Public Limited Liability Company (kumpanija pubblika) PLCMalta
What it takes to form, own and run a public limited company in Malta, and how its profit is taxed. Each figure links to the page it was read from.
This company type
At a glance
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A company is formed by means of a capital divided ... shares held by its members. The members’ liability is limited to the ... amount, if any, unpaid on the shares respectively held by each of them.
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not less than forty-six thousand and five hundred and ... eighty-seven euro and forty-seven cents (46,587.47) ... subscribed by at least two persons in the case of a ... public company
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137. (1) Every public company shall have at least two ... directors.
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not less than forty-six thousand and five hundred and ... eighty-seven euro and forty-seven cents (46,587.47) ... subscribed by at least two persons in the case of a ... public company
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Over €10,000 but not exceeding €50,000 €379 with the addition of €17 for each €2,500 or part thereof in excess of €10,000
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(6) The tax shall be charged at the rate of thirty-five cents ... (0.35) on every euro of the chargeable income of every - ... (a) company;
Form it
Who registers it
- Registry
- Formed without visiting
- Yes
- Formed online
- Yes
What it takes to form
- A notary
- Not required
- A resident director
- Not stated
The registry’s and the law’s own pages do not mention it.
- Paying up the capital
- Not less than 25% of the nominal value of each share taken up is paid up on signing the memorandum (Companies Act art. 72(3)); the minimum authorised capital is fully subscribed in the memorandum.
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(3) In the case of a public company, not less than twenty-five ... per cent, and in the case of a private company, not less than twenty ... per cent, of the nominal value of each share taken up shall be paid ... up on the signing of the memorandum.
Own it
Who may own and run it
- Directors
- At least 2 · a company may be one
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137. (1) Every public company shall have at least two ... directors.
- Shareholders
- At least 2 · a company may be one
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not less than forty-six thousand and five hundred and ... eighty-seven euro and forty-seven cents (46,587.47) ... subscribed by at least two persons in the case of a ... public company
- Members
- At least 2
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not less than forty-six thousand and five hundred and ... eighty-seven euro and forty-seven cents (46,587.47) ... subscribed by at least two persons in the case of a ... public company
- A local company secretary
- Not required
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138. (1) Every company shall have a company secretary.
- A local registered agent
- Not required
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Every company registered in Malta must have a registered office in Malta. This may ... cases where the registered office is not that of a licensed company service provider ... then a proof of address including the premises owner
Each year, at the registry
- Annual registry fee
- EUR 300
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(iv) exceeds €10,000 but does not exceed €50,000 €350 €300
- Accounts on the public record
- Yes
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183. (1) The company directors shall deliver to the Registrar ... for registration a copy of the company
- Audit for a small company
- Required
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151. (1) A company shall, at each general meeting at which ... the annual accounts are laid, appoint an auditor or auditors to hold
- Audit
- The annual accounts are filed with a copy of the auditors’ report; the exemption from the auditor’s report stated by the MBR is for private companies only.
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shall be exempted from the requirements concerning, the auditor’s report.
Important dates
When each obligation falls due, as the authority states it.
- Pay up the minimum part of each share taken up
- Not in our records
With Bank company-in-formation account; deposit slip filed with the memorandum
Not stated on legislation.mt/getpdf/6a1836349844fb1e280ec744 when checked
- Hold the first annual general meeting
- 18 months after incorporation
With Members (general meeting)
A company need not hold it in the year of registration or the next provided it is held within eighteen months of registration.
- Deliver the annual return, made up to each anniversary of registration, to the Registrar
- Each year, on the anniversary of incorporation
With Registrar of Companies (MBR)
Penalty for each officer in default, and a further penalty for every day of default; amounts not stated on the pages read.
- Deliver the annual beneficial owners confirmation form with the annual return, if applicab
- Each year, on the anniversary of incorporation
With Registrar of Companies (MBR)
- Pay the registration fee with the annual return, set by authorised share capital
- Each year, on the anniversary of incorporation
With Registrar of Companies (MBR)
Fee schedule: Legal Notice 354 of 2008 as amended by Legal Notice 381 of 2015.
