Although Malta joined the Schengen Zone on 21 December amid no small amount of fanfare, as a high level governmental delegation sailed to Sicily to mark the event, it appears that Malta has become a member of the borderless zone only in spirit.
Reports from individuals crossing the Malta-Sicily channel with commercial vehicles since the removal of borders, as well as passport and Customs checks, complain they have continuously been unjustly and unnecessarily harassed with inspections and intensive questioning by Maltese Customs on their return from Sicily.
The practice harks back to the times of Mintoff’s reign when Maltese returning from abroad were subjected to similar interrogations and searches to ensure no consumer goods were being brought into the country.
Customs controls on the Sicilian side of the equation since Malta’s Schengen accession, meanwhile, are said to have been removed and completely non-existent.
On 21 December, Malta’s sea borders were opened under Schengen rules, meaning Customs checks would be done away with and only imposed in exceptional cases in which there is a well-founded suspicion of illegality on the part of a traveller. Air borders with other Schengen member States, meanwhile, are to be opened at the end of March.
But reports reaching this newspaper cite that Customs officers subject each and every commercial vehicle arriving from Sicily to lengthy checks.
The problem is thought to stem from new action taken by the government to curtail importation abuse.
Since Malta joined the European Union in 2004, and as such allowing the free movement of goods and people between EU member States, some enterprising Maltese importers began bringing tax-free merchandise into Malta from mainland Europe without declaring it – posing a threat to legitimate Maltese traders, who themselves pay value added and eco tax dues to the government.
The practice has seen illicitly imported merchandise making its way to Malta’s outdoor markets and retail outlets in a completely tax-free manner. Since 2004 such entrepreneurs could be seen bringing consignments of merchandise into Malta by the vanload and while rules are in place allowing individuals certain yearly thresholds, such activities have been seen going over and above any stipulated limits.
Products being imported illicitly range from toothpaste and soap to computer accessories and white goods such as refrigerators, which carry eco-tax as well as VAT obligations. While such white goods would eventually be disposed of in Malta, eco-tax related to the eventual treatment of such waste is being evaded.
Such traders are said to avoid paying VAT in both the country of origin and in Malta and while the EU has a system in place to curtail such abuse, including cross-referencing of VAT payments and other checks and balances, irregularities can take years to be uncovered.