Do I need to pay tax in Malta if I only work here part of the year?

Your tax position for a split year generally depends on properly establishing your tax residency status in Malta under the Income Tax Act, Chapter 123 of the Laws of Malta, since Malta generally applies residency tests based on factors such as the number of days actually present in Malta during the year and your broader circumstances, and becoming tax resident partway through a calendar year can create genuine complexity regarding exactly how your income for that specific year should be apportioned and taxed between your period of residence in Malta and any prior period elsewhere. Depending on the specific countries involved and whether a double taxation agreement exists between Malta and the country where you earned income before relocating, there may be specific relief mechanisms or apportionment rules that apply to properly avoid double taxation on income earned before you became Maltese tax resident, meaning simply assuming your entire year's income falls straightforwardly under one country's rules or the other could lead to either overpaying or incorrectly underpaying tax. Given the genuine complexity of correctly determining your residency start date, properly apportioning your income between jurisdictions, and applying any relevant double taxation relief for your specific split-year situation, this is a matter that would benefit significantly from consulting a tax advisor experienced in cross-border relocations, ideally before you file your first Maltese tax return covering this transitional year.