How to Register a Business in Malta in 2026

Malta business registration is quick and cheap for most people who start small. A sole trader with a Maltese ID card can register online and get the VAT, PE and Jobsplus numbers within 48 hours, the first €12,000 of profit is tax free in 2026, and a small business under €35,000 a year does not have to charge VAT.

The hard part is knowing which registration you need and in what order. Jobsplus, the tax authority, VAT and social security each have their own forms and deadlines, the rules change for EU and non-EU nationals, and a sole trader is personally liable for every business debt.

We make it easy. If a company fits you better, we form it ourselves, from the structure and the documents to the filing, the tax number and the bank file. One team, one clear price from €1,299, and the company is ready in about a week.

Already sure you want a company? Read our guide on how to set up a limited company in Malta.

Why Register a Business in Malta

People choose business registration in Malta for a low-cost start inside the EU, English as an official language and some of the lowest tax rates in Europe for a small business. A sole trader pays no income tax on the first €12,000 of profit in 2026, and a company can bring tax on trading profits to about 5%.

Low Cost to Start

Business registration in Malta costs little: a sole trader pays no fee for the online self-employed registration, and a partnership or company pays a Registry fee from €100. The main cost of a sole trader is social security, which starts at €36.18 a week once income passes €910 a year.

Tax-Free Income Up to €12,000

For income earned in 2026, a single person pays 0% on the first €12,000, 15% up to €16,000, 25% up to €60,000 and 35% above. That makes a small side business or a first year of freelancing very cheap to run.

No VAT to Charge Under €35,000

Every business registers for VAT in Malta, but one with domestic turnover of €35,000 or less can register under Article 11 as a small undertaking. It does not charge VAT on its sales and files one simple declaration a year.

English, the Euro and the EU

Malta uses English as an official language, the euro since 2008, and EU rules on trade and services. Contracts, forms and most guidance are in English, which makes registering a business in Malta easier for foreigners than in most EU countries.

Support for New Businesses

Malta Enterprise runs grants and tax credits for new firms. The Business Start scheme pays up to €10,000 to qualifying small start-ups, with applications open until 30 October 2026, and a new Micro Invest tax credit of up to 65% of eligible costs opens in January 2027.

Types of Business You Can Register in Malta

The main forms of Malta business registration are a sole trader, a general partnership, a limited partnership and a private limited company. The form decides who is liable for the debts, how profits are taxed and which authority handles your business registration in Malta.

Sole Trader

A sole trader registers as self-employed and trades in their own name. It is the quickest and cheapest way to register a business in Malta, with no company to form, but the owner is personally liable for every business debt. Profits are taxed as personal income, and the owner pays Class 2 social security.

General Partnership

A general partnership, or partnership en nom collectif, has two or more partners who are all liable for its debts without limit. The partners sign a deed of partnership and deliver it to the Malta Business Registry, which issues a certificate of registration.

Limited Partnership

A limited partnership, or partnership en commandite, has at least one general partner with unlimited liability and at least one limited partner whose liability stops at their contribution. The deed must say which partners are which, or the law treats it as a general partnership.

Private Limited Company

A company is a separate legal person, so the owners' liability stops at their share capital, which is one of the benefits of setting up a business in Malta as a company. It needs authorised capital of at least €1,164.69, with 20% paid up, a director, a company secretary and a registered office in Malta. It pays 35% tax, and its shareholders claim refunds that bring trading profits to about 5%.

For Malta business registration, a sole trader suits one person testing an idea with low risk. A company suits anyone with customers abroad, investors, staff or real financial risk. Pick the form first, because how to register a business in Malta changes with it. Our Malta company formation guide covers the company route in full.

How to Register a Business in Malta as a Sole Trader

How to register a business in Malta as a sole trader depends on your ID, and the steps below follow the order the authorities expect. With a Maltese ID card, one online form does most of the work in 48 hours. Without one, you get a social security number and a tax number first, then register with Jobsplus and for VAT.

Before You Start

Before business registration in Malta, check whether your activity needs a trading licence or a sector licence, and whether your premises have the right planning permit. Most activities need no trading licence. Food businesses, financial services and gaming need their own licences before you start.

Register Online With a Maltese ID Card

Maltese citizens with an ID card that does not end in the letter A can use the "Business Startup, Sole Traders" form on servizz.gov.mt. One submission registers you for VAT, gives you a PE number if you hire from the start and a Jobsplus employer number, and the numbers arrive within 48 hours. A Maltese sole trader's tax number is their ID card number.

Register as an EU Citizen Without a Maltese ID

EU citizens first get a Maltese social security number, online or at a Servizz hub, and a tax number through the Expatriates Taxpayer Registration Form, which takes about eight days. Since July 2025, a Jobsplus engagement form also triggers the social security number automatically for people registered with Identità.

File the Jobsplus Self-Employed Form

Every self-employed person files the Jobsplus "Engagement Form, Self Employed" on the same day they start work, online through the Jobsplus dashboard or by email. Filing late can bring a fine under the Employment and Training Services Act.

