Malta gambling regulation, licensing and taxation

Regulated. Local licensing. A prior concession issued by the government is required.

Land-based casinos and cruise casinos located on cruise ships are regulated. 

Games permitted include:

• Roulette.
• Blackjack.
• Baccarat.
• Poker played against the house.
• Lotteries.
• Secondary lotteries.
• Virtual sports games.

(Section 1(b)(i), First Schedule — Licence Categories, Gaming Authorisations Regulations (p. 12)

Licensing and Costs

Land-based casino licensing

• Before applying for a business-to-consumer land-based casino licence, the applicant must receive a government concession (Part II, Section 11, Gaming Act and Part II, Section 4, Gaming Authorisations Regulations).
• As explained by the MGA on its website, the casino concession is valid for a ten-year period and the concessionaire is required to operate a minimum of 225 electronic gaming machines (EGMs) and 15 gaming tables. More details can be found on the MGA’s website under the land-based gaming section.
• No limit is provided on the number of licences available but their issuance is subject to the government’s prior issuance of a concession (Part II, Section 4, Gaming Authorisations Regulations).
• The term of a licence is ten years. If the government’s concession is of a shorter term, the licence will be granted for such a shorter term (Part II, Section 6(1), Gaming Authorisations Regulations, p. 2).
• Only companies established in the European Economic Area are eligible to hold a licence (Section 10, Gaming Authorisations Regulations).
• Minimum share capital requirements are set at a minimum of €100,000 for Type 1 or Type 2 games and a minimum of €40,000 for Type 3 or Type 4 games. Operators with multiple type approvals are required to meet these share capital requirements cumulatively up to a minimum capping of €240,000. (Guidance on the Application Process and Capital Requirements Policy)

Cruise casino licensing

• Any cruise line wishing to operate a cruise casino requires prior approval from the MGA (Part VIII, Section 30(1), Gaming Authorisations Regulations).
• Applications for permits are currently being accepted. No limit is provided on the number of permits available.
• A cruise casino permit is valid only for a term not exceeding the time during which the cruise ship is moored at or within Maltese territory and is valid only in regard to registered passengers of the cruise ship (Part VIII, Section 30(3)(a-b), Gaming Authorisations Regulations (p. 11).
• A cruise casino permit must be limited to cruise ships with a minimum of three ports of call in three different jurisdictions (Part VIII, Section 30(3)(d), Gaming Authorisations Regulations, p. 11). 

Recognition notices

• Any person offering licensable games in or from Malta without a licence from the MGA, but under a licence issued by another member state of the EU or the EEA, or a state that the MGA deems to offer safeguards largely equivalent to those offered by Maltese law, may apply to the MGA for a recognition notice (Part IV, Section 22(1), Gaming Authorisations Regulations, p. 9).
• A recognition notice has the same effect as a licence issued by the MGA for the purpose of providing a gaming service, gaming supply, key function or any other authorisation in or from Malta.
• The MGA may revoke a recognition notice and may require an applicant of a recognition notice to pay administrative fees where reasonable (Part IV, Section 22(3), Gaming Authorisations Regulations, p. 9).
   

Types of Gaming Services 

Gaming service licences are a business-to-consumer (B2C) licence that offer or carry out a gaming service. The types of licences available are as follows: 

• Type 1: Section 1(i),First Schedule — Licence Categories, Gaming Authorisations Regulations

Games of chance played against the house, the outcome of which is determined by a random generator, and shall include casino-type games, such as roulette, blackjack, baccarat, poker played against the house, lotteries, secondary lotteries and virtual sports games.

• Type 2: Section 1(ii),First Schedule — Licence Categories, Gaming Authorisations Regulations

Games of chance played against the house, the outcome of which is not generated randomly, but is determined by the result of an event or competition extraneous to a game of chance, and whereby operators manage their own risk by managing the odds offered to the player.

• Type 3: Section 1(iii),First Schedule — Licence Categories, Gaming Authorisations Regulations

Games of chance not played against the house and wherein the operator is not exposed to gaming risk, but generates revenue by taking a commission or other charge based on the stakes or the prize, and shall include player-versus-player games such as poker, bingo, betting exchange and other commission-based games.

