Notary Dr Jonathan Vella

Notary Dr Jonathan Vella practises from Mellieħa, the resort town at the northern end of the main island, and offers the full range of work that Maltese law reserves for a notary public. For visitors who have bought a holiday flat in the north, residents drawing up a will, or families dealing with an inheritance, his office at Triq il-Garni is a local point of contact for the formal paperwork.

He is both a notary public and a commissioner for oaths, and he is listed in our directory of notaries in Malta. Clients who cannot easily travel to the office can ask him to visit them at home or at another location.

Qualifications

Dr Vella took a Bachelor of Arts degree in 2001, a Diploma of Notary Public in 2002 and a Doctor of Laws degree in 2004. In 2006 he added a postgraduate master's degree in international law, a useful background for clients whose affairs cross borders, as many British and other foreign property owners' do.

His warrants to practise as a notary public and as a commissioner for oaths were both conferred in 2004, so he has been in practice for many years. The details of his training are set out in the post-nominals he uses: B.A., LL.D. and Mag. Jur. in International Law.

Property conveyancing and leases

Conveyancing is the transfer of property from one owner to another, and in Malta it runs through a notary. Dr Vella handles the promise of sale (the konvenju), which is the preliminary agreement signed before completion, and the deeds themselves: purchase, sale, donation, exchange and the partition and division of immovable property. Immovable property is the Maltese legal term for land and buildings.

He also prepares lease agreements, called kirjiet in Maltese, which record the terms on which a landlord lets a property to a tenant. Alongside the contracts he produces searches and title reports, which check who owns a property and whether anything affects it before money changes hands. A buyer from the UK who wants a general picture of the island before committing should read our Malta relocation guide and the Mellieħa guide.

Loans, overdrafts and matrimonial regimes

The office draws up the agreements that record loans, known in Maltese as ftehim ta' self, and the paperwork for overdrafts. These are usually arranged with a bank first and then formalised in a notarial deed, so it helps to have your lender chosen beforehand, and our directory of banks in Malta lists the main options.

Another service is the drafting of documents on matrimonial regimes, which set out how property is owned and shared between spouses. Couples who are marrying in Malta, or who already own a home here, can ask which regime applies to them.

Wills, powers of attorney and documents

Dr Vella drafts wills and also deals with successions, including the liquidation and division of an estate among the heirs. A Maltese will can be a sensible step for anyone who owns property on the island, whatever their nationality, and the notary can discuss how it fits alongside arrangements made elsewhere.

A power of attorney, or prokura, lets a trusted person act for you, which is helpful if you own a home in Mellieħa but live in the UK for much of the year. Other services include private writings, the authentication of documents and the taking of affidavits, which are sworn statements of fact. For the tax side of owning property or running a business here, the Malta tax guide for UK nationals is a good place to start.

Finding the office and getting started

The office is at 100 Triq il-Garni in Mellieħa, in the north of Malta, reached by road from Valletta (see our Valletta guide) and the airport. If you are visiting for a holiday, our things to do in Malta page suggests how to fill the days around an appointment, from Popeye Village to the best beaches in Malta. Our page on hotels in Mellieħa helps if you want to stay nearby.

The notary will visit clients on request, which is useful if you cannot get to the office. Opening hours are not published, so the easiest way to begin is to use the VisitMalta.co.uk enquiry form on this page, say what you need, and we will pass your message to Dr Vella, who will reply to you directly.