How to Hire a Freelancer in Malta (2026): Finding, Checking and Paying

This guide is for anyone in Malta who wants to hire a freelancer, whether that is a tutor or a cleaner for your home or a designer, translator or assistant for your business. It covers where to find one, how to check them, what to agree in writing, how to pay and what you get as a receipt, and when a freelancer legally counts as your employee. A table near the end shows what common jobs cost in Malta, with a link to our full price guide for each.

Figures and rules were last verified in October 2026. Every rule links to the official page it comes from, and every price links to our guide where its sources are listed. Laws and fees change, so check the linked pages before you act. This is general information, not professional advice on law, tax or employment, and Dapperlance accepts no responsibility for decisions based on it. Disclosure: Dapperlance, which publishes this guide, is a free Malta freelance marketplace and is one of the options compared below. We earn nothing from any other option and no link in this guide is paid.

Quick answers

Where do I find a freelancer in Malta?

For a job in person, start local: people you know, Malta Facebook groups, Google Maps or a Malta marketplace like Dapperlance. Upwork and Freelancer.com hold your payment until you approve, which suits online jobs. Where to look

How do I check a freelancer before I hire them?

Look at past work, ask for a reference, check their VAT number if they charge VAT, and use the official register for regulated jobs like psychologists or architects. How to check

What does a freelancer cost in Malta?

It depends on the job. A cleaner is about €10 to €20 an hour, a tutor €10 to €25 an hour, and a small website from a freelancer about €600 to €900 plus VAT. Price table

What should we agree in writing?

The job, the price and whether VAT is included, the deadline, how many changes you get, when you pay, and who owns the work. What to agree

What receipt should I get?

A fiscal receipt in most cases. A business with a valid EU VAT number gets a tax invoice from a freelancer who charges VAT. Paying and receipts

When does a freelancer count as my employee?

When at least five of eight tests in Malta’s employment status rules apply, for example if most of their income comes from you and you set their hours. The employee test

Can I cancel after I book?

If you booked as a private person online, by phone or at your home, you usually have 14 days to cancel, with some limits once the work has started. Your rights

Where can you find a freelancer in Malta?

For a job done in person, start local: people you know, Malta Facebook groups, Google Maps or a Malta marketplace. For an online job with someone you may never meet, a global platform that holds your payment is the safer choice. Here is how the channels compare:

Where to look	Best for	Watch out for
Friends, family and colleagues	Someone a person you trust has already used	A small choice, and hard to compare prices
Malta Facebook groups	Fast replies and lots of local names	Answers get buried and you cannot see past work in one place
Google Maps	Businesses near you, with reviews	Many freelancers have no listing, and reviews can be faked
Dapperlance (our site), a free Malta marketplace	Local freelancers for home and business jobs, with no fees	Smaller than the global sites, and it does not hold payments
LinkedIn	Business services, and checking someone’s work history	Few home services
Upwork, Fiverr, Freelancer.com	Online jobs, with your payment held until you approve on Upwork and Freelancer.com	Fees on every job, and the freelancer can be anywhere in the world

Which one fits depends on the job:

• A job in your home, like tutoring, cleaning or dog training: ask people you know first. If nobody has a name, compare two or three local people from Facebook groups, Google Maps or a Malta marketplace.
• A business job you can brief in writing, like a logo, a website or a translation: a freelancer in Malta can meet you and you pay no platform fee. If you hire someone abroad, a platform that holds your payment is worth its fee, because you cannot easily chase a person you have never met.
• A bigger business service, like marketing or consulting: LinkedIn shows the person’s work history, which helps you check them.

Dapperlance, the site you are reading, lists over 370 freelancers and local businesses in Malta. You can browse graphic designers, private tutors, translators and other freelancers in Malta by category and message them directly. We take no commission and add no fee, so you pay the freelancer only. We do not hold payments, so the checks and the written agreement below matter just as much here.

Google’s review policy bans paid reviews and fake engagement and says they “will be removed”. It does not catch every one, so read the written reviews, not only the stars.

The global platforms charge you a fee on top of the freelancer’s price. Upwork adds a 5% marketplace fee on its basic plan, plus $0.99 to $14.99 when each contract starts. Fiverr adds 5.5% plus $3.50 on orders under $200. Freelancer.com charges 3% or $3, whichever is more. Upwork and Freelancer.com hold your money until you approve the work.

