Malta Triples Online Casino Tax to 15% as New Rates Take Effect

By John Isaac,
Editor at online-gambling.com

John Isaac Editor at online-gambling.com

John Isaac is an editor with many years of experience in the gambling industry. He writes expert articles on card games like blackjack and poker. In addition, he is also well aware of the US gambling laws and the Indian and Dutch gambling markets. You can rely on verified information and insightful details.

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Last updated: October 1, 2026

Malta’s flat 5% gaming tax came to an end on October 1, 2026. Under Legal Notice 84 of 2026, online operators now pay up to 15% on casino revenue earned from players based in Malta.

The amendments were published in the Government Gazette on April 1, 2026. The Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) and the Malta Tax and Customs Administration (MTCA) confirmed the package in a joint statement the following day.

How the New Gaming Tax Rates Work

The old system charged a single 5% rate on gaming revenue across every licensed activity, plus a separate levy on gaming devices. The amended Gaming Tax Regulations replace both with one tax whose rate depends on the type of game.

The reform follows industry consultation and a pledge in Malta’s 2026 Budget. On October 27, 2025, Finance Minister Clyde Caruana told Parliament the government would develop a reliable framework for the indirect taxation of industries such as gaming.

Anyone playing at the best online casinos in Malta is covered mainly by the Type 1 rate, which applies to the slots and RNG table games that fill most casino lobbies. The full structure is:

• Type 1, 15%: games of chance played against the house with an RNG-determined outcome, including casino-style games, lotteries and virtual sports
• Types 2, 3 and 4, 10%: fixed-odds betting, commission-based games such as peer-to-peer poker, bingo and betting exchanges, and controlled skill games
• Reduced rate, 5%: revenue generated inside controlled gaming premises, or from lawfully classified junkets and junket events

The gaming device levy has been abolished. Instead, licensees that film or broadcast games from a studio, such as live dealer providers, now pay a fixed €3,000 studio levy each year, up from €500.

Who Pays and Which Players Count

The new rates apply only to Malta-facing revenue, not to an MGA licensee’s worldwide earnings. An operator licensed in Malta that also serves other markets pays the new rates only on its revenue from Maltese players.

“This reconfiguration of the gaming tax framework is specifically designed to ensure a well-balanced overall impact on Malta’s gaming services sector, and shall apply exclusively to gaming services provided within the territory of Malta.”

Joint statement, Malta Gaming Authority and Malta Tax and Customs Administration, April 2, 2026

For online play, the test is residence, not location. According to PwC Malta, a player counts when they are established in Malta, have a permanent address there or usually live there, wherever they log in.

The tax is charged monthly on operators’ gaming revenue and is not a tax on player winnings. Players will not see it on their statements, but it raises the casino tax bill for Malta-facing brands like the MGA-licensed SpinYoo casino.

VAT Rules Change on the Same Day

Legal Notice 86 of 2026 narrows the VAT exemption for gambling from the same date. Only low-risk games, occasional junket events and betting facilities that can be accessed solely at the venue of a live event remain exempt.

Most online casino, live casino and betting services therefore become taxable supplies, with Malta’s standard VAT rate of 18%. Whether Maltese VAT is actually charged depends on place-of-supply rules, and the MTCA’s April 6, 2026 guidelines treat online betting and access to gambling websites as electronically supplied services.

The upside for operators is that, as taxable businesses, they can recover input VAT on costs such as software, marketing and professional services. The MGA and MTCA call this a “natural right of recovery.”

September returns are still filed under the old regime, with a deadline of October 20. The first returns at the new rates cover October and are due by November 20 through an updated MGA reporting portal, available by November 1.

The October returns will show how operators classify their games, and whether the higher casino rate changes what Malta-facing brands offer local players.