Malta

Malta, situated to the south of Italy, is an island of approximately 320 square kilometres with a population in the region of 400,000. The island is self-governing, having achieved independence from Britain in 1964. The official languages are English and Maltese, with most of the population being fluent in Italian.

Malta became a member of the EU on 1st May 2004.

The Malta Financial Services Authority is the sole regulator for all financial services on the island, including banking, insurance and investment services.

Malta has over thirty double tax agreements in place.

Maltese companies may be either onshore, international holding or international trading companies. All companies are liable to tax at a rate of 35%. Malta’s tax system, and the repayment (tax refunds) provisions contained in legislation, make an international trading company a tax efficient vehicle for non-resident shareholders, who receive up to a 30.8% tax refund on dividends, making the final tax payable for a non-resident shareholder approximately 4.2%.

Other features of a Maltese trading company are:

• A minimum of two members.
• A minimum of one director which may be a corporate entity, plus a company secretary, who must be a natural person. There is no requirement that they must be resident in Malta.
• A registered office is required, which must be in Malta.
• An annual general meeting is required, but this does not have to take place in Malta.
• Shares must be registered. Bearer shares are not permitted. Shares with no par value are not permitted.
• Annual accounts must be prepared and audited.
• Where a company’s accounting records are kept outside of Malta, sufficient information must be held in Malta to ascertain the financial status of the company at intervals of not more than six months.
• An annual return is required and is filed on public record.