Income Tax Act, articles 5A, 31C and 31D
What tax do you pay on Maltese property you own or sell?
Malta has no annual property tax and no rates bill. The charges land at two moments instead: when you sell, a final withholding tax on the transfer value, normally 8%, or 5% if you have owned it less than five years, with exemptions for your own home; and each year, income tax on rent, either 15% of the gross under the article 31D option or the normal rates on the net. Tell us your situation and Maltese advisers will confirm your position.
8%
standard final withholding tax on the transfer value, paid by the seller
3 years
of ownership and occupation needed for the own-residence exemption on sale
Three steps
- Tell us the situation: what you hold, how long you have held it, whether you have lived in it. Two minutes, no account.
- We pass your details to Maltese tax advisers and notaries who work on property transfers, and to no one else.
- They come back with the rate that applies to your facts, the exemptions you qualify for, and what it will cost to have it handled.
Malta Property Tax is a free introduction service operated by Ellul Solutions Ltd; we pass your details to Maltese tax advisers and notaries who respond to you directly. We may receive a fee from those providers; you pay nothing and are under no obligation. We are not tax advisers or notaries and nothing here is tax or legal advice. Rates are taken from the Income Tax Act as published on legislation.mt at the updated date above, and every one of them is conditional on facts recorded in a deed or on an election made to the Commissioner. We are not affiliated with the Malta Tax and Customs Administration or any Maltese authority.
Taxes on Maltese property, by situation
Last updated
Every charge that can fall on a Maltese property, mapped to the situation that triggers it and the provision that sets it. Rates on a transfer are charged on the transfer value, the higher of market value and consideration, unless the row says otherwise.
Taken from the Income Tax Act (Cap. 123) as consolidated on 10 March 2026: article 5A for the tax on transfers, article 31C for restored property and article 31D for the letting option. The buyer's duty row comes from the Duty on Documents and Transfers Act (Cap. 364). No row appears for an annual ownership charge because neither of those Acts imposes one: that absence is the answer, not an omission. Every rate here is conditional on facts recorded in the deed and, in several cases, on an election made to the Commissioner, so treat the table as a map of the regime rather than an assessment.
| Situation | Who pays | Charge | Provision |
|---|---|---|---|
| Selling property in the ordinary case | Seller | 8% of the transfer value, final | Income Tax Act, article 5A(5)(a) |
| Selling within five years of acquiring, property not part of a project | Seller | 5% of the transfer value, final | Income Tax Act, article 5A(5)(e) |
| Selling within three years a home declared on acquisition as your sole ordinary residence, owning no other residential property | Seller | 2% of the transfer value, final | Income Tax Act, article 5A(5)(g) |
| Selling your own residence owned and occupied for at least three consecutive years, within twelve months of vacating | Seller | No tax chargeable, on election to the Commissioner | Income Tax Act, article 5A(4)(c) |
| Selling property acquired before 1 January 2004 | Seller | 10% of the transfer value, final | Income Tax Act, article 5A(5)(f) |
| Selling property inherited after 24 November 1992, or donated to you more than five years earlier | Seller | 12% of the excess of transfer value over acquisition value, with an election out | Income Tax Act, article 5A(5)(b) |
| Selling property inherited before 25 November 1992, or sold by judicial auction | Seller | 7% of the transfer value, final | Income Tax Act, article 5A(5)(c) |
| Letting a tenement and taking the flat option | Owner | 15% of gross rental income, final, no deductions and no refund | Income Tax Act, article 31D |
| Letting property restored under an approved scheme | Owner | 10% of gross rent for residential use, 15% for commercial use, final | Income Tax Act, article 31C |
| Acquiring the property in the first place | Buyer | Duty on documents, charged separately from anything in this table | Duty on Documents and Transfers Act, Cap. 364 |
- Neither the Income Tax Act nor the Duty on Documents and Transfers Act imposes a recurring annual charge on owning Maltese property: the tax arises on transfer, as a final withholding tax under article 5A, and on rent received.
