Nikolai Timofejev
15 years in FinTech and payments. Maps your business model to the right licence scope and leads the file all the way to the MGA decision, including banking and payment rails.
Get a gambling license in Malta.
The gold standard of European iGaming: the Malta Gaming Authority's B2C and B2B licences under the Gaming Act - €5,000 application, €25,000 fixed annual fee, share capital of €100,000 for casino and betting types, compliance contributions scaled to revenue, and the EU's most recognised gaming stamp. The licence the industry's giants are built on.
27 yrs
on the international marketon the market
60+
in-house specialistsspecialists
400+
Licenses obtainedlicenses obtained
Updated
Malta in brief
Where European iGaming keeps its headquarters.
Malta wrote the playbook for licensing online gambling in Europe: the Gaming Act consolidates the regime under the Malta Gaming Authority, which issues B2C gaming service licences across four game types - Type 1 casino and RNG games, Type 2 fixed-odds betting, Type 3 peer-to-peer and Type 4 controlled skill games, and B2B critical gaming supply licences for platforms and content. The published mechanics are precise: a €5,000 application fee, a fixed annual licence fee of €25,000 for B2C operators (€10,000 for Type-4-only), minimum share capital of €100,000 for Types 1-2 and €40,000 for Types 3-4, monthly compliance contributions scaled by type and revenue - Type 1 running from €15,000 to €375,000 a year on declining rates, and a 5% gaming tax on revenue from players physically present in Malta. B2B suppliers pay tiered annual fees from €25,000 to €35,000.
What the machinery buys is the deepest credibility in the industry: an MGA licence banks, lists and partners like no other gaming permission, the island hosts the sector's densest cluster of operators, platforms, auditors and talent, and Malta's refund-based corporate tax system resolves to an effective rate near 5% for properly structured gaming groups. The MGA examines accordingly - key functions, systems audits, player-fund protection, and the realistic timeline runs six to twelve months. We build the entity, the capital, the key-function bench and the full application from our Valletta office.
The EU benchmark: MGA B2C licence across Types 1-4 and B2B supply - €5,000 application, €25,000 annual, capital €100k/€40k, compliance contributions by type and revenue (Type 1: €15k-€375k/yr), 5% tax on Malta players only.
Refund system resolves to ~5% effective corporate tax for structured groups. 6-12 months, audited properly. We build it all from Valletta.
The two licences
B2C gaming service - or B2B critical supply.
One authority, two lanes: the operator's B2C licence across game Types 1-4, or the B2B supply licence for platforms and content. We fix the types first. They set capital, fees and contributions.
The B2C operator licence - or B2B critical supply.
01 - B2C GAMING SERVICE
The operator licence
The full MGA permission across the game types your model needs: casino and RNG (Type 1), fixed-odds betting (Type 2), P2P (Type 3), skill games (Type 4). With capital, contributions and player-protection machinery built to type.
The full MGA permission across the game types your model needs: casino and RNG (Type 1), fixed-odds betting (Type 2), P2P (Type 3), skill games (Type 4). With capital, contributions and player-protection machinery built to type.
- ✓Types 1-4 by product mix
- ✓€5,000 application · €25,000 annual
- ✓Share capital €100,000 / €40,000
- ✓Compliance contribution by revenue
- ✓Player funds protected by rule
- ✓The EU's benchmark B2C stamp
02 - B2B CRITICAL SUPPLY
Platforms · contentThe supplier licence
The B2B licence for game providers and platform suppliers: tiered annual fees of €25,000-€35,000 by revenue (back-office variants lighter), no gaming tax on B2B revenue. The stamp that sells into every MGA operator.
B2B supply: tiered €25k-€35k fees, back-office from €3k, no gaming tax on B2B. The stamp that sells into every MGA operator.
- ✓Game and platform supply
- ✓Tiered fees €25,000-€35,000
- ✓Back-office tier from €3,000
- ✓No gaming tax on B2B supply
- ✓Sells into the MGA ecosystem
- ✓Same vetting, B2B economics
Costs and timelines are confirmed for your case before any work begins. MGA fees follow its published schedule; capital, key functions and audits are itemised in your quote.
