COVID-19: Government vouchers being sent to households this week

Government’s €100 vouchers started being sent by registered post to households across Malta and Gozo as of yesterday

Economy Minister Silvio Schembri
Economy Minister Silvio Schembri
SHARE

Government’s €100 vouchers started being sent by registered post to households across Malta and Gozo as of yesterday.

The vouchers, announced in government’s economic recovery scheme, will be split into five €20 vouchers, and will be arriving via Malta Post.

A member of the household will have to sign for the vouchers, and will be allowed to collect them in the name of all the residing individuals.

In a press conference on Wednesday, Economy Minister Silvio Schembri said anyone aged 16 on 18 June or older, as well as anyone holding a Maltese residence, will be receiving the vouchers.

Some 440,000 residents will be receiving the vouchers, while over 2,000 businesses have signed up to be eligible for the payment.

If no one is home when the vouchers are delivered by Malta Post, they will be sent to the nearest post office for collection.

The vouchers will be issued against a valid ID card number, and will need to be spent by September 30. Vouchers can be transferred from one individual to another, with government not monitoring where and on what they are spent.

Split into five, four vouchers will be red and one voucher will be blue.

Red vouchers may be used at bars, restaurants, hotels, accommodation businesses, while blue vouchers can be exchanged at any type of outlet that was ordered to close at the start of the public health emergency.

While no limit has been set on how much of the vouchers can be spent at once, monetary change cannot be given, and the vouchers cannot be exchanged for money.

Business owners will be able to redeem government vouchers that customers will pay with using an electronic system, the economy ministry said last week.

When customers pay using the voucher, shops will be able to scan a unique QR code on the individual vouchers.

The cash equivalent of the voucher will then be transferred to a credit card account inputted by the business owner upon registration.

The app will be made available for all smart phones, and requires an internet connection.

When scanning customers’ vouchers, owners will also be obliged to scan the VAT receipt issued with the purchase to ensure that all checks and balances are adhered to, Schembri said.

More in Business