Malta listed as high-risk for money laundering by UK

Jul 23 2021

Malta has been placed among a list of high-risk countries for money laundering and terrorist financing. Malta was placed on the list along with Haiti, Philippines and South Sudan, as Ghana was removed. The regulations came into force on the 13th of July, with Malta joining the likes of Yemen, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Pakistan and Zimbabwe.

The regulations concern purposes of enhanced customer due diligence requirements. This follows Malta’s grey-listing by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). This reflects significant deficiencies in Malta’s anti-money laundering and funding of terrorism framework.

With Malta facing increased monitoring, it will need to demonstrate progress on several factors in order to be removed off the grey-list. The government has revealed that an 18-month plan to get off the list is in the works, with the Opposition Party pledging a 3 month plan should it be reelected.

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Photo Source: Health Europa

Some countries not recognising J&J vaccine passports issued in Malta

Jul 23 2021

Recipients of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine in Malta are facing issues in certain EU countries as their certificates are being registered as invalid. The governmental apps used to verify EU digital COVID-19 certificates through QR code scanning in France, Belgium, Switzerland and Luxembourg are registering the Maltese J&J certificates as invalid. Pfizer, AstraZeneca and Moderna certificates are being accepted however.

Times of Malta reports the experience of several Maltese or foreign nationals inoculated in Malta who reported such experiences. One particular individual, Steve Abela, reported how on his holiday in France earlier this month he was denied access to a bar to watch a football game after his J&J certificated was scanned as invalid.

Checking by scanning his certificate with government applications of three other countries, he realised the document was posing the problem. With France requiring a COVID-19 passport to access a wide range of venues, Abela reported how airports were not checking QR codes but instead did so manually.

Authorities have allegedly been contacted by Abela and others, but no reply was issued. 12 other people reported to Times of Malta with similar issues – revealing how Switzerland’s ‘Certificate Check’, Belgium’s ‘Covid Scan’, and Luxembourg’s ‘CovidCheck.LU’, along with France’s ‘TousAntiCovid’, weren’t recognising Johnson & Johnson certificates.

This poses a problem as, according to the European Centre for Disease Control (ECDC), around 9,000 people have been given the Johnson & Johnson vaccine in Malta.

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Photo Source: Open Access Government

Venues in Italy to introduce mandatory vaccine certificates as cases surge

Jul 23 2021

A range of venues in Italy are introducing the mandatory presentation of a COVID-19 vaccination certificate for access. Including restaurants, stadiums, gyms, cinemas and museums, those who received at least one jab of the vaccine and are aged 12 and over will require a ‘green pass’ to enter certain indoor venues. Italy thus follows in the footsteps of countries like France and Israel, despite ongoing protests against restrictions and alleged ‘discrimination’ against the unvaccinated.

Around a half of Italians aged 12 and over are fully vaccinated, despite the country expeaieing a spike in cases. The new green pass will also be available to anyone who presents proof of negative PCR testing, provided it is taken 48 hours prior to accessing any venues. With the Delta variant being the main culprit behind most of the infections, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi invited all Italians to receive the jab. Otherwise, closure would become a necessity once more.

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Photo Source: Al Jazeera, BDO Malta

Less than 7% of foreign students used their government vouchers

Jul 23 2021

Despite some 18,000 students travelled to Malta between June 1st and July 14th, less than 7% of that total used their government vouchers. Before being withdrawn by the government, the vouchers were aimed at generating millions back into the economy. Worth up to €300 for students staying 30 nights, the percentage translates into just 1,232 students.

Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo had stated that it was in Malta’s interest to push the industry as the tourism economy is a vital aspect of Malta. The scheme was met with criticism as to allowing unvaccinated students to travel to Malta, with the scheme being withdrawn when language schools were forced to close down due to a spike in infections.

A total of €295,650 were spent through the student vouchers whilst €2,069,550 were either directly or indirectly generated in the economy. The metal of flights and vouchers amounted to €17,820,000.

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Photo Source: Clayton Bartolo FB