Guide, not advice
Malta tax rebate: which refund are you looking for?
Updated
Malta tax rebate means three things: a shareholder's company tax refund, an individual's overpaid income tax refund, and a property duty refund, each on its own rules and clock.
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How this calculator works
- The company rate is 35 cents on every euro of chargeable income for every company and body corporate, article 56(6) of the Income Tax Act (Cap. 123). There is no reduced Maltese company rate; the relief is entirely at shareholder level.
- The refund fractions are those in article 48(4) and 48(4A) of the Income Tax Management Act (Cap. 372). Six-sevenths of the Advance Company Income Tax applies on a dividend from the Maltese taxed account or the foreign income account.
- Five-sevenths where the profits are passive interest or royalties, or dividends from a participating holding that fails the article 12(1)(u) conditions. Two-thirds of the Malta tax where the dividend comes from the foreign income account and the company claimed relief of double taxation. A full refund where foreign income account profits derive from a participating holding or its disposal.
- The calculator applies the fraction to the tax pertaining to the profits actually distributed. Retained profits generate no refund until they are distributed, which is why the distribution percentage changes the answer.
- A statutory cap applies in both sub-articles: the refund shall in no case exceed the amount of tax actually paid by the company to the Commissioner on the distributed profits. Where double taxation relief reduced the tax paid, this tool's two-thirds figure can overstate the entitlement. Treat the 2/3rds line as an upper bound; have it computed on real numbers.
- The refund is a shareholder entitlement, claimable only by a person registered for the purpose in the prescribed manner. The Commissioner pays it not later than the fourteenth day after it becomes due. That can be extended by twelve months where further due diligence verification is required (article 48(8)).
- Not modelled: the company's own tax computation, allocation of profits between the five tax accounts, and tax accounted for under the investment income provisions. Nor the tax the shareholder pays in their own country of residence, or the EU global minimum tax for large groups. This tool computes a statutory fraction; not whether you qualify for it.
This page describes how the Maltese authorities say each refund works. It is not tax advice, and nothing here says whether a refund is due to you.
The shareholder refund on a company dividend
This is the refund the calculator on this site models. The Malta Tax and Customs Administration states that Maltese companies pay corporate tax at 35% on their worldwide income and capital gains. On a distribution of dividends, shareholders are entitled to a refund of part or all of the tax the company paid.
Article 48 of the Income Tax Management Act sets the fraction: six-sevenths, five-sevenths, two-thirds or the whole. It depends on the account the profits were allocated to and what they consist of. The 6/7ths guide and the eligibility guide take it step by step.
Income tax refund in Malta for individuals
An individual who overpaid income tax gets it back through the return cycle. The Malta Tax and Customs Administration's tax return page sets the dates:
- The return and self-assessment are due by 30 June; the online return can be submitted until 31 July through myTax.
- The refund of overpaid tax, where the return was submitted in time, is paid not later than 31 December.
- Interest in your favour accrues from the following 1 January if the refund is issued after that date: 0.33% a month, and 0.6% a month from 1 September 2022.
- The condition: the refund is not issued unless every income tax and VAT return due has been submitted and the tax account carries your bank details.
- If you are a non-filer, you receive a tax statement instead of a return; if you disagree with it, you file an adjustment form and a new statement is issued.
Refunds of duty on property
Duty paid on a property deal can also come back. The administration's refunds FAQ lists refunds for a cancelled promise of sale, first-time and second-time buyers, a sole residence and UCA property, each with its own documents.
Applications go to the Capital Transfer Duty Department, 46, Merchant Street, Valletta. Either the notary or the taxpayer may apply. The FAQ says a refund will take not more than three months to process.
The annual tax refund cheque
The government also pays employees a yearly tax refund cheque announced with each Budget. Its amounts are set year by year and are not published on any page we could read, so this site does not state them.