The EU Commission has approved a €215m Maltese wage subsidies scheme to support enterprises operating in the sectors affected by the COVID outbreak.
On 24 April, the European Commission has approved a €215 million Maltese wage subsidies scheme to support enterprises operating in the sectors affected by the coronavirus outbreak. The scheme was approved under the State aid Temporary Framework adopted by the Commission on 19 March 2020, as amended on 3 April 2020.
The COVID wage supplement that has been launched by the Maltese Government on 24 March, partly or fully, finances the wage costs of employers that, due to the coronavirus outbreak, would otherwise have laid off employees. As announced earlier, the scheme is accessible to companies of all sizes and also self-employed individuals operating in sectors that are strongly affected by the current health crisis and by the containment measures adopted by Superintendent of Public Health.
The Commission found that the Maltese scheme is in line with the conditions set out in the Temporary Framework. In particular, (i) the measure will finance part of the wage costs for employees that would otherwise have been laid off, (ii) the aid is proportional as it is capped at €800 per full time employee per month, and (iii) the scheme respects the maximum duration of 12 months. The Commission concluded that the Maltese measure is necessary, appropriate and proportionate to remedy a serious disturbance in the economy of a Member State, in line with Article 107(3)(b) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
As a reminder, the applications for the COVID wage supplement are still open.
Originally published 27 April 2020.
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