Why Malta
The stamp the industry is built on.
Malta prices real supervision, and returns the deepest credibility any gaming licence can buy.
✓
The benchmark licence
Banks, PSPs, exchanges and partners read MGA as the industry's gold standard. Doors open on the acronym alone.Doors open on the acronym.
✓
Published, predictable mechanics
€5,000 to apply, €25,000 a year, capital by type, contributions by revenue tier. The whole cost stack is in the rulebook.The rulebook prices it.
✓
~5% effective corporate tax
Malta's refund system resolves to an effective rate near 5% for properly structured gaming groups. Modelled and documented, not improvised.Refunds, documented.
✓
The industry's cluster
Operators, platforms, auditors, lawyers and talent in one square mile. Hiring and integration timelines the rest of Europe cannot match.Talent in one square mile.
✓
EU standing
An EU member state's licence with free-movement arguments behind it. The strongest legal position available for European-facing operations.The strongest legal seat.
✓
Player-protection machinery
Segregated player funds and conduct rules that convert into trust. Retention economics the volume flags never see.Protection as retention.
How it compares
How Malta differs from other routes.
The comparison, side by side: the deepest credibility at the longest clock, and worth it for the models that need it.
Malta vs other jurisdictions
| Feature |  Malta | Other jurisdictions |
|---|---|---|
| Regime | Gaming Act - MGA | Volume flags or point-of-consumption |
| Credibility | The industry benchmark | Varies to none |
| Cost stack | Published, mid-tier | Cheaper offshore, dearer onshore |
| Timeline | 6-12 months | Weeks offshore |
Regime
MaltaGaming Act - MGA
Other jurisdictionsVolume flags or point-of-consumption
Credibility
MaltaThe industry benchmark
Other jurisdictionsVaries to none
Cost stack
MaltaPublished, mid-tier
Other jurisdictionsCheaper offshore, dearer onshore
Timeline
Malta6-12 months
Other jurisdictionsWeeks offshore
Country by country
| Country | License type | Taxation | Requirements |
|---|---|---|---|
| Malta | MGA B2C · B2B | 5% eff. via refunds · 5% Malta GGR | €100k/€40k capital, key functions |
 Curaçao | CGA online gaming · supplier | 22% profit tax · planned | Curaçao BV, resident director |
 Isle of Man | OGRA licence | 0% CIT · tiered duty | IoM company, local substance |
 Gibraltar | B2C £100k · B2B £85k | 15% CIT · 0.15% duty | Substance, blue-chip vetting |
MaltaLicense typeMGA B2C · B2B
Taxation5% eff. via refunds · 5% Malta GGR
Requirements€100k/€40k capital, key functions
CuraçaoLicense typeCGA online gaming · supplier
Taxation22% profit tax · planned
RequirementsCuraçao BV, resident director
Isle of ManLicense typeOGRA licence
Taxation0% CIT · tiered duty
RequirementsIoM company, local substance
GibraltarLicense typeB2C £100k · B2B £85k
Taxation15% CIT · 0.15% duty
RequirementsSubstance, blue-chip vetting
Before you apply
Requirements for the Malta licence.Requirements for the licence.
The MGA examines the company, the people, the money and the machine. The checklist below is what a passing application contains.
01
Maltese company. Incorporated for the licence with fit-and-proper shareholders to UBO level.
02
Share capital - €100,000 for Types 1-2, €40,000 for Types 3-4, paid and maintained.
03
Key functions. The MGA's named roles (CEO, compliance, MLRO, technology and more) filled by approved individuals.
04
Business and financial plan. Products, markets and three-year projections the Authority can interrogate.
05
Systems documentation. Platform, RNG, data and reporting architecture mapped to MGA technical standards.
06
Player-fund protection. Segregation and safeguarding per the rules, evidenced before launch.
07
Responsible-gaming framework. Limits, self-exclusion and protection tools engineered into the product.
08
AML/CFT programme. Maltese law compliance with a named MLRO and audit trails.
09
Compliance-contribution mechanics. Monthly calculation and payment machinery from day one.
