VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Malta and Japan have officially concluded a bilateral working holiday visa arrangement, offering young people from both countries the opportunity to live, work, and explore each other’s culture for up to one year.
The agreement, which takes effect in January, targets travellers aged 18 to 30. It allows Maltese youths to apply for free working holiday visas to Japan, while young Japanese nationals can do the same to visit Malta. The initiative also supports students attending English language schools and other educational institutions in Malta.
Talks on the arrangement have been ongoing for nine years. Maltese Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ian Borg and Japan’s State Minister for Foreign Affairs Hisayuki Fujii exchanged Notes Verbales in Tokyo, formally concluding negotiations.
“This visa arrangement opens new opportunities for our younger generations,” said Borg. “It also supports Malta’s growing English language training sector, with Japan already being our third-largest non-EU student market.”
The two ministers also reviewed broader economic and cultural ties, which have deepened in recent years with the establishment of embassies in both countries.
Borg also held meetings with Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi, discussing multilateral cooperation, including Malta’s Global Centre for Maritime Sanctions Monitoring and its chairmanship of the OSCE Asian Partners for Cooperation Group.
On Thursday, Borg will lead the 60th anniversary celebrations of diplomatic relations between Malta and Japan at the Osaka EXPO 2025.
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(ITALPRESS)
