Gaming Sector Tax
The gaming industry in Malta is divided into sectors as it follows:
- amusement machines that are regulated by the Amusement Machines Regulations in 2011 that stipulates the types of activities licenses can be obtained for;
- casinos that offer slot machines and live gambling services. There are three casinos in Malta: Dragonara Casino, Oracle Casino and The Casino at Portomaso;
- commercial bingo halls or tombola. There are four licensed bingo halls in Malta: Bugibba, Paola, Silema and Valleta;
- remote gaming that falls under the regulations of the Remote Gaming Regulations (L.N. 176/04);
- broadcasting media games that are broadcasted on TV or radio stations;
- the National Lottery in Malta;
- commercial communication games that have the role of promoting the sale of goods and services;
- non-profit games organized by NGOs;
- racecourse bets and sweepstakes.
Remote gaming in Malta
One of the most thriving sectors in the Maltese gaming industry is remote gaming. The LGA has provisioned remote gaming through the Remote Gaming Regulations (L.N. 176/04), thus making Malta the first country in the EU to have remote gambling legislation.
The LGA regulations refer to any type of gaming: casino, bingo, sports betting, remote gaming and lotteries. The Maltese LGA’s goal is to be neutral and consider any type of gaming for licensing if it can be monitored.
The license will be granted if some requirements are met, but after receiving the license, the LGA can modify or impose new terms and conditions. These conditions refer mainly to the protection of the players, the prevention of money laundering and the appropriate functioning of games.
Types of licenses for gaming services in Malta
The licenses for gaming services in Malta are delimited into four classes:
- class 1 is for casino and skill games, but also for online lotteries;
- class 2 is for fixed odds, pool and spread betting;
- class 3 is for P2P, poker, betting exchange games and for game portals;
- class 4 is for retailers that sell software for operators that host and manage remote games.
All types of licenses have five years validity and it can be renewed for the same amount of time and a requirement for obtaining such a license is for the gaming operation to have a physical location in Malta.