- The standard tax on selling Maltese property is 8% of the transfer value, charged on the price rather than the gain, and it is final: article 5A(9)(a) allows no deduction and article 5A(10)(a) allows no credit or refund.
- A seller who has owned and occupied a dwelling as their own residence for at least three consecutive years, and sells within twelve months of vacating it, is exempt from the transfer tax under article 5A(4)(c).
- Rental income from a tenement can be taxed at 15% of the gross under article 31D, but the option is final: no deduction, set-off or refund is available against it, and it applies to every tenement the person lets in that year.
Cite this page
“Taxes on Maltese property, by situation”, Malta Property Tax, https://maltapropertytax.com/ (updated 2026-08-15). Taken from the Income Tax Act (Cap. 123) as consolidated on 10 March 2026: article 5A for the tax on transfers, article 31C for restored property and article 31D for the letting option. The buyer's duty row comes from the Duty on Documents and Transfers Act (Cap. 364). No row appears for an annual ownership charge because neither of those Acts imposes one: that absence is the answer, not an omission. Every rate here is conditional on facts recorded in the deed and, in several cases, on an election made to the Commissioner, so treat the table as a map of the regime rather than an assessment.
Worth knowing
The longer answers, with sources.
Malta property transfer tax: 8%, 5%, 2% and the exemptions
The seller's final withholding tax under article 5A: 8% standard, 5% within five years, 2% and 7% and 10% cases, 12% on the gain for inherited property, and exemptions.
Malta rental income tax: the 15% option and the alternative
Rental income in Malta can be taxed at 15% of the gross under article 31D, final and without deductions, or at the normal rates on the net. How the choice works.
Selling inherited property in Malta: which rate applies to you
Inherited Maltese property is taxed on sale at 12% of the gain, 7% of the price, or the ordinary rates, depending on the date of death and how the property came to you.
The questions we get
Does Malta have an annual property tax?
No. There is no recurring annual tax on the ownership of immovable property in Malta and no rates bill. The tax charges arise on transfer, as a final withholding tax under article 5A of the Income Tax Act paid by the seller, and on income, as tax on rent received. Owning a property and living in it produces no annual charge under these provisions.
How much tax does a seller pay in Malta?
In the ordinary case 8% of the transfer value, the higher of market value and consideration, under article 5A(5)(a). A sale within five years of acquisition, of property not part of a project, is charged at 5%; property acquired before 1 January 2004 at 10%; property inherited after 24 November 1992 at 12% of the gain; and a qualifying own residence can be exempt entirely.
How do I avoid the transfer tax on my own home in Malta?
By meeting article 5A(4)(c) rather than by planning around it. The dwelling must not be part of a project, must have been owned and occupied by you as your own residence for at least three consecutive years immediately before the transfer, must be disposed of within twelve months of your vacating it, and must be declared your main residence by an election made to the Commissioner in the prescribed manner.
When is the tax on a Maltese property sale actually paid?
Within fifteen working days of the transfer, under article 5A(11), and unless the Commissioner orders otherwise it is remitted by the notary who publishes the deed, by bank draft or a cheque drawn on the notary's own account. The seller does not pay it separately later, and no provisional tax arises under article 43 of the Income Tax Management Act.
Is rental income in Malta taxed at 15%?
Only if you opt for it. Article 31D gives the owner of a let tenement the option of a final 15% charge on gross rental income received, with no deductions, set-off or refund. Without the option, rent is part of chargeable income at the normal article 56 rates on the net. Restored scheduled or urban conservation area property has its own rates under article 31C: 10% residential and 15% commercial.
Can the Commissioner challenge the value I declare?
Yes. Article 5A(12)(c) allows an order in writing where it appears that tax was chargeable on a transfer declared to be untaxed, or that more tax was due than declared, with additional tax. Article 5A(12)(d) allows such an order up to six years from the end of the year in which the transfer was notified, with tighter conditions where the order rests only on market value exceeding the declared transfer value.