Malta: M&A/Private Equity

Modern family wealth is increasingly international. Entrepreneurs, investors, and high-net-worth families often hold assets across multiple jurisdictions, while family members may reside in different countries.

Internationally mobile founders relocating to Malta while holding global assets face complex cross-border implications affecting tax residency, holding structures, trusts, family office governance, and succession planning across multiple jurisdictions. Malta's EU membership, English-speaking legal framework, remittance basis taxation, and growing innovation economy position it as a strategic European base for entrepreneurial families seeking stability...

Malta's Parliament is considering significant amendments to its foreign direct investment screening framework through Bill No 172. The proposed changes aim to clarify notification requirements, define portfolio investment exclusions, and restructure the institutional framework governing the National Foreign Direct Investment Screening Office, bringing Malta's regime into closer alignment with EU regulations.

On 5 January 2026, the OECD released long-awaited administrative guidance on the “Side-by-Side” system (SbS system) under the Pillar Two global minimum tax rules. The 88-page guidance package introduces four new safe harbours, extends the transitional Country-by-Country Reporting (CbCR) safe harbour and implements the SbS system agreed by the G7 and the US on 28 June 2025.

With the introduction of the Final Income Tax Without Imputation (FITWI) Regulations through Legal Notice 188 of 2025, Maltese companies can elect to apply a 15% final tax rate on chargeable income, instead of operating under the full imputation system.

For decades, US businesses viewed tax treaties primarily as technical instruments and mechanisms to reduce withholding tax or avoid double taxation on cross-border income.

The Small Claims Tribunal Act (Chapter 380 of the Laws of Malta) has undergone a noteworthy transformation with the proposal of the Small Claims Tribunal (Amendment) Act, 2025.

The Malta Permanent Residence Programme (MPRP) was introduced in 2021, when it replaced the Malta Residence and Visa Programme (MRVP).

With the Legal Notice No 159 of 2025, Malta has updated the regulations for the acquisition of Maltese citizenship.