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🇲🇹 Malta · Malta Gaming Authority (MGA)

Malta Online Gambling Licence — 2026

The benchmark EU online gambling licence: ten-year term, strict supervision, B2B and B2C cleanly separated. Gaming tax applies only to Maltese players and rises to 15% or 10% by type on 1 October 2026.

Tier 1 — Premium reputation

Facts on this page verified 16 September 2026 against primary sources.

Malta has been the architectural template for European online gambling licensing since the Lotteries and Other Games Act 2001. The Malta Gaming Authority, established in 2004, regulates one of the world's largest concentrations of remote-gambling operators: 302 companies holding 311 licences at the end of 2025, according to the Authority's own annual report. That is down from 316 companies and 326 licences in 2023, so the market is consolidating rather than growing. Gaming generates 6.3% of Maltese gross value added, or 8.2% once multiplier effects are counted, not the 12% of GDP that circulates. The MGA licence carries the strongest reputational signal in EU iGaming and is the benchmark against which other tier-1 regulators are compared.

The current regime under the Gaming Act 2018 consolidated the previous multi-class structure into two principal frameworks: B2C (Gaming Service Licence) covering operators that take customer bets, and B2B (Critical Gaming Supply Licence) covering platform providers, RNG suppliers, and live-dealer providers. Each B2C licence further subdivides into four gaming service types, and the dividing line is who carries the risk rather than what the game is called. Type 1 covers games of chance played against the house on a random generator, which includes casino games and lotteries. Type 2 covers fixed-odds betting. Type 3 covers games where players compete against each other and the operator takes a commission, including poker between players, bingo and betting exchange. Type 4 covers controlled skill games. Poker played against the house is Type 1, not Type 3, which catches out more applicants than any other part of the classification.

The substance bar is uniquely real among Tier 1 regulators. File teams test physical presence, key-person availability and operational depth at first review; Malta is not a letterbox jurisdiction in any practical sense, and the substance audit is the most common reason for a first application being refused.

Quick facts

RegulatorMalta Gaming Authority ↗
TierTier 1 — Premium reputation
Licence typesB2C Gaming Service — Type 1 (RNG casino games and lotteries), B2C Gaming Service — Type 2 (fixed-odds betting), B2C Gaming Service — Type 3 (peer-to-peer, including poker between players, bingo and betting exchange), B2C Gaming Service — Type 4 (controlled skill games), B2B Critical Gaming Supply
Application costEUR 5,000 one-off application fee (S.L. 583.03, Fourth Schedule), the same for a gaming service and a critical gaming supply licence; advisers and due diligence typically add EUR 25,000 to 50,000
Annual costEUR 25,000 annual licence fee for a B2C gaming service, or EUR 10,000 if solely Type 4; B2B critical gaming supply EUR 25,000 to 35,000 banded by revenue; plus a compliance contribution tiered by type, not a flat 5%
Gaming tax5% gaming tax on revenue from players in Malta only, rising to 15% for Type 1 and 10% for Types 2, 3 and 4 from 1 October 2026 (L.N. 84 of 2026); separately a compliance contribution tiered by type, from 1.25% down to 0.40% for Type 1 and 4.00% down to 0.40% for Types 2 and 3
Corporate tax35% headline under full imputation, with a 6/7 shareholder refund on trading income giving about 5% effective, 5/7 on passive income for about 10%, and 2/3 where treaty relief is already claimed. Long-established Malta tax law, consistently described by Maltese advisers; we did not check it against the Income Tax Act text this review
SubstanceA Maltese company with key function holders approved by the Authority, who must be fit and proper and readily available to it (Directive 3 of 2018, art. 8(3)(c)). The regulations set no headcount and no residency test for key persons; the standard is availability and suitability rather than a stated number of Malta-resident staff
TimelineNo statutory decision period; advisers report six to twelve months. The licence itself is granted for ten years, after which the operator has 90 days to go live and a further 90 days from go-live to complete its compliance audit

Verified facts — fees, tax, capital, market access

Regime: Active · Last verified 16 September 2026 · Next review 15 December 2026 · 10 claims: 9 officially verified, 1 corroborated, 0 estimates. Each row opens its sources.

Calculate my scenario → Compare with the other canonical licences

Official regulator fees, by licence type

Regulator charges only. Adviser, due-diligence and third-party costs are not in this table.

