S.L. 452.130 Art. 3Conditions for operating employment agencies or businesses.  

(1) No person shall operate an employment agency or an employment business unless:

(a) any employer who manages any employment agency or employment business connected to any employment 

 in such employer’s own undertaking or in any undertaking in which such employer participates in the day to day management as an active partner or for any company in which such employer’s company has an interest as majority shareholder, provided that if any advertisement is placed for the filling of any vacancy, the identity of the employer shall be clearly specified in the advertisement;

(b) such person is lawfully established to conduct business as an employment agency in a Member State of the

European Union, and has informed the Director that they are providing the services of an employment agency in Malta:

Provided that for the purposes of these regulations,

"lawfully established" shall be read and construed in accordance with the Services (Internal Market) Act:

Provided further that the Director may impose any necessary requirements on persons referred to in paragraph (b) in accordance with the Services (Internal Market) Act and it shall be an obligation on persons referred to in paragraph (b) to adhere to the said requirements:

Provided further that a licence may only be granted for one (1) activity, specifically, either-

(a) for the recruitment of persons for employment in or outside Malta, or

(b) to render any one (1) or both of the following activities:

(i) the activities of a temporary work agency, and, or,

(ii) the activities of an outsourcing agency, as the applicant shall determine:

Provided further that a separate licence for each such activity shall be required:

Provided further that natural persons shall qualify to be granted a licence to operate any employment agency or employment business if they are eighteen (18) years of age or more.

(2) The procedure which shall be followed for a licence to be issued under these regulations shall be as follows:

(a) an applicant for a licence in accordance with sub-regulation (l)(a) shall not less than twenty-one (21) days before submitting the application:

(i) display notice of the application in a place where it can be conveniently read by the public on or near the premises from which the employment agency or employment business is or is to be carried out and adopt such measures as the applicant can reasonably take to keep that notice so displayed for a period of twenty-one

(21) days; and

(ii) publish a notice of its application in two (2) daily Maltese newspapers, one is published in English and one is published in Maltese, both in print and also electronically, using a format provided by the Director;

(b) a notice made under this regulation shall indicate the name and address of the applicant, and in cases where the applicant is a legal person, the applicant’s registration number, its registered office, and the address of the premises from which the employment agency or employment business is located or is to be carried out, which premises shall be suitable in terms of the applicable law.

(3) In the following cases a licence shall not be required and the provisions of sub-regulation (1) shall not apply to:

(a) any employer who carries out any recruitment related activity connected to any employment in such employer’s own undertaking or in any undertaking in which such employer participates in the day to day management as an active partner or for any company in which such employer’s company has an interest as majority shareholder, provided that if any advertisement is placed for the filling of any vacancy, the identity of the employer shall be clearly specified in the advertisement;

(b) any recruitment related activity provided by an employment agency on behalf of any employer whose identity is clearly specified in an advertisement inviting applicants for employment;

(c) any outsourcing agencies in so far as they carry on any of the services listed in the First Schedule, in respect of such services;

(d) Jobsplus while carrying out the functions of an employment agency, whether through the agency of other persons, or as agent or otherwise on behalf of other persons in accordance with the Employment and Training Services Act; and

(e) every entity including, but not limited to every body, organisation, agency, foundation or any other set-up in which the Government of Malta has control.

(4) Except in those cases where the employment business is limited to the recruitment of persons for employment and does not involve the conclusion of contracts of employment or employment relationships with employees, the employment agency or employment business may not operate under any agreement or any other arrangement with any user undertaking which provides for exclusivity in the provision of any employment services to such user undertaking, and any agreement or alternative arrangement providing for a form of exclusivity shall be null and void.

(5) An employment agency or employment business providing services of recruitment of persons for employment shall not register any employees under its own name, except when such employees are required to perform duties specifically and exclusively for such employment agency or employment business. To ensure compliance with this provision, the employment agency or employment business shall provide the Director with a list of persons employed by it, which list shall be officially obtained from Jobsplus, and this upon the submission of the original application for a licence under these regulations, upon every submission of an application for a renewal thereof, and whenever requested by the Director for the purpose of this sub-regulation.

(6) No user undertaking shall seek employment services from any provider unless such provider is a licensed employment agency or employment business in accordance with these regulations. Any person who, during any ongoing investigation or process undertaken in virtue of these regulations, is found to be in breach or failing to comply with the provisions of this sub-regulation shall be guilty of an offence under these regulations.