Malta MGA Malta Gaming Authority
The gaming regulator of EU member state Malta. Launched in 2001, it licenses many slot providers, including Pragmatic Play, Nolimit City, and Play'n GO.
| English | Malta Gaming Authority |
|---|---|
| Classification | Licenses & Regulation |
| Launched | 2001 (Lotteries and Gaming Authority, LGA) |
| Current name | Since January 14, 2015 |
| Legal basis | Gaming Act (Chapter 583) |
| Licenses | B2C gaming services, B2B critical gaming supply |
| Validity | 10 years |
| Licenses (2025) | 311, held by 302 companies |
| Industry workforce | About 15,039 (2025) |
| Economic share | About 6.3% of gross value added (2025) |
| Official site | mga.org.mt |
Overview
Malta MGA (Malta Gaming Authority) is the gaming regulator of Malta, an island nation in the Mediterranean. It oversees both online and offline gaming, handling license issuance, supervision, and player protection. Malta has regulated online gaming by law since the early 2000s, and it is now often called the “Silicon Valley of iGaming” because so many providers and operators are based there.
Malta is an island nation in the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, Italy.
History
| Period | Event |
|---|---|
| 2001 | Lotteries and Gaming Authority (LGA) launched as Malta’s single gaming regulator |
| 2004 | Remote Gaming Regulations (L.N. 176/04) take effect, among the first online gaming regulations of their kind in the EU |
| 2004.05 | Malta joins the EU |
| 2015.01.14 | Renamed the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) |
| 2018.08.01 | Remote gaming section of the new Gaming Act (Chapter 583) takes effect |
| 2021.05 | Minimum RTP standard unified from 92% to 85% |
| 2023.06 | Gaming Act Article 56A (Bill 55) comes into force |
The 2018 Gaming Act simplified the earlier, complicated licensing framework into two categories, B2C and B2B. It took effect on August 1, 2018 for the remote gaming sector and on January 1, 2019 for the land-based sector.
License types
B2C and B2B
Operators that offer games directly to players receive a Gaming Service license (B2C), while providers that build games and supply them to operators receive a Critical Gaming Supply license (B2B). Licenses are valid for 10 years, both for new issuance and renewal.
Game type
| Type | Details | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Type 1 | A game where random outcomes are played against the house | Slots, casino games, lotteries, virtual sports |
| Type 2 | Determined by external event outcomes, with the operator managing the odds | Fixed-odds sports betting |
| Type 3 | Players against each other, not the house; the operator takes a fee | Poker, bingo, betting exchange |
| Type 4 | Managed skill games | Fantasy sports and more |
Fees and taxes
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Application fee | €5,000 (one-time) |
| B2C annual fee | €25,000 (Type 4 only €10,000) |
| B2B annual fee | €25,000 / €30,000 / €35,000 depending on revenue |
| Compliance contribution (Type 1) | Tiered from 1.25% down to 0.40% of gaming revenue, minimum €15,000 to maximum €375,000 |
| Gaming tax | 5% of gaming revenue from players residing in Malta |
| Minimum capital | Type 1 and 2: €100,000; Type 3 and 4: €40,000 |
Malta’s corporate tax rate is 35%, but there is a refund system under which shareholders who receive dividends can claim back 6/7 or similar portions of the tax the company paid. If 6/7 is refunded, the effective tax rate works out to about 5%. Since September 2025, there is also an option to choose a flat 15% rate for at least five years.
Why providers gather in Malta
Credibility of being an EU member state
Malta joined the EU in 2004 and has used the euro since 2008. Because the license is issued by a regulator in an EU member state, it carries high credibility in the European market and is often used as a benchmark when contracting with operators in other countries.
English and workforce
Malta’s official languages are Maltese and English. This makes it easy to hire international staff, and in an MGA survey, about 85% of operators said they were satisfied with the skilled workforce and training environment.
Industry ecosystem
Because regulation took hold first, law firms, auditors, platform providers, data centers, payment companies, and recruiters all gathered in Malta. With services concentrated in one place, a virtuous cycle formed in which new companies choose Malta too.
Taxation
The corporate tax refund system described above can lower the actual tax burden, which is another reason international companies set up entities in Malta.
Industry size
According to the MGA’s 2025 annual report, 302 companies held 311 licenses at the end of 2025. Of these, B2B licenses grew sharply from 68 in 2018 to 171 in 2025. MGA-licensed companies employ about 15,039 people (full-time equivalent), and including indirect employment that comes to about 19,150 jobs, roughly 6.5% of Malta’s entire workforce. The gaming industry accounts for about 6.3% of Malta’s economy (about 8.2% including spillover effects), with a gross value added of €1.422 billion.
Slot providers with an MGA license
| Providers | Company name | License number |
|---|---|---|
| Pragmatic Play 플레이 | Arrise Solutions (Malta) Ltd | MGA/B2B/317/2016 |
| 노리밋시티 | Nolimit City Ltd | MGA/B2B/299/2015 |
| Play'n GO | Play’n GO Malta Ltd | MGA/B2B/225/2012 |
| 릴렉스 게이밍 | Relax Gaming Ltd | MGA/B2B/246/2013 |
You can check directly which companies actually hold a license in the MGA licensee register.
Player protection
The MGA runs an online channel where players can file complaints. You first try to resolve the issue with the operator, and if that fails, it moves on to the MGA or an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) body. In 2025, 3,643 complaints were received, and 1,886 of them were passed on to ADR.
Controversy: Bill 55 and the EU court
Article 56A of the Gaming Act (commonly called “Bill 55”), which came into force in June 2023, allows Maltese courts to refuse to recognize judgments issued by foreign courts against MGA-licensed companies for activities that are legal in Malta. German regulators pushed back, and the European Commission began reviewing it.
On April 16, 2026, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled in Case C-440/23 that “EU member states may also prohibit online games offered by operators licensed in another member state, and consumers can sue to recover lost stakes.” In the same month, the Advocate General’s opinion (C-683/24) stated that Article 56A is “manifestly incompatible” with the EU rules on recognizing judgments. However, an Advocate General’s opinion is not binding.