There were several important legislative changes which were published over the course of July 2025. Below is an overview of the key updates across different areas.
Two pivotal Acts were published in July, these being the Maltese Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2025 which introduced a number of amendments to the Maltese Citizenship Act, Chapter 188 of the Laws of Malta. The amendments seek to implement the judgement handed down by the Court of Justice of the European Union's in Commission v. Malta (C-181/23), by removing provisions of law deemed inconsistent with the said ruling, and the Companies (Amendment) Act, 2025, which introduced several amendments to the Companies Act, Chapter 386 of the laws of Malta. The amendments to the Companies Act touch upon both the legal framework regulating companies and commercial partnerships as well as the fees payable in terms of the Companies Act. Further key clarifications are highlighted in our recently published article on the amendments to the Companies Act available here.
The Companies Act (Register of Beneficial Owners) (Amendment) Regulations, 2025 published on the 9th July 2025, transpose and implement Article 74 of Directive (EU) 2024/1640 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 May 2024, enhancing the mechanisms to be put in place by Member States for the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing. Also published in July, the Trusts and Trustees Act (Register of Beneficial Owners) (Amendment) Regulations, 2025 transpose, in part, the same Directive in so far as it relates to trusts and trustees, aligning with amendments to and the repeal of earlier EU anti-money laundering directives.
Additionally, on the 22nd July 2025, a series of amendments were introduced to Malta's European Union Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading System regulations, covering aviation, maritime transport, and stationary installations. These regulations further transpose EU Directives concerning the establishment and operation of a market stability reserve for the Union greenhouse gas emission trading system.
Furthermore, the updated Malta Permanent Residence Programme (Amendment) Regulations, 2025 introduce a temporary one-year residence permit for earlier relocation, increased administrative fees for main applicants, and a streamlined contribution structure. Licensed agents must meet enhanced professional standards, with annual licensing requirements. These changes present both new compliance responsibilities for agents and potential strategic opportunities for service providers in the relocation and investment migration space.
Six bills are currently in progress in addition to the bills mentioned in our previous legal update for June 2025. The Holders of Public Officer and Public Entities (Responsibility) Bill (Bill 137 of 2025) establishes the personal civil liability of public officials and clarifies when the State assumes or recovers damages. The Authority for Transport in Malta (Amendment) Bill (Bill 138 of 2025) proposes to amend the relevant Act to align with European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards. The Various Financial Services Laws (Amendment No. 2) Bill (Bill 141 of 2025) extends the applicability of certain provisions of the Trusts and Trustees Act to registration applied for in accordance with article 43B of the said Act and granted in accordance with article 45 of the same Act, whilst proposing to amend other financial services laws, including the Financial Institutions Act, the Investment Services Act, and the Insurance Business Act. The Various Revenue Laws (Amendment) Act (Bill 142 of 2025) strengthens the investigative tools and powers against fiscal evasion, to establish a statutory framework for the settlement of fiscal liabilities, establishing an out-of-court settlement mechanism with penalties can ranging from €10,000 to €1,000,000. The Development Planning (Amendment) Bill (Bill 143 of 2025) aims to strengthen the legislative framework with improved planning transparency, while the Environment and Planning Review Tribunal Bill (Bill 144 of 2025) seeks to expedite the dispute resolution process and align with EU restrictive measures frameworks.
At a European level, the European Supervisory Authorities (EBA, EIOPA, ESMA – the ESAs) published a guide on oversight activities under the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA). The aim of this guide is to provide an overview of the processes used by the ESAs through the Joint Examination Teams (JET) to oversee critical Information and communication technology (ICT) third party service providers (CTPPs).
Locally, the Malta Tax and Customs Administration (MTCA) published guidelines on the audit exemption rules. These guidelines are issued in terms of Article 96(2) of the Income Tax Act, Chapter 123 of the laws of Malta which seeks in part to recognise, for the purposes of the Income Tax Management Act, the exemptions in respect of statutory audit requirements provided for by the Companies Act and/or the Merchant Shipping Act without in any way limiting audit obligations stemming from those Acts or any other Acts.
In the financial regulation sphere, the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit (FIAU) and the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) issued renewed warnings regarding the abuse of crypto asset services to raise funds by designated terrorist organisations currently involved in open conflict in the Middle East, as listed by the European Union and other jurisdictions. EUROPOL's 2025 Terrorism Situation and Trend Report provides insights into how this can take place. Further to this, the FIAU highlighted the new report entitled, 'Comprehensive Update on Terrorist Financing Risks', published by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). The report provides a set of practical risk indicators to assist in detecting and suppressing terrorist financing, such as patterns in payments, travel activity, and social media activity.
Moreover, the MFSA published a Circular notifying that as a designated TLPT Authority for Threat-Led Penetration Tests carried out under the Digital Operational Resilience Act ('the DORA Regulation') (Regulation (EU) 2022/2554) and the relevant Regulatory Technical Standard, i.e. Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/1190 on Threat-Led Penetration Testing ('the RTS') within the Maltese Jurisdiction, introduces a nationally coordinated approach to cyber resilience testing using the TIBER-EU framework. Additionally, MFSA issued a Circular in furtherance of the communication issued on 15 May 2025 regarding the upcoming changes in supervisory reporting requirements driven by the EBA-led transition to the XBRL-CSV reporting format, is providing an update on the local implementation, including the switchover to the new format for the submission of EBA developed regulatory requirement obligations.
In the gaming sector, the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) published its Capital Requirements Policy (the "Policy"), which serves as a foundation for reinforcing the financial soundness of entities holding a licence issued by the MGA to offer a remote gaming service and/or a critical gaming supply.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
