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Finishing your shell

Do you need a perit or a permit to change a shell inside?

Reviewed and approved by Neil Bennett on 2026-10-26 · updated 2026-10-22

AI-generated illustration, not a real property

Most buyers of a shell want to change something: move a partition, open the kitchen onto the living room, add a bathroom. Some of those changes are plain finishing work. Others need a perit, and some need permission from the Planning Authority. This guide explains where the line falls in law and when to get professional advice. It is general information. Your perit is the person who signs off your plans.

What the law says

The Development Planning Act says that no development may be carried out except with development permission1. "Development" is defined widely: building, engineering and other operations for construction, demolition or alteration, and any material change in the use of land or buildings1.

The same article excludes some work from that definition. The exclusion that matters most when finishing a shell covers maintenance operations that affect only the interior of a building, or that do not materially affect its external appearance1. The Act adds that maintenance does not include demolition and rebuilding1.

What that usually means for a shell

These are rules of thumb. Ask a perit about your own plans.

  • Usually finishing work. Plaster, screed, tiling, services, kitchens, bathrooms, internal doors and painting inside a shell that already has its permit.
  • Get a perit first. Removing or opening up any internal wall, cutting into a slab, adding a mezzanine, or putting heavy loads such as a pool or large planters on a roof.
  • Likely to need permission. Changing the façade or any openings, enclosing a balcony or terrace, building on the roof, changing the use, or splitting or joining units.

Why a perit matters even when no permit does

A perit is a warranted architect and civil engineer. On a shell purchase a perit can:

  • check that the unit matches the approved permit plans before you sign
  • tell you which walls are structural before you plan a layout around removing them
  • prepare drawings and apply for permission when a change needs it
  • inspect the work and the common parts at handover

Shared buildings

In a block, the façade, roof, structure and common parts are shared. Changes that affect them usually also need the agreement of the other owners or the developer under the building's own rules, whatever the planning position. Check before you commission anything.

Next steps

Questions people ask

Do I need a permit to finish a shell form apartment?

Finishing the inside of a shell that already has its development permit, without changing the structure, the façade, the use or the number of units, is usually treated as work that does not need a new permit. The Development Planning Act excludes works that affect only the interior of a building. Ask a perit to confirm for your plans before you start.

When do I need a perit?

Whenever you touch the structure, such as removing or opening up a wall that may be load-bearing, cutting into a slab or adding weight on a roof, and whenever you change the façade, the openings, the use or the number of units. A perit is also useful to check that the shell matches the approved plans before you buy.

Can I knock down internal walls in a shell?

Non-structural block partitions can often be moved, but in many Maltese buildings internal walls carry load. Do not remove any wall until a perit has confirmed it is not structural.

Sources

  1. Legislation Malta, Development Planning Act (Cap. 552), article 70 (requirement of permission). · checked 22 Oct 2026

General information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Ask your notary, advocate or perit about your own purchase. Provenance: drafted with an AI model (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources listed, and edited for this site.