10
Audit readiness. Systems and compliance audits passed on the MGA's clock, planned into the build.
01
Maltese company, fit owners.
02
Capital €100k / €40k paid.
03
Key functions approved.
04
Interrogable business plan.
05
Systems mapped to standards.
06
Player funds segregated.
07
Responsible gaming built in.
08
AML with named MLRO.
09
Contribution mechanics live.
10
Audit-ready at filing.
Reflects the Gaming Act and MGA directives as of 2026. Fees and contributions per the MGA schedule.Gaming Act + MGA directives, as of 2026.
How it works
From first call to the MGA register.
01
Types and structure
Game types, B2C/B2B lane and the corporate plan. Fixed in writing before any drafting.Fixed in writing.
02
Company and people
Maltese entity, capital paid, key functions filled with approvable individuals.Bench approvable.
03
The application
Full file with systems documentation - €5,000 fee, complete on submission.Complete, €5,000.
04
MGA review and audits
Question rounds, fit-and-proper checks and the systems audit - 6-12 months realistic.6-12 months realistic.
05
Licence and launch
€25,000 annual fee, contributions calendar live, player funds protected. The benchmark stamp at work.Calendar running.
Quick facts
RegulatorMGA
Application fee€5,000
B2C annual fee€25,000
Type 4 only€10,000
Share capital€100k / €40k
Compliance contributionBy type and revenue
Malta-player tax5% of gaming revenue
Realistic timeline6-12 months
The MGA licenses machines it has audited and people it has approved. Building both to standard before filing is the entire game, and our job.
On the ground in Malta
Run from our Valletta office.
Prifinance - Malta
Valletta · Malta
Valletta, Malta
01
Company and capital
Maltese entity, share capital structured to type and the corporate layer the MGA expects. Built for the licence from day one.Built to type.
02
The MGA file
Application, systems documentation and policies drafted end to end, and defended through the Authority's review and audits.Audit-standard drafting.
03
Key-function bench
Approved individuals for the named roles sourced from the island's deepest talent pool. The people file run as its own workstream.The island's bench.
04
Tax architecture
The refund-based structure documented properly. The ~5% effective outcome engineered, not assumed.~5%, engineered.
We also have offices in
Tallinn
Estonia
Roseni 13
Vilnius
Lithuania
Gedimino pr. 2
Prague
Czech Republic
Vlkova 532/8, Žižkov
Dubai
UAE
33 Level, Al Saqr Business Tower
London
United Kingdom
7 Bell Yard
Madeira
Portugal
Rua da Alegria 31, 1F
Istanbul
Turkey
Perpa Ticaret Merkezi, A Blok
Good to know
Taxation of gaming companies in Malta.
The refund system the industry is structured on. Near-5% effective for gaming groups, documented properly.
35% headline, ~5% effective
Malta's full-imputation refund system returns most corporate tax to shareholders of trading companies. Gaming groups structure to an effective rate near 5%.The refund system.
5% gaming tax - Malta players
Gaming revenue from players physically present in Malta carries a 5% tax. The international book sits outside it.Domestic slice only.
Compliance contributions
The MGA's monthly contributions scale by game type and revenue. Type 1 from €15,000 to €375,000 a year on declining rates, modelled into pricing.Type + revenue tiers.
EU parent-subsidiary access
Full EU directive and treaty access above the Maltese entity. Group dividends flow on European rails.European rails above.
VAT with gaming exemptions
Gaming supplies are largely VAT-exempt with input-recovery nuances. Mapped per product mix at build time.Mapped per product.
Treaty network 70+
Malta's broad treaty base. The holding and IP architecture above the licence modelled cleanly.Clean structures.
Tax summary
Corporate - effective~5% via refunds
Malta-player gaming tax5%
Compliance contributionType + revenue tiers
VATGaming largely exempt
Tax treaties70+
*As of 2026 per the CFR and MGA schedules. Group and founder-level outcomes are modelled per structure.
Turnkey professional support
Experienced lawyers and international consultants.