Licence typeFeeAmountCadenceEvidence
Gaming Service Licence (B2C)10-year term One-off application fee, flat for a gaming service or a critical gaming supply licence (S.L. 583.03, Fourth Schedule) EUR 5,000 once
Officially verified

The one-off application fee is EUR 5,000, flat, and is not split between a gaming service licence and a critical gaming supply licence (Gaming Licence Fees Regulations, S.L. 583.03, Fourth Schedule).

Effective from 1 August 2018 · reviewed 16 September 2026
Annual licence fee for a B2C gaming service licence (EUR 10,000 if solely Type 4) EUR 25,000 annual
Officially verified

The annual licence fee for a B2C gaming service licence is EUR 25,000, reduced to EUR 10,000 where the licence covers only a Type 4 gaming service (S.L. 583.03).

Effective from 1 August 2018 · reviewed 16 September 2026
Critical Gaming Supply Licence (B2B)10-year term Annual licence fee for a critical gaming supply licence, lowest band; EUR 30,000 and EUR 35,000 bands apply as supplier revenue rises EUR 25,000 annual
Officially verified

The annual licence fee for a critical gaming supply licence is banded by the supplier's annual revenue at EUR 25,000, EUR 30,000 or EUR 35,000, reduced to EUR 10,000 where the supply relates solely to a Type 4 gaming service. A non-critical back-office supply licence is EUR 3,000 or EUR 5,000, banded at EUR 1 million of revenue (S.L. 583.03).

Effective from 1 August 2018 · reviewed 16 September 2026
Studio broadcasting levy for a critical gaming supply licensee operating a broadcast studio, replacing the deleted gaming device levy (L.N. 84 of 2026) EUR 3,000 annual
Officially verified

From 1 October 2026 gaming tax is charged by gaming service type: 15% for Type 1 and 10% for Types 2, 3 and 4, with a 5% rate retained for controlled gaming premises and for junkets (Legal Notice 84 of 2026, the Gaming Tax (Amendment) Regulations, published 1 April 2026 under art. 12 of the Gaming Act). For remote gaming the taxable base also shifts from revenue from players physically present in Malta to players established or resident in Malta. The gaming device levy is deleted outright and replaced by a flat EUR 3,000 a year studio broadcasting levy on critical gaming supply licensees operating a broadcast studio.

Effective from 1 October 2026 · reviewed 16 September 2026

L.N. 84 amends only S.L. 583.10 and does not touch the Gaming Licence Fees Regulations, so the compliance contribution appears to continue unchanged alongside it. No source states that in terms; it is an inference from the amending instrument's scope.

Taxes and levies

ChargeBaseRatePaidEvidence
ggr taxCommissioner for Revenue (L.N. 84 of 2026), from 1 October 2026, on revenue from players established or resident in Malta. The rate shown is for Type 1 gaming services; Types 2, 3 and 4 are charged at 10%, and controlled gaming premises and junkets keep a 5% rate. Malta sets the rate by gaming service type rather than by licence, so a single rule is shown here and the full split is in the claims GGR 15% of GGR monthly
Officially verified

From 1 October 2026 gaming tax is charged by gaming service type: 15% for Type 1 and 10% for Types 2, 3 and 4, with a 5% rate retained for controlled gaming premises and for junkets (Legal Notice 84 of 2026, the Gaming Tax (Amendment) Regulations, published 1 April 2026 under art. 12 of the Gaming Act). For remote gaming the taxable base also shifts from revenue from players physically present in Malta to players established or resident in Malta. The gaming device levy is deleted outright and replaced by a flat EUR 3,000 a year studio broadcasting levy on critical gaming supply licensees operating a broadcast studio.

Effective from 1 October 2026

L.N. 84 amends only S.L. 583.10 and does not touch the Gaming Licence Fees Regulations, so the compliance contribution appears to continue unchanged alongside it. No source states that in terms; it is an inference from the amending instrument's scope.
compliance contributionMalta Gaming Authority compliance contribution (S.L. 583.03, First Schedule), tiered by gaming service type. Type 1 runs EUR 15,000 to EUR 375,000 a year declining from 1.25% to 0.40%; Type 2 runs EUR 25,000 to EUR 600,000 and Type 3 EUR 25,000 to EUR 500,000, both declining from 4.00% to 0.40%; Type 4 runs EUR 5,000 to EUR 500,000 on a rate rising from 0.50% to 2.00%. The rate shown is the Type 1 entry rate GGR 1.25% of GGR annual
Officially verified

The compliance contribution for a Type 1 gaming service runs from a minimum of EUR 15,000 to a maximum of EUR 375,000 a year, at rates declining from 1.25% to 0.40% as revenue rises (S.L. 583.03, First Schedule). It is payable to the Authority as licence-fee revenue and does not fund any player-compensation scheme.

