Malta (MGA) Gaming License

How to get a Malta (MGA) gambling license: current costs, timelines, requirements, taxes, and operating limits.

Content updated August 20, 2026 · Research checked July 12, 2026

Malta's remote framework separates B2C gaming services from B2B critical gaming supplies. A single B2C license can include approved game types, but the approval does not replace a local gambling permission in another country. Before treating Malta as an operating base, map each target market, product, contracting entity, payment flow, and advertising route against the law of that market.

The B2C regulatory starting point is a EUR 5,000 application fee, a EUR 25,000 fixed annual fee for most operators, a revenue-based compliance contribution, and the applicable minimum share capital. Those numbers are not an all-in launch quote. No universal approval time applies, and the applicant, funding, governance, policies, technical setup, and system audit are assessed as connected parts of one case.

License facts: Malta Gaming Authority (MGA)

Cost boundary: The remote B2C application fee is EUR 5,000. The fixed annual B2C license fee is EUR 25,000, or EUR 10,000 for an operator approved solely for Type 4, plus a revenue-based compliance contribution. Annual contribution bands run from EUR 15,000 to EUR 375,000 for Type 1, EUR 25,000 to EUR 600,000 for Type 2, EUR 25,000 to EUR 500,000 for Type 3, and EUR 5,000 to EUR 500,000 for Type 4, subject to the regulations and start-up rules. Minimum issued paid-up share capital is EUR 100,000 for Type 1 or 2 and EUR 40,000 for Type 3, Type 4, or B2B, cumulative up to EUR 240,000 for multiple B2C types. Capital remains in the company and is not a fee. No single regulatory figure covers the full launch budget.
Process timing: No standard end-to-end approval time applies. The process covers completeness, ownership and personal probity, source of wealth and funding, the business plan, policies and procedures, technical documentation, and a system audit before go-live. The 60-day periods for curing a rejected incomplete application and completing technical implementation after an invitation are applicant deadlines, not a regulator service level. File quality, ownership complexity, funding evidence, key-person review, technical readiness, and audit findings determine the actual schedule.
Tax / revenue model: B2C licensees pay gaming tax at 5 percent of gaming revenue generated from players physically located in Malta. That tax is separate from the fixed annual license fee and compliance contribution. The standard corporate income tax rate is 35 percent at company level. Shareholder refunds can apply after distribution in qualifying circumstances, but the result depends on the income, ownership, residence, distribution, and tax facts. A universal 5 percent effective corporate rate is not a defensible operator assumption.
Applicant / local requirements: An entity established in the EU or EEA may apply if it meets the capital and financial-reporting requirements. The application must identify the ownership, funding, governance, key functions, operational setup, and technical architecture, and the licensee must maintain a sufficient connection with Malta for the MGA to supervise it. There is no universal requirement for a Malta-incorporated company, a fixed local headcount, or every server to sit in Malta. Technical components outside Malta, including third-country arrangements, require analysis under the MGA's technical-infrastructure rules rather than a blanket location claim.
Term / continuation: A B2C or B2B license is normally issued for ten years. Renewal requires an application and the applicable EUR 5,000 application fee, while annual license fees and any B2C compliance contribution continue during the license term. After issue, a remote licensee has 90 days to go live; if it cannot, it must use the voluntary-suspension route and may receive no more than a nine-month extension. A ten-year term is not permission to stop meeting ongoing financial, reporting, key-function, player-protection, technical, and audit obligations.

The MGA's Capital Requirements Policy took effect on July 2, 2025, adding an ongoing positive-equity requirement and a process for restoring negative equity alongside the existing nominal share-capital rules. The policy includes transitional arrangements and now forms part of the financial-soundness assessment.

Licensing decision matrix

Choose the applicant and license scope from the actual customer contract, games, platform control, and regulated records. A Malta approval is not a passport into other national gambling markets.

