budget change.
- Jobsplus: household employees. Checked 20 Oct 2026.
- Identità: non-EU employment FAQ, page updated 13 Oct 2026. Checked 20 Oct 2026.
- S.L. 452.130, Employment Agencies Regulations. Checked 20 Oct 2026.
- DIER: contact, page updated 6 May 2026. Checked 20 Oct 2026.
- Identità: new employment agency regulations, page updated 13 Jun 2024. Checked 20 Oct 2026.
- servizz.gov.mt: Carer at Home, page updated 20 Jun 2026. Checked 20 Oct 2026.
- Jobsplus: household employers. Checked 20 Oct 2026.
- DIER: home page, page updated 18 Sep 2026. Checked 20 Oct 2026.