How do you hire a freelancer, step by step?

Write a short brief, send it to two or three people, compare the quotes, check the person, agree the terms in writing, and pay in stages.

1. Write a short brief. Say what you need, where and by when, and give a budget range. Three or four lines is enough for most jobs.
2. Send the same brief to two or three freelancers. That way the quotes are comparable.
3. Ask for each quote in writing. It should say the price, whether VAT is included, what is included, and the deadline.
4. Check the person before you say yes. See the next section.
5. Agree the terms in writing. A message or a one-page document that you both confirm.
6. Pay a part upfront and the rest when the work is done. For big jobs, pay in stages tied to finished parts.
7. Check the work before the last payment and keep your receipt.

How do you check a freelancer before you hire them?

Look at work they have done, talk to someone who hired them, and use the official checks that exist for VAT and for regulated jobs.

• Past work. Ask for two or three examples close to your job: a site they built, photos they took, a document they translated.
• A reference. Ask for the contact of one past client and send them a short message.
• The VAT number, if they charge VAT. A freelancer who adds VAT to the price is registered under Article 10 of the VAT Act, and their number should show as valid on the EU’s free VIES check.
• Regulated jobs have public registers. Doctors and other health professionals are on the Medical Council’s online search. Architects and civil engineers (periti) are on the list published by the Periti Warranting Board. Psychologists are on the register published by the Malta Psychology Profession Board.

A small freelancer who charges no VAT is usually registered under Article 11. The tax authority’s invoice and receipt FAQ says an Article 11 number “is not a valid VAT identification number but merely a VAT registration number”. So it does not show on VIES, and that is normal. We found no public search for self-employed registrations, so if it matters to you, just ask.

What does a freelancer cost in Malta?

Prices depend on the job, so compare against the going rate for that service, not against freelancers in general. These are the headline 2026 prices from our cost guides. Each guide lists its sources and explains what changes the price.

Service	Typical price in Malta	Full guide
Cleaner	€10 to €20 an hour, often a 3 hour minimum	Cleaner prices
Private tutor	€10 to €25 an hour, €15 to €40 for Intermediate and Advanced level	Tutor prices
Website	€600 to €900 plus VAT from a freelancer, from €3,500 at an agency	Design prices
Logo	€350 to €450 plus VAT from a small studio	Design prices
Proofreading	€25 to €40 per 1,000 words (our ballpark)	Proofreading prices
Massage	€40 to €70 for an hour	Massage prices
Dog trainer	€25 to €35 an hour	Dog training prices
Swimming lessons	€18 to €26 a group lesson	Swimming prices
Catering	€7 to €22 a head for party food	Catering prices
Kids’ party entertainer	€190 to €280 plus VAT for a show	Party prices

If a quote is far below these ranges, ask what is left out. If it is far above, ask what you get for the extra.

What should you agree with a freelancer in writing?

Put the job, the price, the deadline, the payment plan and who owns the result in writing before the work starts. It does not need to be long. Cover these points:

• The job. What is included and what is not.
• The price. A fixed price or an hourly rate, and whether VAT is on top.
• The deadline, and what happens if it slips.
• Changes. How many rounds of changes are included, and the price of an extra round.
• Payment. How much upfront, how much on delivery, and how you pay.
• Cancelling. What each side owes if the job stops halfway.
• Who owns the work. This matters for anything creative: a logo, photos, text, a website.

Under the Copyright Act, copyright belongs to the person who made the work (Article 11). It only moves to you through “an agreement in writing between the parties” (Article 24). Paying the invoice is not enough on its own. If you want to own the logo or the photos, ask for the transfer in writing.

If you run a business and the freelancer will handle your customers’ personal data, for example an assistant who manages your bookings or a developer with access to your shop, the GDPR requires a written contract for that (Article 28). It must say what data they handle, for what purpose and for how long. Malta’s data protection regulator, the IDPC, explains that such a freelancer may use the data only on your documented instructions.

How should you pay a freelancer, and what receipt do you get?

Pay by bank transfer or card so there is a record, and expect a fiscal receipt unless you are a business with a valid EU VAT number buying from a freelancer who charges VAT.

