Malta: tax residency, rates & nomad visa

Tax residency rules in Malta

As of 2026, Malta’s tax-residency test centres on a presence threshold of 183 days^ⓘOECD (AEOI) - Malta Information on Residency for tax purposes“individuals who spend more than six months in Malta in a calendar year are likely to be Maltese tax residents”View source · accessed 2026-08-21. Malta has no single statutory day count in its tax code; PwC notes 'There are few specific rules relating to residence'. In practice, spending more than 183 days (i.e. more than six months) in a calendar year is the primary trigger, but residence is ultimately a facts-based test weighing place of abode, physical presence, intention and personal/economic ties.

Non resident taxation

A non-resident individual is taxed in Malta only on Malta-source income and gains; foreign income and gains are outside the Maltese tax net for non-residents. [source]PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries“A non-resident individual is taxed only on income and chargeable gains arising in Malta.”View source · accessed 2026-08-21

Residence factors test

Tax residency in Malta is a facts-based test; no single factor is decisive. Physical presence over 183 days is one of several factors used to determine residence. [source]OECD (AEOI) - Malta Information on Residency for tax purposes“Physical presence, i.e. > 183 days”View source · accessed 2026-08-21

Ordinary residence and domicile

Malta's scope of taxation turns on the combination of ordinary residence and domicile, not day count alone. Those both domiciled and ordinarily resident are taxed on worldwide income; those ordinarily resident but not domiciled are taxed only on Malta-source income and foreign income remitted to Malta. [source]PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries“Malta taxes individuals who are both domiciled and ordinarily resident in Malta on their worldwide income.”View source · accessed 2026-08-21

Income tax rates in Malta

As of 2026, the headline personal income tax rate in Malta is 35%^ⓘPwC Worldwide Tax Summaries“ranging from 0% to 35%. The 35% tax bracket is reached at annual chargeable income in excess of EUR 60,000”View source · accessed 2026-08-21. Top marginal rate of Malta's progressive personal income tax scale, reached on annual chargeable income above EUR 60,000 (single-computation resident rates, basis/tax year 2026). A marginal bracket rate on a graduated 0%-35% scale, not a single rate on all income.

Social security employee rate

10% (as of 2026)^ⓘPwC Worldwide Tax Summaries“both the employer and the employee are each required to pay social security contributions at the rate of 10% of the individual employee”View source · accessed 2026-08-21 — For calendar year 2026 both employer and employee each pay 10% of salary, or a fixed EUR 55.93 per week for annual salaries exceeding EUR 29,084 (for employees born on or after 1 January 1962). Self-occupied/self-employed individuals pay 15% of prior-year net income.

Pit income brackets

0–35% (as of 2026)^ⓘPwC Worldwide Tax Summaries“0 12,000 0 0 12,001 16,000 15 1,800 16,001 60,000 25 3,400 60,001 and above 35 9,400”View source · accessed 2026-08-21 — Malta's single-computation progressive scale for basis year 2026. Malta operates three parallel resident scales - single, married and parent - and the single rates are the default; married and parent computations shift the thresholds upward. Following the widening of bands, the 25% band now spans EUR 16,001-60,000 as a single band.

Special tax regimes in Malta

15% (as of 2026)^ⓘPwC Worldwide Tax Summaries“foreign-source income remitted to Malta by the beneficiary or its dependants being taxed at a flat rate of 15%, subject to a minimum tax of EUR 15,000 per annum”View source · accessed 2026-08-21 — The Global Residence Programme (GRP) taxes foreign-source income remitted to Malta at a flat 15%, subject to a minimum tax of EUR 15,000 per annum, for qualifying non-EU nationals who hold Maltese property (purchase >= EUR 275,000 or rent >= EUR 9,600/year, with lower thresholds in certain areas of Malta/Gozo). The Residence Programme (RP) mirrors it for EU/EEA/Swiss nationals.

