Malta – Branch

Introduction to setting up a branch in Malta

Malta encourages foreign investment into the country with its excellent business environment and various financial incentives. The establishment of a branch in Malta is overseen by the Maltese Companies Act which declares the requirements for branch registration.

What are the accounting requirements for a Maltese Branch?

The parent company is required to file annual audited financial accounts to the Registrar of Companies.

A Malta branch is required to register for VAT with the Maltese VAT department and file returns quarterly. Annually audited tax accounts should be filed with the Inland Revenue.

What are the formalities regarding Maltese branches?

– a copy of the Certificate of Incorporation of the parent company
– a copy of the parent company’s Memorandum & Articles of Association
– a copy of the Certificate of Good Standing of the parent company
– a Malta branch representative – personal bank reference letters, professional references and a certified true passport copy for the branch representative are required
– a secretary to the branch – required to be an individual and not a corporate body

The requirements shown above are needed for branch registration with the Registrar of Companies within a month of the branch being set up.

All required documentation should be apostilled and translated into English by an official translator.

What office facilities are available when registering a branch?

There are three main types of office available in Malta:

– Registered offices allow branch correspondence through a registered address
– Virtual offices maintain business professionalism while providing off-site communication with the branch, including services such as telephone, fax and mail forwarding
– Serviced offices are ready for immediate occupation and include all necessary business services

We will handle every aspect of the branch formation for you. Using our expert knowledge we can offer a branch formation package in which we take care of branch registration, issue of the certificates of registration, local directors, local representative and place of business in Malta, tax registration, VAT registration, and translation of documents (if required).

Our unique one stop solution for all European formation requirements also offers formation packages to set up multiple branches. The benefits for establishing multiple branches include further increased exposure and global presence, and we can organise everything for you.

A summary of Maltese Corporate Taxes is available here.