Malta’s tax authority, the MTCA, sets the rules in its invoice and receipt FAQ:

The freelancer is	You are	You should get
Article 11 (charges no VAT)	Anyone	A fiscal receipt, never a tax invoice
Article 10 (charges VAT)	A private person	A fiscal receipt
Article 10 (charges VAT)	A business with a VAT number that VIES confirms	A tax invoice

The standard VAT rate is 18% under the VAT Act. A freelancer whose yearly turnover in Malta is under €35,000 can register under Article 11, according to the MTCA’s small enterprise guidelines, and then charges no VAT. That is why one quote can say €600 and another €600 plus VAT, which is €708. Always ask “is that with VAT?” before you compare.

Cash leaves no record. If you do pay cash, ask for the receipt on the spot.

When does a freelancer legally count as your employee?

When at least five of the eight tests in Malta’s Employment Status National Standard Order apply, the law presumes an employment relationship, with you as the employer. This mostly matters for businesses that use the same freelancer every week. The eight tests, in short:

1. At least 75% of their income over a year comes from you.
2. You decide what work they do, and where and how.
3. They use your equipment, tools or materials.
4. You set their working hours or a minimum number of hours.
5. They cannot send someone else to do the work.
6. They are part of your team or your organisation chart.
7. Their work is a core part of what your business does.
8. They do the same tasks as your employees, or tasks your employees used to do.

Calling the person “self-employed” in the contract does not change the result. The Order says any such statement is “null and void” if it conflicts with the tests. If an arrangement would meet five tests but the work is unusual or very short, you can ask the Director of Industrial and Employment Relations in writing, before it starts, to exempt it. A one-off job, like a logo, a wedding album or a month of tutoring, is normally far from five tests.

What are your rights if you change your mind or the job goes wrong?

As a private person you usually have 14 days to cancel a service you booked online, by phone or at your home. If the work causes damage because the person lacked the skill, they are liable for it.

The Consumer Rights Regulations give you 14 days to withdraw “without giving any reason” from a distance or off-premises contract with a trader. For a service, the 14 days start on the day you agree the job, not when the work is done. Two limits:

• If you want the work to start within those 14 days, the freelancer must ask you to request that in writing. Once the job is fully done, you can no longer cancel.
• These rights are for private people. A business hiring a freelancer is not covered.

If the work goes wrong, the Civil Code says that anyone who “without the necessary skill undertakes any work or service” is liable for the damage their lack of skill causes (Article 1038). Your simplest protection is still a written agreement, and keeping the last payment until you have checked the work.

Mistakes to avoid

• Choosing on price alone. Two quotes rarely include the same things. Compare what is included first.
• Not asking about VAT. €600 plus VAT is €708.
• Paying everything upfront. Keep a part back until the work is done and checked.
• Agreeing only by phone. A short written message saves most arguments later.
• Assuming you own the logo or photos because you paid. Copyright moves only in writing.
• Treating a freelancer like staff. Fixed hours, your tools and most of their income from you can make them your employee in law.
• Thinking “not on VIES” means not registered. Small freelancers under Article 11 never show there.
• Paying cash without a receipt. You lose your proof of payment.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a freelancer cost per hour in Malta?

It depends on the job. In our guides, cleaners charge about €10 to €20 an hour, tutors €10 to €25, dog trainers €25 to €35, and the two published hourly rates we found for web and design work are €30 and €55. Use the price table above for the job you need.

Do I need a contract to hire a freelancer?

For most small jobs a written message with the price, the deadline and what is included is enough. Two cases need writing by law: moving the copyright in creative work to you, and a freelancer handling your customers’ personal data for your business.

Should a freelancer charge me VAT?

Only if they are registered under Article 10. A freelancer under Article 11, with turnover in Malta under €35,000 a year, charges no VAT and gives you a fiscal receipt.

Is a freelancer cheaper than an agency?

Usually, for small jobs. For a small website, the published freelancer prices are about a quarter of an agency’s starting price. An agency adds a team, more options and more capacity for big projects.

I am a freelancer. How do clients in Malta find me?

Through the same channels in the table above. Our guide to starting as a freelancer in Malta covers registration and VAT, and listing your services on Dapperlance is free.

Reminder: this guide summarises Malta’s rules and published prices as of October 2026. The linked laws and official pages are the authority, and they change, so check them before you sign, pay or rely on any rule here. For tax or employment questions about your own situation, ask a qualified adviser. More guides to hiring and freelancing in Malta are on the guides page.