S.L. 607.3 Art. 32Branches and agency.

(1) Licensees shall inform the Authority in writing prior to opening a new branch, subsidiary, or office in Malta and shall not open a branch or office without the prior approval of the Authority.

(2) Licensees shall inform the Authority in writing prior to entering into agency arrangements with third parties and shall not enter into any such agreement without the prior approval of the Authority.

(3) A person who is appointed as the agent of a licensee shall only act as agent in respect of those activities for which the same licensee is licensed under these regulations.

(4) Licensees shall not accept or continue to accept overseas students recruited by an agent, or authorise an agent to act on their behalf, if they know, or reasonably suspect that their agent is:

(a) engaging in dishonest practices, including suggesting to overseas students that they enter Malta on a student visa with a primary purpose other than full-time study;

(b) facilitating the enrolment of third-country students who do not comply with the conditions of their student visas; or

(c) engaging in false or misleading advertising and recruitment practices.

(5) The Authority shall make and publish guidelines to establish such information to be supplied by the licensee in seeking approval under this regulation: Provided that, by means of such guidelines, the Authority may establish different requirements for different categories of licensees provided in the Second Schedule.

(6) The Authority may grant or refuse the approval applied for under this regulation within the time prescribed in regulation 8(10).

(7) In granting the approval referred to in sub-regulation (6), the Authority may subject the licensee and the branch, subsidiary, office or agent to such conditions or restrictions as it may deem appropriate in accordance with the provisions of regulations 12 and 13, and after granting its approval, it may from time to time vary any condition or restriction so imposed or impose new conditions or restrictions in accordance with the provisions of regulations 12 and 13.

(8) The Authority may also subject the branch, subsidiary, office or agent approved in accordance with this regulation to any of the obligations imposed on the licensee under these regulations.

(9) The Authority may refuse to grant, or revoke, the approval granted as referred to under sub-regulation (6) where the circumstances provided for in regulations 11 and 16, respectively, apply mutatis mutandis.

(10) Without prejudice to the generality of sub-regulation (9), the Authority may also refuse to grant the approval applied for under this regulation in the following circumstances:

(a) where it satisfied that the activities to be performed by the agent could be performed by the provider through its head office, or a branch or subsidiary; or

(b) where it is not satisfied that the person who shall be appointed as agent is competent to provide the activities which shall form part of the agency agreement.

(11) Where the Authority refuses to grant the approval applied for under this regulation, it shall notify the licensee in writing of the reasons for the refusal.