Definedfixed by the route or ruleScope-specificchanges with the entity, product, or approvalUnresolvedno dependable rule or figure yet

Applicant route: B2C gaming services use approved game types under a Gaming Service license. Material game supply and control of essential regulatory systems use a B2B Critical Gaming Supply license.
Applicant entity: An entity established in the EU or EEA may apply if it meets the capital, ownership, governance, and financial-reporting requirements.
Local presence: The licensee needs a sufficient Malta connection for effective supervision. There is no universal Malta-incorporation rule, fixed local headcount, or rule placing every server in Malta.
Key people: The MGA approves the key functions required by the applicant's governance and operating scope. One standard staffing chart does not fit every B2C and B2B model.
Technical approval: Technical documentation and a system audit are part of licensing before go-live. Infrastructure outside Malta remains subject to the approved architecture and applicable technical rules.
Tax or revenue base: B2C gaming tax is 5% of gaming revenue from players physically in Malta. Fixed fees and the revenue-based compliance contribution are separate; corporate tax follows the entity's actual tax facts.
Ongoing duties: Financial reporting, regulatory returns, key-function oversight, player protection, technical controls, and audits continue throughout the license term.
Approval timing: The framework sets no standard end-to-end approval time. Its 60-day periods are applicant cure and implementation deadlines, not an MGA decision promise.
Fees and cost: A remote B2C application costs EUR 5,000. Most B2C licenses carry a EUR 25,000 fixed annual fee plus the applicable compliance contribution and capital requirement.

Continue the decision

Move from the jurisdiction record to the next operator task. These routes do not change or extend the permission described above.

Use the gambling-license application framework

Map the applicant, permission scope, evidence, conditions, changes, and exit before relying on a jurisdiction route.

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Check target-market access

Check whether the target market requires a local permission and what an offshore authorization does not cover.

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Continue to the casino launch plan

Connect the permission route to the platform, games, payments, controls, acceptance tests, and exit plan.

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Model published route fees

Keep application, annual, variable, capital, and refundable amounts separate for a currently supported route.

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Looking for a licensing service provider?

This page covers the jurisdiction and regulator. A separate directory compares licensing advisors, law firms, compliance consultancies, and corporate-service groups. Inclusion is not a legal endorsement, and the directory does not replace local counsel.

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FAQ

What are the official B2C fees for a Malta remote gaming license?+

The application fee is EUR 5,000. The fixed annual B2C license fee is EUR 25,000, or EUR 10,000 for a Type 4-only operator, plus the applicable revenue-based compliance contribution. Minimum share capital is EUR 100,000 for Type 1 or Type 2 and EUR 40,000 for Type 3 or Type 4, cumulative up to EUR 240,000 for multiple types. Capital is not a fee, and legal, staffing, audit, testing, banking, technology, and implementation costs remain separate.

What are the official B2B critical-supply fees?+

A B2B application costs EUR 5,000. A material game-supply license carries an annual fee of EUR 25,000, EUR 30,000, or EUR 35,000 based on annual revenue, while a back-office critical gaming software license uses EUR 3,000 and EUR 5,000 bands. Type 4-only supply has a separate EUR 10,000 fixed annual fee. The correct category follows the actual regulated function, not the vendor's marketing label.

How long does an MGA application take?+

No standard end-to-end processing time applies. The assessment covers completeness, ownership and key people, funding, the business plan, policies, technical documentation, and the system audit. The 60-day periods in the application process are deadlines for an applicant to cure or implement specific stages; they are not a promise that the Authority will issue a license within 60 days.

Must the applicant be incorporated in Malta?+

No. An entity established in the EU or EEA may apply if it meets the capital and financial-reporting requirements. The applicant still needs a structure, governance model, key functions, records, and technical setup that the MGA can supervise. EU or EEA eligibility does not mean that local substance or a Malta nexus can never matter.

Does an MGA license authorize gambling across the EU?+

No. EU law does not create a general gambling-license passport, and national gambling rules remain market-specific. An MGA license authorizes the approved Maltese-regulated activity; it does not automatically permit casino, betting, poker, marketing, or payment activity in every EU or EEA country. Each target market requires a separate legal and product-scope check.