The Amsterdam Treaty, which came into force on 1st May 1999 harmonised the visa rules applying to travel for non-EU nationals. EU  Member States with the exception of the United Kingdom and Ireland which, on the basis of a protocol annexed to the Treaty of Amsterdam, maintain autonomous visa, immigration and asylum policies are  precluded from unilaterally determining the visa rules related to short-term stays for nationals of any third country.

Bound by Regulation (EC) No 539/2001, modified by Regulations (EC) No 2414/2001; No 453/2003; No 1932/2006; and No 1244/2009, the list of third-countries whose nationals are subject to the visa requirement, when travelling to Malta and/or any other EU Member State is as follows:

AFGHANISTAN	IRAQ		ST VINCENT
ALBANIA	JAMAICA		SUDAN
ALGERIA	JORDAN		SURINAME
ANGOLA	KAZAKHSTAN		SWAZILAND
ARMENIA	KENYA		SYRIA
AZERBAIJAN	KIRIBATI		TAJIKISTAN
BAHRAIN	KUWAIT		TANZANIA
BANGLADESH	KYRGYZSTAN		THAILAND
BELARUS	LAOS		TIMOR-LESTE
BELIZE	LEBANON		TOGO
BENIN	LESOTHO		TONGA
BHUTAN	LIBERIA		TRINDAD & TOBAGO
BOLIVIA	LIBYA		TUNISIA
BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA	MADAGASCAR		TURKEY
BOTSWANA	MALAWI		TURKMENISTAN
BURKINA FASO	MALDIVES		TUVALU
BURMA/MYANMAR	MALI		UGANDA
BURUNDI	MARSHALL ISLANDS		UKRAINE
CAMBODIA	MAURITANIA		UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
CAMEROON	MICRONESIA		UZBEKISTAN
CAPE VERDE	MOLDOVA		VANUATU
CENTRAL AFRICAN REP	MONGOLIA		VIETNAM
CHAD	MONTENEGRO		YEMEN
CHINA	MOROCCO		ZAMBIA
COLOMBIA	MOZAMBIQUE		ZIMBABWE
COMOROS		NAMIBIA
CONGO		NAURU
COTE D’IVOIRE		NEPAL
CUBA		NIGER
DEM REP OF CONGO		NIGERIA
DJIBOUTI		NORTH KOREA
DOMINICA		NORTHERN MARIANAS (IS)
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC		OMAN
ECUADOR		PAKISTAN
EGYPT		PALAU
EQUATORIAL GUINEA		PAPUA NEW GUINEA
ERITREA		PERU
ETHIOPIA		PHILIPPINES
FIJI		QATAR
FYROM		RUSSIA
GABON		RWANDA
GAMBIA		SAMOA
GEORGIA		SAO TOME & PRINCIPE
GHANA		SAUDI ARABIA
GRENADA		SENEGAL
GUINEA		SERBIA
GUINEA-BISSAU		SIERRA LEONE
GUYANA		SOLOMON ISLANDS
HAITI		SOMALIA
INDIA		SOUTH AFRICA
INDONESIA		SRI LANKA
IRAN		ST LUCIA
INDIA
INDONESIA
IRAN

A limited set of derogations and exceptions exist for specific categories of persons, notably on grounds of international law or custom. Member States may therefore exempt from the requirement to carry an EU visa, or reintroduce the visa obligation when they would otherwise be exempted, the following categories of persons:

·                        holders of diplomatic passports, official duty passports and other official passports;

·                        civilian air and sea crew;

·                        flight crew and attendants on emergency or rescue flights and other helpers involved in disaster or emergency relief;

·                        the civilian crew of ships navigating in international waters;

·                        the holders of laissez-passer issued by some intergovernmental organisations to their officials.