ARTICLE · 13 OCTOBER 2026

Malta Introduces New Individual Tax Programme Residency Rules

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Malta’s new Individual Tax Programme Rules will come into force on 1 January 2027, consolidating four existing residency programmes into a single framework. The rules retain the 15% tax rate on qualifying foreign-source income remitted to Malta but increase minimum tax thresholds, property requirements and application fees.

MaltaTax

Stephen Griffiths

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The Maltese government published Legal Notice 195 of 2026 on 14 July to introduce the Individual Tax Programme Rules 2026, which unify the requirements, benefits and administrative processes for Malta’s individual tax residency programmes.

The new rules, which will come into force on 1 January 2027, consolidate Malta’s existing programmes – Global Residence Programme (GRP), The Residence Programme (TRP), Malta Retirement Programme (MRP) and United Nations Pension Programme (UNPP) – into a single administrative framework comprising four distinct tax status categories:

Global Resident Status, principally for qualifying third-country nationals.
EU, EEA or Swiss Resident Status.
Retired Pensioner Status.

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