Register for VAT

Register under Article 10 within 30 days of your first taxable supply, or apply for Article 11 if your domestic turnover will stay at €35,000 or less. The next section explains the difference.

Get a PE Number Before You Hire

Before you hire your first employee, get a PE number from the tax authority and plan payroll in Malta, then file a Jobsplus engagement form for each employee on their first day of work.

Read more: how to start a business in Malta and how to get a PE number in Malta.

VAT Registration for a Malta Business

Every business in Malta registers for VAT, whatever its size. The €35,000 figure is not a registration threshold. It is the limit for the Article 11 small undertaking exemption, under which you register but do not charge VAT. Most other businesses register under Article 10.

Article 11 is cheaper to run, and customers can check a Malta VAT number either way, but you cannot reclaim the VAT you pay on equipment, software or services. A business with large costs, or one that sells mainly to other VAT-registered businesses, often does better under Article 10 from the start.

Article 10, the Normal Registration

Under Article 10 you charge 18% VAT, or a reduced rate where one applies, file VAT returns and reclaim the VAT on your business costs. You must register within 30 days of making your first taxable supply in Malta.

Article 11, the Small Undertaking Exemption

Article 11 applies when your domestic turnover in the previous calendar year was €35,000 or less. Since 2025 there is one threshold for every activity. You stop qualifying on the day you pass €35,000 in a calendar year, with no tolerance margin, and must apply to move to Article 10 within 15 days.

Article 12, Purchases From Other EU Countries

An Article 11 business that buys goods from other EU countries above €10,000 in a calendar year, or buys services from EU suppliers, must also register under Article 12 to account for VAT on those purchases. For services there is no threshold.

Our guides on how to register for VAT in Malta and Malta VAT returns and deadlines cover each step.

Tax and Social Security After Registering a Business in Malta

After registering a business in Malta as a sole trader, you pay personal income tax on your profits and Class 2 social security, both in three provisional instalments during the year. A company pays its own tax at 35%, with refunds to its shareholders, and the owner is taxed on salary and dividends.

Personal Income Tax for Sole Traders

A sole trader's profits are added to their other income and taxed at the personal rates. For income earned in 2026, the single rates are:

Married couples and parents use their own, wider bands. The rates apply to profit after allowable business expenses, so keep every invoice and receipt, or use bookkeeping services in Malta from the start.

Class 2 Social Security

Self-employed people with more than €910 of income in a year pay Class 2 social security, based on the previous year's net income. For people born from 1962, the 2026 rates are:

Students, pensioners and some part-time self-employed people with low income pay 15% of earnings or €36.18 a week, whichever is lower.

Provisional Tax Dates

Self-employed people pay provisional tax in three instalments: 20% by 30 April, 30% by 31 August and 50% by 21 December, based on the tax for the previous year. Class 2 contributions are due on the same dates. The personal tax return is normally due by the end of June after the year ends, and for the 2026 assessment year the deadline was 31 July 2026.

Read more: Malta tax return deadlines and the Malta income tax return and self assessment.

How to Register a Partnership in Malta

For a partnership, business registration in Malta is done at the Registry. A partnership exists only once the partners sign a deed and the Malta Business Registry issues a certificate of registration. The deed is filed online through BAROS, and the Registry fee follows the partners' contributions, from €100 up to €1,900.

What the Deed Must Contain

The deed states each partner's name and residence, the partnership name, a registered office in Malta, the objects, each partner's contribution and its value, and any fixed duration. A limited partnership also states which partners are general and which are limited.

Registration and Fees

Any partner can deliver the deed to the Registrar. The fee is €100 where contributions are up to €1,500, rising on a sliding scale to €1,900. Appointing or removing a partner later costs €100 each. Providers report certificates within one to seven working days of a complete filing.

Tax and Jobsplus

A partnership is tax transparent, so each partner is taxed on their share of the profits, unless the partnership elects to be taxed as a company. Partners file a Jobsplus engagement form with the partnership certificate, a common VAT number and a PE number if the partnership hires.

Malta Business Registration for Foreigners

Malta business registration for foreigners depends on citizenship, and business registration in Malta works very differently for EU and non-EU citizens. EU citizens can register as self-employed on the same terms as Maltese citizens, after getting a social security and tax number. Non-EU citizens need a Jobsplus employment licence and a residence permit to be self-employed, and Jobsplus says the licence is only granted in exceptional cases.

EU Citizens

EU citizens can live and work in Malta freely. If they stay more than three months, they register their residence with Identità at no fee. A self-employed EU citizen applies with an active Jobsplus self-employment registration, a VAT certificate, a tax certificate and a social security certificate, and the residence document takes about 30 working days.

