Corporate

NB: All the corporate services are ultimately provided by our trusted partners, who are duly licensed by relevant authorities, for example, the MFSA (Malta Financial Services Authority) in the case of Malta.

If the right documentation is provided, incorporating your company is a generally straightforward process. The amount of time required to approve each application may vary according to the type of company being incorporated, and the quality of all the necessary information and documents submitted to the Registrar of Companies. However, most incorporations can take as little as 24 hours to be processed.

Registered Address

To be eligible for registration, a company opening in Malta must have at least one director; the director can, in some circumstances, also act as company secretary and as a shareholder. A registered business address in Malta is also required when registering a company – this address may be the office of any corporate services provider, such as a law firm or accounting agency. Should any changes in this address occur, the Registrar of Companies must be notified forthwith.

Employing a Company Secretary

Any public company must employ a minimum of two directors, while private companies require a minimum of one. Each company must also employ a company secretary; however, no company is permitted to have:

• its sole director acting as secretary unless the company in question is a private, exempt company
• a body corporate, with its company secretary acting as its sole director

Basic Accounting & Tax

Any incorporated company must prepare an annual return in the appropriate format, to be finalised and made up by the anniversary of the company’s successful registration each year. This return should be filed with the Registrar of Companies within a period of 42 days following the date on which the return was made up. Depending on the company’s authorised capital, a payment between €100 and €1,400 must also be submitted. In addition, the company must file a duplicate copy of its annual accounts, with a copy of an auditor’s report, as well as a director’s report. The company’s annual accounts must be filed within 10 months of the year’s financial end; there is, however, a grace period of 42 days after that time has expired.