- Approve the annual accounts within 10 months of the financial year end and file them withi
- 10 months and 42 days after the end of the accounting period
With Registrar of Companies (MBR), online
- Hold an annual general meeting each year, no more than fifteen months after the previous o
- Not in our records
With Members (general meeting)
Not stated on legislation.mt/getpdf/6a1836349844fb1e280ec744 when checked
- Send the Registrar a return of any change among directors, company secretary or representa
- 14 days after change of officers
With Registrar of Companies (MBR)
- Send the Registrar a return of any change in the registered office within fourteen days
- 14 days after change of registered office
With Registrar of Companies (MBR)
- The Registrar strikes the name off the register on the expiry of three months from publica
- Stated; see the note
With Registrar of Companies (MBR)
What is public
- Directors
- Public
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424. Any person may - ... (a) inspect the documents kept by the Registrar other than
- Shareholders
- Public
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424. Any person may - ... (a) inspect the documents kept by the Registrar other than
- Beneficial owners
- To those with a legitimate interest
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424. Any person may - ... (a) inspect the documents kept by the Registrar other than
Tax
Tax on profit
How this company type is taxed, which can differ from its place’s headline rate.
Flat · 35%+2 regimes
Tax is charged at 35 cents on every euro of the chargeable income of every company (Income Tax Act art. 56(6)).
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(6) The tax shall be charged at the rate of thirty-five cents ... (0.35) on every euro of the chargeable income of every - ... (a) company;
Work it out on a profit figure: the company’s tax, the owner’s, and what is left.
Special regimes that may apply
- Patent Box Regime (Deduction) Rules ip box
Person entitled to claim the Patent Box Regime deduction Income Tax Act (Cap. 123), article 14(1)(p) - Exemption for income and gains from a participating holding holding · 100% exempt
Companies registered in Malta, on income or gains from a participating holding or from its transfer — a holding of at least 5% of equity shares conferring entitlement to at least 5% of any two of votes, distributable profits, and assets on a winding up Income Tax Act (Cap. 123), article 12(1)(u), read with the definition of "participating holding" in article 2(1)
Whether a company qualifies depends on its activity and conditions set in each statute.
- CFC rules in Malta
- Yes
Close it
Closing it
The other end, which most guides leave out.
- Route
- Dissolution and winding up by a liquidator (members’ or creditors’ voluntary), then the Registrar strikes the name off the register three months after publication of the notice of the liquidator’s final account, unless the court defers it.
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on the expiration of three months from the ... publication of the notice referred to in article 401(1)(e), the ... Registrar shall strike the name of the company off the register
- Statutory fee
- Not in our records
Every business in Malta
VAT
- Standard rate
- 18%Official European Commission, Taxes in Europe Database situation on 2026-07-01
- Other rates
- 12% Supplies listed in the Fifth Schedule to the VAT Act
- 7% Supplies listed in the Fifth Schedule to the VAT Act
- 5% Supplies listed in the Fifth Schedule to the VAT Act
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The reduced rates applicable in Malta are 12%, 7%, 5% or 0%.
- Registration threshold
- EUR 35,000
domestic turnover (the domestic threshold for the article 11 small-enterprise scheme); calendar year
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A taxable person, established in Malta must register for VAT purposes under Article 10 of the VAT Act
- A foreign company
- Registers from its first taxable supply
The article 10 duty to register is framed for a taxable person established in Malta; a business making taxable supplies in Malta without establishment there registers from its first such supply, the article 11 small-enterprise threshold being a domestic scheme. The registration FAQ read says nothing on whether a representative must be appointed.
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Persons established outside Malta may also be liable to register for VAT in Malta
- Returns filed
- Quarterly
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submit periodic VAT returns (generally covering a three-month period) electronically by not later than the twenty-second (22nd) day of the second month following the month during which the relevant tax period ends
- Tax authority
- Registration page read 2026-10-22
Portals and registers
- Business registerMalta Business Registry (MBR)
- Tax authorityCommissioner for Revenue (Office of the Commissioner for Revenue)
- Tax treatiesOffice of the Commissioner for Revenue - Double Taxation Treaties
Payment and banking services
4 services name Malta on their own list: Paysera, Airwallex, Stripe, Revolut. Each provider, and what a listing means.
Reference
Its name and code
- Kind
- Public limited companyDerived our grouping, the same words in every country
- Name in law
- Public Limited Liability Company (kumpanija pubblika) (PLC)
- ISO 20275 code
- C061Secondary GLEIF, Entity Legal Forms code list