Before you start

185 days of residence in Malta during the preceding twelve months
A valid foreign licence, not suspended or withdrawn
eResidence card or identity document
A certified translation where the licence is not in English or Maltese

Step-by-step

1
Check whether your country is on the exchange list
EU and EEA states, the UK, Australia, Switzerland and the UAE. The United States is not, which catches a lot of people — a US licence means the full test route once your twelve months are up.
OnlineWho: You
2
Track your twelve-month driving window
A non-EU licence entitles you to drive in Malta for no more than twelve months from your last entry. That is the deadline, and it runs alongside the 185-day residence requirement you must satisfy before applying.
OnlineWho: You12 months from last entry
3
Apply to Transport Malta
Bring the original licence, your eResidence card, proof of residence and any translation. The exchanged licence runs to the original's expiry date at a fee of €7 per year of validity.
In personWho: You€7 per year of validity
4
Take the theory then the practical test if no agreement applies
Theory first, practical second, both on the left. Maltese roads are narrow, busy and driven assertively — allow more preparation than your experience suggests.
In personWho: You
5
Work out how you will actually get into Valletta
Controlled Vehicular Access charges Maltese-plated vehicles entering and remaining in the city during controlled hours, with the first thirty minutes free. On-street parking inside the walls is minimal. The Floriana park-and-ride and the Sliema and Three Cities ferries are how most people do it.
In personWho: You

Documents you’ll need

Original foreign driving licence
eResidence card or identity document
Proof of 185 days' residence in the preceding twelve months
Certified translation where the licence is not in English or Maltese
Completed Transport Malta application

Things most newcomers don’t know

The exchange list is short, and the United States is not on it.

Malta exchanges licences from EU and EEA states, the UK, Australia, Switzerland and the UAE. American, Canadian, Indian and most other licences are not exchangeable — once the twelve-month window from your last entry closes, the route is theory test then practical test. Americans in particular arrive expecting reciprocity and find there is none.

Source: Transport Malta — exchange your foreign driving licence

The twelve-month clock runs from your last entry, not from when you registered.

A licence issued outside Malta and the EU entitles you to drive here for no more than twelve months from the date of your last entry into Malta. Because it runs from an entry stamp rather than from a residence date, people who travel in and out lose track of it entirely and drive uninsured without realising.

Source: Transport Malta — driving on a foreign licence

Valletta is designed to be arrived at, not driven in.

The Controlled Vehicular Access scheme charges Maltese-plated vehicles by camera for time spent in the city, with the first thirty minutes free and no charge at weekends or after early afternoon on weekdays. Even without it, on-street parking inside the walls is close to nonexistent. If you rent in the capital, plan around the park-and-ride and the ferries from the outset.

Source: Controlled Vehicular Access, cva.gov.mt

Public transport is free for residents, which changes the arithmetic.

Malta made public transport free for residents holding a personalised Tallinja card. On an island 27 kilometres long with heavy traffic and difficult parking, that makes the bus a serious option rather than a fallback — and it is a meaningful reason not to buy a car in your first year.

Source: Public Transport Malta — free travel for residents