Businesses may apply for the Bronze tier, subject to meeting the applicable Scheme criteria and the MCCAA’s verification process.
Businesses may apply for the Bronze tier, subject to meeting the applicable Scheme criteria and the MCCAA’s verification process.
Businesses can apply through the Trust You application process. As part of the application, businesses are required to provide information about their organisation and outlets, demonstrate compliance with the relevant Bronze criteria, identify their consumer contact point, outline their complaints procedure, confirm their commitment to the Trust You Charter and staff training position.
The Bronze tier requires businesses to meet a number of core consumer protection standards. These include having a written returns policy that is clearly displayed to consumers, appointing a designated consumer contact point, displaying prices inclusive of VAT and ensuring that employees are aware of consumers’ basic rights, including the two-year legal guarantee applicable to consumer goods.
The MCCAA verifies the information declared by the business against the records held by the Authority and assesses whether there are any recent or ongoing instances of non-compliance by the business in areas falling within its remit.
The final decision on whether to award the Trust You mark is taken by the Trust You Committee based on the Scheme’s published criteria.
No. Submitting an application does not automatically grant a business any status or tier under the Scheme. The Trust You mark is awarded only following the Authority’s verification process and the Committee’s decision.
The Scheme has three tiers: Bronze, Silver and Gold. At present, only the Bronze tier is available. The Silver and Gold tiers are currently under development, with the intention that they will progressively evolve into recognised Maltese national standards.
Bronze is the entry-level tier of the Scheme and focuses on fundamental consumer-protection commitments and good business practices. Silver builds on the Bronze requirements by incorporating verified product-safety and legal metrology practices. Gold represents the highest tier, providing a comprehensive assurance framework covering consumer protection, product safety and legal metrology, ongoing monitoring and periodic re-assessment.
No. Silver and Gold are not currently open for applications. Businesses may register their interest and the Authority will contact them regarding these tiers.
Registering interest is an expression of interest only. It does not constitute an application, confer any Trust You status or a tier, or reserve a place in a queue. Businesses wishing to obtain the Trust You mark must complete the formal application process separately.
ImportaMT is a voluntary service provided by the Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority (MCCAA) to allow importers to submit compliance documentation for verification before a product is imported into Malta.
The service covers non-food, non-medicinal products regulated by MCCAA. The service is being introduced on a product-type basis.
Yes. The service may be used for products imported from both EU and non-EU countries, provided that the products fall within the scope of the service.
Importers may register their interest via importa.mt and indicate the product types for which they intend to use the service. The service is being launched on a product-by-product basis, and importers who have registered their interest will be notified by MCCAA once their area of interest becomes available.
The importer selects the relevant product type and follows the applicable checklist and instructions provided through the ImportaMT service. The required compliance documentation and relevant information must then be submitted for verification.
The documentation required depends on the product type. For each product type, a checklist will be published, which will normally include a Declaration of Conformity, CE documentation, test reports, product certifications and photographs of the product, where applicable.
The manufacturer and importer remain responsible for identifying the legislation and standards applicable to the product. The legislation and harmonised standards recorded on the ImportaMT decision are those declared in the documentation provided.
No. ImportaMT is a documentation verification service and does not include physical inspection, sampling or laboratory testing of products.
No. ImportaMT provides verification of the compliance documentation submitted for a product. It does not constitute product certification, type approval or an exemption from market surveillance.
The standard review period is five working days. This may be extended to ten working days where a clarification is required. Only one round of clarification will be permitted.
Yes. ImportaMT is a voluntary service available at a fee of EUR 50 per product per request.
Where there are no developments regarding the product, the applicable legislation or standards, and provided that the product itself remains unchanged, there is no need to resubmit an application. The verification will remain valid for the specified period indicated on the ImportaMT verification document.
While a verification may remain valid for a specified period, given the pace of regulatory and technical developments, importers are advised to consider resubmitting a request before each shipment to ensure that the relevant compliance documentation remains up to date.
No. ImportaMT does not currently cover requirements falling under the remit of other national authorities. It also does not cover non-product requirements, such as the accuracy of customs declarations or the payment of duties.
No. ImportaMT verification does not constitute a guarantee of customs clearance. Customs-related requirements, including customs declarations, tariff classification and duties, remain outside the scope of the service.
No. In exceptional circumstances, further checks may be required upon arrival. For example, this may occur where information becomes available between the date of issue of the ImportaMT verification document and the actual arrival of the product in Malta, such as a report of injury caused by the product. In such cases, the ImportaMT verification would not guarantee automatic MCCAA clearance. Safety and other matters of public interest will always take precedence.
The ImportaMT verification process is equivalent to the verification MCCAA carries out on products referred to it by Customs upon arrival in Malta. A successful verification confirms that the documentation submitted has been verified in accordance with the ImportaMT process.