Effective from 1 August 2018

Widely and wrongly reported as a flat 5% of GGR; the 5% figure is the separate gaming tax.
corporateCommissioner for Revenue; full imputation with a 6/7 shareholder refund on trading income giving about 5% effective PROFIT 35% of PROFIT annual
Corroborated

Corporate income tax is charged at a headline 35% under full imputation, with a 6/7 refund to shareholders on trading income giving an effective rate of about 5%, 5/7 on passive income for about 10%, and 2/3 where treaty relief has already been claimed.

Effective from 1 August 2018

Well attested across professional-services sources; the primary tax instrument was not opened this batch.

Locked or required capital — not a fee

  • share capital EUR 100,000 — Minimum issued and paid-up share capital of EUR 100,000 for a Type 1 or Type 2 gaming service, EUR 40,000 for Type 3, Type 4 or critical gaming supply, capped cumulatively at EUR 240,000; a positive equity position must be maintained on an ongoing basis.
    Officially verified

    The Authority's Capital Requirements Policy, a binding instrument under art. 7(2)(a) of the Gaming Act, sets minimum issued and paid-up share capital of EUR 100,000 for a Type 1 or Type 2 gaming service, EUR 40,000 for Type 3 or Type 4, and EUR 40,000 for a critical gaming supply licence, capped cumulatively at EUR 240,000 for a licensee holding several types. The current policy also requires a positive equity position to be maintained on an ongoing basis.

    Our page previously stated there was no share-capital floor.

Capital that must be held is shown here so it is never mixed into fee totals; the cost calculator treats it as locked capital.

Market access — where this licence does and does not reach

Holding this licence does not create a right to take players in every country. Check the rules of the player's country. Rows without an evidence-backed rule say "Needs legal review" rather than assuming access.

Player marketStatusBasisEvidence
Great Britain Local licence required Gambling (Licensing and Advertising) Act 2014: point-of-consumption licensing by the UKGC.
Officially verified

A Maltese licence does not cover Great Britain: GB-facing operators need a UK Gambling Commission licence.
United StatesNeeds legal reviewNo evidence-backed rule in the registry for Gaming Service Licence (B2C) and United States.—
CanadaNeeds legal reviewNo evidence-backed rule in the registry for Gaming Service Licence (B2C) and Canada.—
BrazilNeeds legal reviewNo evidence-backed rule in the registry for Gaming Service Licence (B2C) and Brazil.—
EU / EEA Local licence required No EU passport for gambling; member states license nationally under the public-policy derogation.
Officially verified

A Maltese licence does not passport across the European Union. Member states license gambling nationally under the public-policy derogation, so an operator serving Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Spain or France needs a licence there as well.
Latin AmericaNeeds legal reviewNo evidence-backed rule in the registry for Gaming Service Licence (B2C) and Latin America.—
AsiaNeeds legal reviewNo evidence-backed rule in the registry for Gaming Service Licence (B2C) and Asia.—
AfricaNeeds legal reviewNo evidence-backed rule in the registry for Gaming Service Licence (B2C) and Africa.—

Process and timeline

  1. pre applicationMaltese company and share capital

    Incorporate a Maltese company and pay up the minimum share capital for the types applied for: EUR 100,000 for Type 1 or Type 2, EUR 40,000 for Type 3 or Type 4, capped at EUR 240,000 in total.

    Officially verified

    The Authority's Capital Requirements Policy, a binding instrument under art. 7(2)(a) of the Gaming Act, sets minimum issued and paid-up share capital of EUR 100,000 for a Type 1 or Type 2 gaming service, EUR 40,000 for Type 3 or Type 4, and EUR 40,000 for a critical gaming supply licence, capped cumulatively at EUR 240,000 for a licensee holding several types. The current policy also requires a positive equity position to be maintained on an ongoing basis.