We provide end-to-end support, from company registration and the application file to regulatory interaction and compliance oversight - with an individualized approach to each client.
Oleksii Kindratenko
Builds the application itself: Maltese company, AML/KYC policy pack, capital structure and tax registrations. His document sets are the reason reviews finish in months, not years.
Eugeniu Bevziuc
First point of contact for international founders. Runs the whole setup remotely, across time zones and languages - from the first call to a live, licensed operator.
Follow Prifinance
Active across our channels.
Malta Gambling License: Tax, Validity & License Types Explained
Malta · MGA
Launch your gaming project in Malta with expert support.
Full-service assistance - from incorporation and key functions to the MGA application, audits and ongoing compliance - run through our Valletta office.
Get a consultation →Free legal opinion
Is Malta the right fit for your project?
Our legal team will analyze your case at no cost and provide a written legal opinion: which jurisdiction, licence scope, or route fits your business.
Written assessment within 2-5 business days
Request a free conclusion →FAQ
The Malta gaming licence - what clients ask.
What licences does the MGA issue?+
Two families: the B2C gaming service licence across game Types 1-4 (casino/RNG, fixed-odds betting, P2P, controlled skill games) and the B2B critical gaming supply licence for game and platform providers.
What does an MGA licence cost?+
Per the published schedule: €5,000 application, €25,000 fixed annual fee for B2C (€10,000 for Type-4-only), B2B tiers of €25,000-€35,000 by revenue - plus monthly compliance contributions scaled by game type, and share capital of €100,000 (Types 1-2) or €40,000 (Types 3-4).
What are compliance contributions?+
Monthly payments scaled to gaming revenue by type on declining rate bands - Type 1 runs between €15,000 and €375,000 a year. They are the licence's variable cost, modelled into your pricing from day one.
What is the 5% gaming tax?+
A tax on gaming revenue from players physically present in Malta - the domestic slice. The international book carries the compliance contribution instead, not the 5%.
How is Malta's ~5% effective corporate tax achieved?+
Through the full-imputation refund system: tax paid at 35% is largely refunded to shareholders of trading companies, resolving to an effective rate near 5% for properly structured gaming groups - engineered and documented at build time.
What are key functions?+
The MGA's named accountability roles - CEO, compliance, MLRO, technology and others - each filled by an individual the Authority approves personally. The bench is the application's backbone, and Malta's talent pool is where we build it.
How long does licensing take?+
Realistically 6-12 months including fit-and-proper reviews, question rounds and the systems audit - completeness and an approvable key-function bench are the levers.
How are player funds protected?+
By rule: player money is segregated from operational funds with protection mechanics the MGA audits. It is compliance that doubles as a sales asset with every serious partner.
Malta or Curaçao - how do groups choose?+
Different tools: Curaçao is the fast, economical global-book flag; Malta is the EU benchmark that banks, lists and partners best. Scaled groups typically hold both - Curaçao for reach, Malta for standing. We sequence the pair.
Why Prifinance for Malta?+
A Valletta office, key-function benches built from the island's talent pool, applications drafted to audit standard and the refund-based tax architecture documented properly - the benchmark licence, delivered completely.
What licences?+
B2C Types 1-4 · B2B supply.
Cost?+
€5k + €25k/yr + contributions.
Contributions?+
Type 1: €15k-€375k/yr.
5% tax?+
Malta players only.
~5% CIT how?+
Refund system, documented.
Key functions?+
Named, approved roles.
How long?+
6-12 months realistic.
Player funds?+
Segregated by rule.
Or Curaçao?+
Standing vs speed - hold both.
Why you?+
Valletta office, audit-grade files.
Client notes
Google4.7★★★★★
Founders who wanted it done right.
Google4.7★★★★★
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Get a free legal opinion on your project - our legal team will analyze your case at no cost and provide a written legal opinion: which jurisdiction, licence scope, or route fits your business.Free legal opinion: which Malta route fits your project and what it will cost.
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Prifinance is an independent law and advisory firm. We are not a regulator and are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting on behalf of the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) or any other public authority. Authorisations are granted by, and obtained directly from, the competent authorities.