Gozo Minister Anton Refalo and Home Affairs Minister Manuel Mallia presided over the official launch of the ‘E-Residence’ office in Gozo.

The office has been in operation since December 2013 and serves as a one stop shop for foreign residence with questions relating to their residency in Gozo.

Since it's inception last December, the office has received 388 applications. There are currently six workers employed with the unit and it was created for those Gozitan workers who previously worked in it’s Maltese counterpart.

Services offered include resident permit applications, application examinations in relation to the law, registrations on the E-Residence permit database, interim permits, collection of information in dossiers, provides information relating to dual citizenship and handles communication with the Malta office.

Minister Anton Refalo said that “E-Residence is heavily utilised in Gozo and this provides a local base for those living here, rather than them having to travel to Malta”.

Minister Manuel Mallia said that this system makes for a practical solution for Gozo, one which makes the system more efficient.

EU regulations required a change in document formats for E-Residence documents, Minister Mallia explained. New documents had to be issued for all persons with foreign nationality who live in the Maltese islands. “This is why we worked on opening this Gozo office,” the Minister explained.