    Our page previously stated there was no share-capital floor.

  2. applicationApplication and fit-and-proper review

    File the application with the EUR 5,000 fee, the business plan and financial projections, the anti-money-laundering programme, technical documentation and key function holder appointments. No statutory decision period applies.

    Officially verified

    The one-off application fee is EUR 5,000, flat, and is not split between a gaming service licence and a critical gaming supply licence (Gaming Licence Fees Regulations, S.L. 583.03, Fourth Schedule).

  3. go liveTen-year licence, then 90 days to go live

    The licence is granted for ten years. The licensee has 90 days from the grant to go live, extendable through a voluntary suspension of up to nine months, and a further 90 days from go-live to complete the compliance audit.

    Officially verified

    There is no temporary licence stage. The licence granted is the full ten-year licence; the licensee then has 90 days from the grant to go live, and missing that is addressed by requesting a voluntary suspension of up to nine months rather than by an automatic penalty. A separate 90-day period runs from go-live within which the licensee must complete a compliance audit. Neither the Act nor the Authority publishes a period within which an application must be decided.

    Our page previously described a 90-day temporary licence permitting go-live, which does not exist.

Sources and change log

Primary sources (statute, regulator, ministry, tax authority) are listed first. Superseded figures are kept, not deleted.

Spot an error? Submit a correction — every change is versioned with its source and effective date.

Pros

  • Highest reputational signal in EU iGaming
  • B2B and B2C regimes cleanly separated
  • MGA case team accessible in English; substantive engagement
  • Mature ecosystem of payment processors, banks, and suppliers

Cons

  • Gaming tax triples for Type 1 and doubles for Types 2, 3 and 4 on 1 October 2026
  • Most remote gaming loses its VAT exemption on the same date
  • Minimum share capital of EUR 100,000 for Type 1 or Type 2, and a positive equity position to be maintained on an ongoing basis
  • EU passporting is operationally limited: most host member states require a local licence regardless
  • 35% headline corporate tax, with about 5% effective reached only through the shareholder refund

Best for

  • EU-customer operators wanting top reputational tier
  • B2B suppliers needing critical-gaming-supply licence
  • Multi-product operators (casino + sports + poker on one stack)
  • Operators raising institutional capital

Malta gaming licence types — B2C vs B2B

The B2C Gaming Service Licence authorises an operator to take bets from end-customers across the four Type categories. Most operators apply for combined Type 1 + Type 2 (casino + sportsbook) on a single licence, with optional Type 3 (poker) added where peer-to-peer products are offered. The B2B Critical Gaming Supply Licence is a separate authorisation for any entity providing platform software, RNG components, live-dealer streaming, or other critical gaming services to B2C operators. What changed in 2024 was who a B2B licensee may serve rather than what counts as critical gaming supply: the binding instrument addressed supply to counterparties licensed in other jurisdictions, subject to due diligence. We previously described the 2024 change as an expansion of the technical definition to cover aggregator wallets, server-side game logic and payment-routing layers, and we could find no source for that, so it has been removed. Note also that there is no separate Material Supply Licence. The Act creates two authorisations, the gaming service licence and the critical gaming supply licence.

Five different payments, and most guides give you three

Malta charges five separate things and they are constantly confused with one another, including on this page until we audited it. First, a one-off application fee of EUR 5,000, flat, the same for a gaming service licence and a critical gaming supply licence (S.L. 583.03, Fourth Schedule). Second, an annual licence fee: EUR 25,000 for a B2C gaming service, or EUR 10,000 if the licence covers only Type 4; for B2B critical gaming supply it is banded by the supplier's revenue at EUR 25,000, EUR 30,000 or EUR 35,000, and a non-critical back-office licence is EUR 3,000 or EUR 5,000. Third, the compliance contribution, which is where the confusion lives. It is not a flat 5%. It is tiered by gaming service type with an annual floor and ceiling: Type 1 runs from EUR 15,000 to EUR 375,000 at rates declining from 1.25% to 0.40%, Type 2 from EUR 25,000 to EUR 600,000 declining from 4.00% to 0.40%, Type 3 from EUR 25,000 to EUR 500,000 on the same declining path, and Type 4 from EUR 5,000 to EUR 500,000 on a rate that rises from 0.50% to 2.00% as revenue grows, the only type that works that way. Fourth, the gaming tax, a different instrument entirely (S.L. 583.10), charged at 5% on revenue from players in Malta and not on worldwide revenue. Fifth, corporate tax at a 35% headline, reduced by the shareholder refund. On top of the regulator's charges sit Maltese company costs and the real expense, which is staffing a compliant operation in Malta.