• Type 4: Section 1(iv), Gaming Authorisations Regulations.
  Controlled skill games as defined in Section 8, Part II of the Gaming Authorisations Regulations (p. 3).

Costs

The following annual licence fee and monthly compliance contributions must be made to the MGA: 

Fixed annual licence fee

• Non-refundable fixed annual licence fee for operators providing Type 1, 2 and/or 3 gaming services or a combination of Type 1, 2, 3 and/or: €25,000 (Part E, First Schedule — Licence fees payable in terms of regulation, Gaming Licence Fees Regulations 2018 (p. 16).
• Non-refundable fixed annual licence fee for operators providing solely Type 4 gaming services: €10,000 (Part F, First Schedule — Licence fees payable in terms of regulation, Gaming Licence Fees Regulations 2018, p. 16).
   

Compliance contributions 

A compliance contribution isdefined as: “The aggregate of the amounts, including where applicable the minimum amount or the maximum amount, as the case may be, resulting from the application of the computational method prescribed in each of Sub-Regulations (2), (3), (4) and (5) of Regulation 3.” (Part I, Section 2(2), Gaming Licence Fees Regulations 2018, p. 2)

B2C: Type 1 gaming services compliance contribution ranges from €15,000 to €375,000 (Part II, Section 3(2), Gaming Licence Fees Regulations 2018, p. 4).

B2C: Type 2 gaming services compliance contribution ranges from €25,000 to €600,000 (Part II, Section 3(3), Gaming Licence Fees Regulations 2018, p. 4).

B2C: Type 3 gaming services compliance contribution ranges from €25,000 to €500,000 (Part II, Section 3(4), Gaming Licence Fees Regulations 2018 (p. 5).

B2C: Type 4 gaming services compliance contribution ranges from €5,000 to €500,000 (Part II, Section 3(5), Gaming Licence Fees Regulations 2018, p. 5).

The application fee for a new licence and the licence renewal fee are both set at €5,000 (Fourth Schedule - Administrative fees payable in terms of regulation 5, Gaming Licence Fees Regulations 2018).

For more information on licensing fees, compliance costs or other administrative fees, please refer to the Gaming Licence Fees Regulation 2018.

For more information on the licensing process, please see the MGA’s website.

Gaming operators must pay a gaming tax of

• 5 percent of gross gaming revenue (GGR) (Part II, Section 3, Gaming Tax Regulations 2018, p. 2).

A gaming levy is imposed on gaming devices. The levy is dependent on the types of games offered and calculated as follows:

• 30 percent of GGR for Type 1 and/or Type 2 gaming services on gaming devices used in gaming premises (Part III, Section 5(2), Gaming Tax Regulations 2018 (p. 3).
• 12.5 percent of GGR for Type 3 and/or Type 4 gaming services on gaming devices used in gaming premises (Part III, Section 5(3), Gaming Tax Regulations 2018, p. 3).
• 15 percent of GGR for Type 1, Type 2, Type 3 and/or Type 4 gaming services on gaming devices used in controlled gaming premises (Part III, Section 5(4), Gaming Tax Regulations 2018 (p. 3).

Winnings from gambling are not expressly classified as taxable income under the Maltese Income Tax Act.

The Maltese authorities confirmed to Vixio in September 2024 that although a one-time win is not taxable, winnings from professional or frequent gambling are taxable as they would be considered trading income.

• Licensees are prohibited from providing credit to players for participation in games (Part V, Section 15, Gaming Act 2018 (p. 15).
• Licensees are prohibited from offering credit services to players and participating in, arranging, permitting or knowingly facilitating the giving of credit in connection with gaming (Part VIII, Section 27, Player Protection Directive, p. 19).
• Commercial communications must not make reference to instantly available consumer credit services, or any other ways of providing credit to players (Part III, Section 6(l), Gaming Commercial Communications Regulations (p. 3).
• Licence holders are prohibited from distributing credit to players whether the credit be in cash, cash bonus or any other token (Section 2.2(l), Commercial Communications Guidelines, p. 6).