Your 3-Step Guide To Starting A Business In Malta

Nestled between Africa and Europe in the Mediterranean Sea, you will find the beautiful tiny nation called Malta who is home to around 400 000 citizens and has a colorful history and culture dating back to about 5000 years.

Business enthusiasts also know this little island to be a good market testing ground for business start-ups due to its prime geographical location, which has logistical connections to North Africa and mainland Europe making business expansion easier than starting their base off elsewhere.

Many people are attracted to and are looking for jobs in Malta because, while small, it has much to offer – a flexible workforce, short commutes, and beautiful all-round perfect weather. If you are looking to start a business in Malta, read more below.

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1. Establish Whether You Will Be Self-Employed Or Have Limited Liability

You will need to think about and establish whether you would prefer to have a limited liability business or be self-employed instead. The benefits of opening a limited liability business are that you, as a business owner, will be better protected and also give off a more trusted brand image.

However, there is much more paperwork and bureaucratic steps you will need to take to open under limited liability and function as one; for example, you will need to have an annual audit. So, before you decide on what direction you are going to take, be sure to make sure your business is viable and that you have at least two shareholders, which is required when registering a company.

If you decide to go the self-employed route instead – you will find that the process is much simpler. However, be aware that if anything goes wrong (such as having defective products or facing lawsuits), you will be at personal risk.

2. Make Sure You Have All Your Documentation, Registration, Numbers And Licenses Prepared

If you decide to go the limited liability route, you will need to get all your paperwork in order. Start off by drafting your memorandum and articles of association, and for this, we do recommend that you seek the assistance of local lawyers and accountants unless you have a good experience doing so.

You will then need to establish and deposit the minimum share capital required, meaning that you will also need to create a bank account in your businesses name. Until your business is properly registered, your money will go into a holding account, and you will be given a receipt which you must not lose.

After that, you will then present your company registration forms along will the capital deposit sip to Malta Financial Services Authority so that you may register your business, this will take around 2-3 days. Once registered, you will need to apply for and obtain your business trading license from the Commerce Department.

Self Employed business owners will also need to license their business and follow the upcoming advice. This license will cost you 70 Euro per year if you are a small business and it is quite easy to obtain for the most part.

Head online once you have obtained your license to register for and acquire your tax identification number and then be sure to inform the VAT department that you intend to open a business. After that, you will need to obtain a PE number and register with the ETC.

3. Data Protection

You should also know that if you plan on collecting personal information from your customers in your business, you will also need to register for Data Protection so that customer details cannot be shared with third parties.

If you have any more questions about opening a business in Malta, consider contacting Business First, a department set up by the government who can assist or handle all the steps of opening a company for you.

If you are interested in even more business-related articles and information from us here at Bit Rebels, then we have a lot to choose from.

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