There is no temporary licence, and the clock runs after the grant

A widely repeated description of the Maltese process has the Authority issuing a 90-day temporary licence that permits go-live, followed by a full licence if compliance is demonstrated. No such stage exists. The licence granted is the full one, for ten years (S.L. 583.05, reg. 6(1)), for both B2C and B2B. Two separate 90-day periods then run after it. The licensee has 90 days from the grant to go live, and missing that is not an automatic penalty: the route is to request a voluntary suspension, which can extend the position by up to nine months. Separately, the licensee has 90 days from going live to complete a compliance audit. Before any of that, the application itself covers fit-and-proper checks on directors and qualifying shareholders, the business plan and financial projections, the anti-money-laundering programme, the technical documentation and the appointment of key function holders, with a systems audit by an approved independent laboratory. Neither the Act nor the Authority publishes a decision period; six to twelve months is what advisers report, which makes it market practice rather than an entitlement.

Substance, fit-and-proper, and the MGA's rigour

Substance under the Gaming Act is more than a registered address, but it is not a residency headcount either. Directive 3 of 2018 requires key function holders, covering the chief executive, the money laundering reporting officer and the information technology, customer protection and finance functions, to be fit and proper, competent, and readily available to the Authority for any information it requires (art. 8(3)(c)). That is availability on request rather than a stated number of Malta-resident or EU-resident staff, and the distinction matters because most guides, including earlier versions of this page, describe a residency test the instruments do not contain. Fit-and-proper testing covers directors, qualifying shareholders and key function holders, with criminal-record checks across every jurisdiction of nationality and prior residence, reputation checks, and source-of-wealth review for the qualifying shareholders. Applicants with adverse regulatory history, such as a suspended licence elsewhere or criminal records among key persons, face material risk of refusal even at the pre-application stage.

EU passporting and the local-licence overlay

A Malta licence does not by itself grant operating right in every EU member state. While EU services freedom in principle covers gambling, every EU member state has imposed local licensing requirements via the public-policy carve-out (Articles 51 and 52 TFEU), and most enforce against unlicensed inbound operators. Germany requires its own licence under the Glücksspielstaatsvertrag; the Netherlands requires KSA licence; Sweden requires Spelinspektionen licence; Spain DGOJ; France ANJ — among others. The Malta licence remains useful as: (a) the home-state regulatory foundation for an operator structuring multi-jurisdictional services, (b) the licence enabling operation into the remaining "open" EU markets (small markets without local regulation), (c) the licence accepted by major payment processors and B2B suppliers as proof of regulated status, and (d) the licence required for serving non-EU markets via a Maltese base where Malta-licensed operations carry a trust premium. In practice, established multi-national operators (Bet365, Entain, Flutter, Kindred) hold MGA licences alongside multiple host-state licences.

Application process

  1. Stage 1 — Pre-engagement: company structure analysis, beneficial-owner mapping, fit-and-proper pre-check on directors and qualifying shareholders (>10%)
  2. Stage 2 — Maltese company formation: incorporate Maltese limited company, appoint local directors (or use Malta-corporate-services provider), open Maltese bank account
  3. Stage 3 — Application file submission: business plan, financial projections (3-year), AML programme, ICT framework, key-function appointments, technical documentation
  4. Stage 4 — MGA review and information requests: typically 2-4 rounds of clarifications over 8-16 weeks
  5. Stage 5 — Systems audit: MGA-certified third party (typically Gaming Laboratories International, BMM, or eCOGRA) tests RNG, RTP, game certificates, integration
  6. Stage 6 — Licence granted for ten years; the licensee then has 90 days to go live, extendable through a voluntary suspension of up to nine months
  7. Stage 7 — Compliance audit completed within 90 days of going live
  8. Stage 8 — Ongoing compliance: returns to the Authority, the compliance contribution at the rate for each type held, gaming tax on Maltese-player revenue, and an annual external audit

Operational realities

Capital requirements

There is a hard, published floor, contrary to what most guides say. The Authority's Capital Requirements Policy, a binding instrument under art. 7(2)(a) of the Gaming Act, sets minimum issued and paid-up share capital of EUR 100,000 for a Type 1 or Type 2 gaming service, EUR 40,000 for Type 3 or Type 4, and EUR 40,000 for a Critical Gaming Supply licence, with a cumulative cap of EUR 240,000 for a licensee holding several types. The current policy also requires a positive equity position to be maintained on an ongoing basis, not merely met at incorporation, with a transitional period for existing licensees. Audited financial statements are filed annually.

