How does water and electricity billing in Malta work?
If you have now found your home-sweet-home or you are simply asking yourself how it works with the bill in Malta, this article is for you!
If you are coming from a foreign country to work or find opportunities here in Malta, one of the main, if not the main, things to think about is finding a home.
Well, you are in the right place. Here at Sweethome real estate is exactly what we do. We offer relocation services and, of course, we help our clients find a home.
In Malta, the tap water is desalted water coming directly from the sea using the reverse osmosis process. There are many implants that purify the sea water every day. Of course, it passes through many desalination and sanitising processes to render the water safe for human consumption, and it is classified as drinkable and in standard with EU norms.
The electricity is produced locally using a mix of renewable (6.6%) and non-renewable resources, and there is also an interconnector between Malta and Sicily that ensures more supply and reliability in the power grid.
Let’s now talk about the different rates in force here in Malta. Basically, we've got 2 different plans, called Domestic and Residential.
The domestic rate is usually applied in the event of a short-let, like for holiday apartments or short stays. In this case, the people are not registered as residents, of course, and the rate is higher. In fact, more consumption means more expense, as we can see in the table down below.
If you are in a rental property or you are planning to rent one for a long period, this is the rate that will interest you! the domestic. Why? because, first of all, it is cheaper than the residential and also the one that applies when the tenants need to be registered as residents. To make the application, all you have to do, together with your landlord, is fill in the Form H provided by the ARMS, the entity that manages the bills in Malta.
Download a sample here:
The following are the rates now in effect while I'm writing: 28/10/2022 for the residential rate.
The following are the water tariffs for both residential and domestic use:
Your bill is not available every month; it can also arrive in 2 or 3 months by post. So, how can you budget your bills? Well, the ARMS provides this cool tool that makes a quote of your consumption by just filling in the metre numbers that you took with your agent and the landlord at the sign of the agreement with the numbers that you are reading today. The software will instantly provide you with a precise quotation based on your current rate, the number of people, and the period.
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