Malta is the jurisdiction I am asked about more than almost any other by my DACH-region clients. It is EU membership, warm weather, English as an official language, a non-dom tax regime, and an island in the Mediterranean — which sounds, on paper, like exactly what a German entrepreneur fleeing the tax burden wants.
I have been advising clients on Malta for many years. I lived there myself for a period. And I want to give you the honest version, because the dishonest version — the one the Malta marketing machine produces — has led a significant number of my clients into decisions they later regretted.
What Malta Actually Gets Right
EU membership. This is genuine and valuable. Malta is a full EU member, which means that Maltese residency provides full access to the EU single market, EU freedom of movement, and the legal certainty that comes with operating in an EU jurisdiction. For a German entrepreneur who wants to leave Germany but remain in the EU, Malta is one of very few viable options.
The non-dom regime. Malta's non-domicile status allows foreign income to be taxed only on remittance, at rates that can be very low for the right profile. For a genuinely mobile entrepreneur whose income is generated outside Malta and who remits only what they need for Maltese living expenses, the tax efficiency can be significant.
The language. English is a co-official language, widely spoken, and the language of the legal and business system. This makes Malta accessible in a way that, say, Portugal or Cyprus is not for non-Lusophone or non-Greek speakers.
The weather. Genuine. Three hundred days of sunshine. A Mediterranean lifestyle that is impossible to replicate in northern Europe.
What Malta Gets Wrong — And This Is Important
The Malta LLC trap is real and it catches people repeatedly. Setting up a Maltese company — a typical Limited Liability Company under Maltese law — without proper structuring can create worldwide tax exposure that completely defeats the purpose of the move. I have written about this before and I will keep writing about it until people stop making this mistake. Get proper advice before setting up any Maltese entity.
The 6/7 refund mechanism is not as simple as it sounds. Malta's corporate tax system operates on a full imputation system with a refund mechanism that effectively reduces the corporate tax rate to 5% — but the refund requires a non-Maltese shareholder entity, specific timing, and proper administration. Mess any part of this up and you are paying 35%, not 5%.
Malta is expensive. This is the thing that surprises people most. Malta's property market, particularly in Valletta, Sliema, St Julian's, and the northern harbour areas, is genuinely expensive — not by London or Zurich standards, but significantly more than people expect from a small southern European island. Good property in the areas expats actually want to live costs real money.
Malta is small. 316 square kilometres. 500,000 people. You will run into the same people constantly. The expat community is tight-knit, which can be warm and supportive, or claustrophobic, depending on your personality. There is no escape from the social environment you find yourself in.
The bureaucracy is frustrating. Malta's public administration has improved but it remains significantly slower, less transparent, and more personality-dependent than German or Swiss bureaucracy. Things that should take two weeks take four months. Things that should be straightforward require relationships.
Who Malta Is Actually For
Malta works well for a specific profile: a European entrepreneur with genuinely portable income, who wants to remain in the EU, who is comfortable with a small-island lifestyle, who has the patience for Mediterranean administrative rhythms, and who structures their affairs properly from the beginning with professional advice.
For this profile, Malta is genuinely excellent. The combination of EU membership, non-dom status, English-language environment, and Mediterranean lifestyle is not replicated anywhere else in Europe.
For everyone else — particularly those who expect German-level efficiency, those who are drawn primarily by the tax rather than the lifestyle, and those who plan to set up Maltese corporate structures without proper guidance — Malta is a place where expensive mistakes are made regularly.
Go with realistic expectations and proper advice. Or do not go.
Work with Sebastian
Malta is one of the jurisdictions I know best — from personal experience and from years of advising clients there. If you are seriously considering Malta, let's build an accurate picture of your specific situation before you make any commitments. Book a consultation.