Non dom minimum tax

Ordinarily-resident non-domiciled individuals whose foreign-arising income (with spouse, if married) is at least EUR 35,000 and not fully remitted to Malta are subject to a minimum tax of EUR 5,000 for the year; Maltese tax already paid is credited against it. This is the floor that accompanies the non-dom remittance basis. [source]PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries“income arising outside Malta of at least EUR 35,000 or equivalent, which was not received in Malta in full, should be subject to a minimum tax in Malta of EUR 5,000 for the said year”View source · accessed 2026-08-21

Grp property requirement

To access the GRP's 15% flat rate, applicants must hold Maltese immovable property purchased for at least EUR 275,000, or rented for at least EUR 9,600 per year, with reduced thresholds for property in designated areas of Malta and Gozo. [source]PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries“applicants must hold immovable property in Malta for a purchase price of not less than EUR 275,000”View source · accessed 2026-08-21

Non dom remittance basis

Malta's flagship regime for foreign nationals: residents who are not domiciled in Malta are taxed on a source-and-remittance basis - Malta-source income plus only the foreign income they actually bring into Malta. Foreign capital gains are outside the Maltese tax net even if remitted. [source]PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries“Any person who is ordinarily resident in Malta but not domiciled in Malta is taxable only on income arising in Malta and on any foreign income remitted to Malta”View source · accessed 2026-08-21

Digital nomad visa in Malta

Nomad Residence Permit (as of 2021)^ⓘKPMG Malta“The permit is issued for one year and can be renewed for up to four years.”View source · accessed 2026-08-21 — Malta's digital nomad visa, the Nomad Residence Permit, launched in 2021 and is administered by the Residency Malta Agency. It targets non-EU nationals who work remotely for an employer, company or clients outside Malta.

Nomad visa income requirement

EUR 42,000 / year (as of 2024)^ⓘResidency Malta Agency - Nomad Residence Permit“an applicant must have a minimum gross yearly income of €42,000. Applicants who submitted their application prior to 1st April 2024 will still retain the same annual gross income requirement of €32,400”View source · accessed 2026-08-21 — Applicants must show a minimum gross yearly income of EUR 42,000 (about EUR 3,500/month). This raised threshold applies to applications from 1 April 2024 onward; earlier applications retained the previous EUR 32,400 requirement.

Nomad visa duration

4 years (as of 2026)^ⓘKPMG Malta“The permit is issued for one year and can be renewed for up to four years.”View source · accessed 2026-08-21 — The Nomad Residence Permit is issued for one year initially and can be renewed for up to four years in total, subject to continuing to meet the eligibility criteria (including roughly five months of physical presence per year).

Nomad visa tax treatment

10% (as of 2024)^ⓘKPMG Malta“Holders of valid Nomad Residence Permit are subject to tax in Malta at rate of 10% on their income derived from authorised work”View source · accessed 2026-08-21 — Since 2024, Nomad Residence Permit holders are taxed in Malta at a flat 10% on income from authorised remote work, with relief for double taxation. The first 12 months of such income (from the later of the permit issue date or 1 January 2024) are exempt from Maltese tax.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries individual / taxes on personal income · big4, accessed 2026-08-21
• CSB Group (Malta corporate and tax advisory firm) malta personal taxation · other, accessed 2026-09-12
• PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries individual / other taxes · big4, accessed 2026-08-21
• KPMG Malta private client services / the nomad residence permit.html · big4, accessed 2026-08-21
• Residency Malta Agency - Nomad Residence Permit nomad eligibility · tax_authority, accessed 2026-08-21
• OECD (AEOI) - Malta Information on Residency for tax purposes aeoi / malta residency.pdf · oecd, accessed 2026-08-21
• PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries individual / residence · big4, accessed 2026-08-21

Explore more

• Not sure you count as resident? Am I a tax resident of Malta?
• Working remotely? Digital nomad taxes in Malta — the visa, when you become tax resident, and your effective rate.
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• Planning your days in Malta? Track them with the free 183 Days residency tracker — it checks your travel log against verified thresholds like the ones on this page.

When to talk to an advisor

This page maps Malta’s general rules — it cannot weigh your treaty position, your family and asset ties, or the timing of a move. If meaningful money depends on the answer, have a qualified advisor in Malta (and in your home country) review your situation before you act.