Non-EU Citizens

A non-EU citizen who wants to be self-employed needs a Jobsplus employment licence first, under the same system as the Malta employment licence for non-EU staff, then an Identità self-employment permit at €100 a year. Under the Jobsplus guidance in force since January 2021, the licence needs one of: €500,000 of capital spending in Malta within six months, an innovative project that will hire at least three EU or Maltese workers within 18 months, or a project approved by Malta Enterprise.

The Company Route From Abroad

A non-EU founder who does not need to live in Malta can own and direct a Malta company from abroad, with no residency rule for shareholders or directors, as our guide on how to set up a company as a non-resident explains. That is usually the simpler way to do business in Malta. Our guide on how to start a business in Malta as a foreigner covers the permits in detail.

When to Move From Sole Trader to a Limited Company

Move from sole trader to a limited company when the risk or the profit makes personal liability and personal tax rates too expensive. The usual triggers are profits heading into the 35% band above €60,000, customers or contracts abroad, investors, staff, or a bank or client that wants to deal with a company.

Signs It Is Time

A sole trader pays up to 35% on profits and carries every debt personally. A company pays 35% with refunds to shareholders, or can elect a final 15% on profits it keeps, and limits the owner's liability to the share capital. Clients, banks and investors also take a company more seriously. Model your own numbers, because the right point depends on your profits, where you live and whether you take the money out.

How to Move a Sole Trader Business Into a Company

Form the company first, and ideally set up the company with a bank account so the business can move without a gap in payments. Then transfer the business as a going concern. Under Income Tax Act article 5(15), there is no capital gain when the whole business moves into a company at least 75% owned by the same person, in exchange for shares. For VAT, a transfer of a going concern to a company registered under Article 10 is not a supply, so no VAT is charged on the assets.

Close the Sole Trader Registrations

Cancel the sole trader's Article 10 VAT registration within 15 days, and account in the final return for VAT on any remaining assets you claimed VAT on. File a Jobsplus engagement form as a director or employee of the company. Property moved into the company still carries 5% duty, so take advice before transferring premises.

Read more: Malta company formation requirements and accounting services for Malta companies.

Malta Business Registration Costs

Malta business registration costs almost nothing for a sole trader, from €100 for a partnership and from €1,299 for a company with us. The real difference is the yearly cost and the liability that comes with each form.

A company costs more to run because it must keep a registered office, a company secretary, filed accounts and a tax return, through our partners from about €4,600 plus VAT a year before an audit. In return you get limited liability and a lower tax rate on trading profits. Our guide to how much a Malta company costs has every line.

How Long Business Registration in Malta Takes

Business registration in Malta takes 48 hours for a Maltese sole trader using the online form, about one to two weeks for an EU citizen without a Maltese ID, about a week for a company with us, and weeks to months for a non-EU self-employment permit.

The fastest route to business registration in Malta is the online form for Maltese ID holders. For everyone else, the waiting is mostly for documents: social security and tax numbers, certified copies and, for a company, the KYC file.

Common Mistakes When Registering a Business in Malta

Most problems with business registration in Malta come from timing and from misreading the VAT rules. These are the mistakes we see most often.

Starting Work Before the Jobsplus Form

The self-employed Jobsplus form must be filed on the same day work starts. A late form means work done without registration, social security gaps and a possible fine. File it on day one.

Thinking VAT Only Starts Above €35,000

Every business registers for VAT in Malta. The €35,000 figure is the limit for the Article 11 exemption, not a registration threshold. Trading without any VAT registration is a breach from the first sale.

Staying on Article 11 After Crossing €35,000

You stop qualifying for Article 11 on the day your domestic turnover passes €35,000, and you must apply to move to Article 10 within 15 days. Invoices issued after that date without VAT can leave you paying the VAT yourself.

Missing Provisional Tax Dates

Self-employed people pay provisional tax and Class 2 contributions on 30 April, 31 August and 21 December. Missing them brings interest and penalties. Put the dates in your calendar the day you register.

Staying a Sole Trader Too Long

A sole trader with large contracts, stock or customers abroad carries every debt personally. One bad debt can reach your savings and your home. When the risk is real, move the business into a company before the large contract, not after.

Bottom Line

Malta business registration is simple for a sole trader: one online form for Maltese ID holders, a social security and tax number first for other EU citizens, then Jobsplus on day one and the right VAT registration. The first €12,000 of profit is tax free in 2026, and Article 11 keeps very small businesses out of charging VAT.

Whichever route you choose, Malta business registration is the easy part. The trade-off is personal liability and personal tax rates as the business grows. When the risk or the profit is real, register a business in Malta as a company instead. We form it from €1,299, with the documents, filing and bank file handled for you.

Sources

• Servizz.gov, Business Startup, Sole Traders
• Jobsplus, how to register as self-employed
• MTCA, self-employed persons
• Value Added Tax Act, Cap. 406
• Income Tax Act, Cap. 123
• Social Security Department, Class 2 contributions 2026
• MTCA, tax return submission deadline 2026
• Companies Act, Cap. 386
• Malta Business Registry, fees
• Identità, residence for EU nationals
• Identità, employment and self-employment permits