A new hire in Malta needs an ID card number and a tax registration number before payroll can run correctly. Knowing which is issued when, and by whom, prevents a first paycheck from being delayed.
Two separate numbers, two separate offices
A new expatriate employee in Malta needs an identity card or e-Residence card number issued by Identity Malta, confirming legal residence status, and a separate tax registration number issued by the Commissioner for Revenue, needed before an employer can process payroll and withhold tax correctly.
These two numbers are issued by different authorities on different timelines, and an employer assuming one automatically triggers the other is a common cause of a first payroll cycle running with incomplete or provisional deductions.
The order that actually works
Identity documentation is typically finalised first, since residence status is a precondition for most subsequent registrations, and the tax registration application should be submitted as soon as the identity number is confirmed rather than waiting for the employee's first day, since processing takes its own time regardless of when work actually starts.
An employer who initiates both processes in parallel from the point an offer is accepted, rather than sequentially after arrival, is the one whose new hire actually gets paid correctly on the first scheduled payroll date.
What this means for a hiring timeline
Building both registration steps into the hiring timeline as their own tracked tasks, not as an afterthought once the employee arrives, is what Talent and Jobs treats as a standard part of onboarding for any placement requiring relocation.