What sort of due diligence must a Maltese lawyer perform? - EB5Investors.com

What sort of due diligence must a Maltese lawyer perform?

I am in the process of choosing legal counsel in Malta for immigration purposes and also for purchasing real estate property as an investment. It would help to know what the lawyer is required to do so I can prepare.

Answers

Dr James Scerri Worley
Answered on

Malta is an EU member state and hence has adopted the EU Anti-Money Laundering Directives. Henceforth every professional should be conducting due diligence in order to verify the identity, residence, profile, source or funds and source of wealth of the client. The list of documents requested usually includes items such as certified identity documents (passports/identity cards), certified proof of address (utility bills), CVs, bank statements, independent references, declarations, tax returns and similar documents. However we cannot provide an exact list as each firm is free to set its own client acceptance policy and documents requested.

Dr Simon Xuereb
Answered on

While this varies depending on facts of your particular case, in general terms one would need to perform due diligence upon yourself, understand in detail your source of wealth and funds including all major transactions which are material to your accumulation of wealth as well as conduct due diligence checks on any companies with which you are involved. Preparing a narrative setting out your accumulation of wealth with details and (if available) documentation supporting the key transactions described therein would be hugely helpful. Also obtaining standard documentation regarding yourself, your dependents and any companies which you own in advance and getting these appropriately certified/apostilled would also help speed up the process.

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