Player protection

Malta has no central self-exclusion register, and this is the most common error written about the regime. The Player Protection Directive says so in terms, referring to "the absence of a unified self-exclusion database for remote gaming operations" (Directive 2 of 2018, art. 14(4)). Self-exclusion is implemented by each licensee; the only cross-brand rule is that one operator must honour a request across all of its own brands. The Authority opened a preliminary market consultation on a future unified system in 2025, which is not in force. Reality checks work differently from the common description too: art. 18A(1) requires the operator to offer players the ability to set an alert at intervals of their choosing, and no fixed interval appears anywhere in the Directive. The 24-hour and 7-day waiting periods are delays on relaxing protections a player already set, not breaks triggered by losses: 24 hours to reduce or revoke a definite self-exclusion or to loosen a deposit, time or loss limit, and 7 days for an indefinite self-exclusion. Deposit, time and loss limits, age verification and responsible-gambling messaging are all required.

Banking & payment processing

Maltese banks (Bank of Valletta, HSBC Malta, APS Bank) have varying appetite for iGaming clients — historically restrictive after the 2018 FIAU restructuring but improving since 2023. Most established operators bank through EMI partners (notably Revolut Business, ConnectPay, Bilderlings) or specialist EU iGaming-friendly banks (Bank Frick, KapitalBank, several Liechtenstein institutions). The MGA does not require Maltese-bank accounts but requires the operating account to be EU-located and the operator to demonstrate banking arrangements adequate to handle player deposit/withdrawal volumes. Cross-border SEPA Instant adoption has eased payment-processing setup compared with five years ago.

B2B vs B2C licensing

The Act creates two authorisations. A gaming service licence is the operator licence, for taking bets from customers. A critical gaming supply licence is the supplier licence, for providing critical components to those operators. A single entity can hold both where the structure justifies it, though most hold one. The annual fee differs: a gaming service licence is EUR 25,000, while critical gaming supply is banded at EUR 25,000, EUR 30,000 or EUR 35,000 by the supplier's revenue, with a lighter EUR 3,000 or EUR 5,000 band for non-critical back-office supply. From 1 October 2026 a critical supply licensee operating a broadcast studio also pays a flat EUR 3,000 a year studio broadcasting levy.

Recent developments (2025-2026)

Legal Notices 84 and 86 of 2026, published on 1 April 2026, take effect on 1 October 2026. L.N. 84 replaces the single 5% gaming tax with 15% for Type 1 and 10% for Types 2, 3 and 4, deletes the gaming device levy outright and introduces a flat EUR 3,000 a year studio broadcasting levy for critical supply licensees using a broadcast studio. For remote gaming the taxable base also shifts from players physically present in Malta to players established or resident in Malta. L.N. 86 narrows the VAT exemption for gaming to low-risk games, occasional approved junkets and in-venue sports betting, so most remote gaming becomes taxable with input VAT recovery as the trade-off. A preliminary market consultation on a unified self-exclusion system opened in 2025 and is not in force.

How it compares

Versus Isle of Man (GSC): Malta is larger and more cost-effective, but its gaming tax rises to 15% for Type 1 and 10% for Types 2, 3 and 4 on 1 October 2026 against the Isle of Man's 0.1% to 1.5%, though Malta charges it only on Maltese-player revenue. The Isle of Man has no corporate tax against Malta's roughly 5% effective rate after the shareholder refund. Both Tier 1 reputation, both accept crypto-payment. IoM has lighter operational substance demand. Versus Gibraltar: Malta has lower entry cost but more bureaucracy; Gibraltar has the lightest tax burden of any Tier 1 (~0.15% gaming yield capped at GBP 425k/year). Versus Curaçao: Malta requires 10x the operational investment but produces materially stronger reputational signal, payment-processor acceptance, and B2B-supplier credibility.

