Over 280,000 workers begin receiving bonus payment in recognition of hard work

More than 280,000 workers in Malta have begun receiving an additional bonus for the eighth consecutive year, as part of a Government initiative designed to reward hard work.

The payment, ranging between €60 and €140, is being allocated to employees who were in employment during 2023. Over the course of eight years, the Government will have invested just over €158 million in this initiative.

This bonus is separate from the wider tax reduction measures currently being implemented, which are described as the most significant in recent history for workers of all income levels. These include a tax cut whereby no worker will pay tax on the first €1,000 earned per month.

In the 2026 Budget unveiled last week, the Government also announced further tax cuts specifically designed to support working parents. Under these new measures, a family with two working parents earning up to €30,000 each will pay no income tax from 2028 for 25 years. Parents with only one child will also benefit substantially – with no tax payable on the first €1,500 earned per month – while those with two children will pay no tax on the first €2,500 per month in earnings.

In support of this, Budget 2026 will also include incentives for businesses to continue rewarding employee loyalty. New schemes will subsidise up to 80 per cent of wage increases – capped at €960 annually – for workers who have been with their employer for more than four years in Gozo. In Malta, a similar scheme will subsidise up to 60 per cent of salary increases, up to €780 per year.