Malta has become the jurisdiction of choice for many multinational companies seeking to relocate their business interests or looking for an ideal market within the EU. Malta’s competitive tax system is fully compliant with EU and international standards, heavily contributing to its attractiveness.
The corporate tax system, when applied properly to companies owned by non-resident shareholders, can reduce the effective tax rate of Malta-based companies to as low as 5%. This, coupled with further tax-friendly measures, such as the full imputation system, the notional interest deduction, the participation exemption, group tax consolidation, and the various kinds of double taxation relief available, are evident examples of this.
The rate of corporate tax on companies resident and domiciled in Malta is set at a flat rate of 35%, which is payable by the company on its gross worldwide income. Companies that are only resident in Malta and domiciled outside Malta are taxed at the same rate of 35% on Malta-sourced income and income remitted to Malta. While a tax rate of 35% may seem high, this tax burden can be reduced significantly if the ultimate beneficial owner of the company is not a resident in Malta.
The refund system is based on a specific tax accounting mechanism where profits are allocated to specific tax accounts:
Based on where the profits of the company are allocated in the respective tax account, the shareholders of the company can claim significant refunds on their payable taxes. The refund mechanism is split into three different kinds:
In most cases, a foreign-owned entity would be able to claim the maximum tax refund of 6/7ths, effectively reducing the tax payable by the company on its distributable profits to 5%. It is critical to note that the tax refund is granted to the direct shareholder of the company for whom the refund is applied; hence, it is not the company claiming the refund that would receive the refund payment, but its direct shareholder.
Malta applies the full imputation system whereby the law prevents double taxation of the same income in the hands of the company and again in the hands of the shareholders. Hence, after the applicable tax has been levied on the trading company, no further tax is payable on the dividends received by the shareholders.
Very recently, the legislator also introduced laws that allowed group entities qualifying under the rules to register as a single fiscal unit, which allows for tax consolidation between group entities. The practical effect of this law allows groups that register under the law to simply pay the final effective tax rate applicable, rather than apply for the tax refund. This provides a very significant cash flow boost for groups that qualify under the scheme, as the tax refund specified previously may take several months to be paid to the shareholders.
In addition to the tax refund system, Malta allows for the Participation Exemption, which originates from the Parent Subsidiary Directive. This directive applies a tax exemption between participating holdings and their participating subsidiaries in EU member states. When the applicable criteria are satisfied for the exemption to apply, a full tax exemption applies on all taxes between the participating holding and its subsidiary.
Malta’s tax system provides for a branch exemption where Maltese companies can claim an exemption from Maltese law in respect of any profits attributable to a branch/permanent establishment of the company outside Malta. Additionally, no Maltese tax ought to be payable on the intra-group transfer of assets of a company, subject to some conditions being satisfied.
In conclusion, one may see that the diverse array of advantages made available to companies registered in Malta enables businesses to thrive adequately, without unnecessary interruptions or heavily cumbersome obligations being imposed. This highlights Malta’s attractiveness and further specifies why it is the jurisdiction of choice for the registering of a company.
Article by Karl Cauchi.
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Why Malta remains the Best Jurisdiction of Choice for your Company