Frequently asked questions

How long does an MGA gambling licence application take?

Neither the Act nor the Authority publishes a decision period, so any figure is market practice rather than an entitlement. Advisers report six to twelve months for a clean first application. After the grant the licensee has 90 days to go live and 90 days from go-live to complete a compliance audit.

What is the difference between MGA Type 1, Type 2, Type 3, and Type 4?

Type 1 is games of chance against the house decided by a random generator, which includes casino games and lotteries. Type 2 is fixed-odds betting. Type 3 is games where players compete against each other and the operator takes a commission, covering poker between players, bingo and betting exchange. Type 4 is controlled skill games. Poker against the house is Type 1, not Type 3.

Does an MGA licence let me operate across the EU?

Not by itself. Most EU member states have imposed local licensing requirements via the public-policy carve-out. Germany requires Gemeinsame Glücksspielbehörde der Länder (GGL) licence; Netherlands requires KSA; Sweden Spelinspektionen; Spain DGOJ; France ANJ. The MGA licence enables Malta-domiciled operation, payment-processor and B2B-supplier acceptance, and access to the remaining unregulated EU markets — but not free passporting into regulated member states.

How much does an MGA gambling licence cost in total?

A EUR 5,000 application fee and a EUR 25,000 annual B2C licence fee, or EUR 10,000 if the licence covers only Type 4. The substantive cost is much higher, typically EUR 250,000 to 500,000 in the first year covering the Maltese company, due diligence and consultancy, the systems audit, Maltese operational presence and application support, plus minimum share capital of EUR 100,000 for Type 1 or Type 2. On top sits the compliance contribution, which is tiered by type rather than flat: Type 1 runs from EUR 15,000 to EUR 375,000 a year at rates declining from 1.25% to 0.40%. From year two the running cost settles around EUR 200,000 to 400,000 plus that contribution, gaming tax on any Maltese-player revenue, and corporate tax.

Can a non-EU company hold an MGA licence?

The licensed entity must be a Maltese-incorporated company. The ultimate beneficial owners can be of any nationality, subject to MGA fit-and-proper review (criminal-record checks, source-of-wealth verification, reputation review). Owners from FATF grey-listed or sanctioned jurisdictions face enhanced due diligence and may be refused. EU-resident ultimate beneficial owners face a lighter review process than non-EU residents.

What is the MGA Players Protection Fund?

It does not exist, and this page said otherwise until we audited it. There is no Maltese fund that compensates players when a licensed operator becomes insolvent: a full-text search of the Player Protection Directive returns nothing for compensation, guarantee fund, insolvency or indemnity. Malta protects player money by segregation instead. Funds owed to players are held as a distinct patrimony, separate from the operator's own assets and outside its insolvency estate, with a coverage requirement on the balance held. The compliance contribution people associate with the supposed fund is ordinary licence-fee revenue of the Authority, and it is tiered by gaming service type rather than charged at a flat 5%.

Is the MGA licence good for cryptocurrency-payment iGaming?

Yes, with conditions. The MGA permits crypto-currency payment integration where the operator complies with AML/CFT obligations under the FIAU AML Implementing Procedures and the operator demonstrates adequate provenance verification on deposits. The MGA Sandbox Framework for Blockchain-Asset Games (2025) provides a controlled environment for blockchain-native gambling products. Crypto-only operators face heavier substance and AML scrutiny than fiat-equivalent operators.

Named experts covering Malta

Real, publicly-verifiable practitioners whose work informs our coverage of this jurisdiction.

James Scicluna Co-founding Partner · WH Partners Gaming & gambling · Regulatory & corporate · Licensing Olga Finkel Co-founding Partner · WH Partners Gaming law · Licensing frameworks · Disputes Dr Ian Gauci Managing Partner · GTG Advocates Gaming/gambling · Fintech & technology · Regulatory Dr Andrew J. Zammit Managing Partner · GVZH Advocates iGaming licensing · Gaming M&A · Fintech and MFSA licensing Sarah Camilleri Lead Associate · Camilleri Preziosi Gaming law · Mergers and acquisitions · Corporate and commercial law

Further reading on Malta

Compare and define

Other Tier 1 jurisdictions

Isle of Man GSC
Gibraltar Gambling Division
United Kingdom UKGC
Nevada (USA) NGCB