Gozitan companies will be able to benefit from €200,000 under a 3 years period in salary reimbursements from the Gozo Back Office Employment Refund Scheme. The scheme is aimed at both foreign investment in Gozo as well as Maltese and Gozitan companies and, in turn, create quality and sustainable work in Gozo.
Highlights
- The Scheme relates to either of newly employed staff or of staff already employed but as from 1st March 2020 carrying out back office operations based in Gozo.
- A benefit of upto €65,000 per company and €8,000 per employee annually.
- The Scheme will contribute to reducing existing disparities in average basic salaries between Malta and Gozo.
The Gozo Back Office Employment Refund Scheme is one of 4 schemes that will be funded out of a budget of €600,000 specifically allocated under the Malta Budget 2021. By encouraging the setting-up of Gozo-based back office operations, the scheme will stimulate further investment by the private sector and help create more and better-quality job opportunities in Gozo. Furthermore, it will attract highly skilled and educated workers.
Payment of the Gozo Back Office Scheme
Eligible employers can benefit from a partial refund of the salary cost of employees carrying out back office operations in Gozo, spread over 3 years. The rate of reimbursement is calculated according to the wage bracket in which the employee’s wage falls. The amounts of salary reimbursements per worker range from a minimum of €4,500 to €8,000 per annum.
Annual basic Salary amounts falling between categories will be reimbursed according to the lower category.
Eligibility of application – Employer
- The Employer’s business concern can be headquartered anywhere, however it must have a registered address in Gozo from where back office operations are carried out.
- The Employer can only apply once under the Gozo Back Office Employment Refund Scheme for the same employee/s.
- If applying under the Gozo Back Office Employment Refund Scheme, the Employer CANNOT apply under the Gozo New Employment Refund Scheme for the same employee/s.
Eligibility of application – Employee
- Employees must be employed full-time, on an indefinite contract and must be carrying out back office operations based in Gozo NOT starting before 1st March 2020.
- Employees must be resident in Gozo.
- Recruitment of employees must take place by 30th November 2023.
NOT Eligibility Employees
- Shareholders and Directors of an Undertaking if they take up back-office employment within the same private Undertaking
- Persons occupying official positions with Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO’s), if they take up back office employment
with the same NGO.
All economic sectors may be eligible, except:
- aid granted to undertakings in the fishery and aquaculture sector;
- aid granted to undertakings in the primary production of agricultural products;
- aid granted to undertakings in the processing and marketing of agricultural products, in the following cases:
- where the amount of the aid is fixed on the basis of the price or quantity of such products purchased from primary producers or put on the market by the undertakings concerned;
- where the aid is conditional on being partly or entirely passed on to primary producers;
- aid to export-related activities towards third countries or Member States, namely aid directly linked to the quantities exported, to the establishment and operation of a distribution network or to other current expenditure linked to the export activity;
- aid contingent upon the use of domestic over imported goods.
The Scheme is demand driven and aid will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis, subject to the annual ceiling and total budget available.
The terms and conditions are set out in the Guidelines for the Gozo Back Office Employment Refund Scheme on the website of the Ministry for Gozo.
