Malta’s Commissioner for Revenue has released a note providing a summary of subsidiary legislation (legal notices) enacted under the Income Tax Acts from January to April, 2024.
Overview of newly published legal notices
- Deduction (Income from Employment) (Amendment) rules, 2024: For the base year 2024, income below EUR 11,620 is not taxable via this deduction. This impacts individuals taxed at single or parent rates earning minimum wage.
- Pensions (Tax Exemption) (Amendment) Rules, 2024: For 2024, the pension exemption threshold is set at 60% of the pension income, up to EUR 9,732.
- Tax rebate (Pensioners) (Amendment) rules, 2024: Tax rebate thresholds for pension income are increased for 2024. Single rates have increased from EUR 880 to EUR 1,068, parent rates from EUR 670 to EUR 858, married rates from EUR 340 to EUR 528. The “further rebate” for married rates remains EUR 540.
- Income from artistic activity rules, 2024: The reduced tax rate of 7.5% applies to income from artistic activities up to EUR 30,000 for 2023; EUR 50,000 from 2024 and onwards. Income above these thresholds must be declared, with deductions not exceeding the declared amount.
- Transfer pricing (Amendment) rules, 2024: The grandfathering provision is limited to three years. From 1 January, 2027; these rules apply to pre-2024 arrangements not materially altered after 1 January, 2024.
- Double taxation relief (Taxes on Income) (The Swiss Confederation) (Amendment) Order, 2021 (L.N. 198 of 2021) commencement notice: The protocol amending the agreement with Switzerland for double taxation relief came into force on 3 November, 2021.
- Income tax exemption (Amendment) Order, 2024: From 2024, widow’s and survivor’s pensions (under Article 31 of the Social Security Act) are exempt from income tax.
- European Union global minimum level of taxation for multinational enterprise groups and large-scale domestic groups Regulations, 2024: Implements Malta’s obligations under the Pillar 2 directive and applies to entities in multinational or large-scale domestic groups with revenue of EUR 750 million or more. Malta avails a temporary exception from certain rules for up to six years from 31 December, 2023.
- Seed Investment Scheme (Income Tax) rules, 2024: Extends the Seed Investment Scheme to 2026. Investors can get a tax credit of 35% on investments up to EUR 750,000 in qualifying companies, with a maximum cap of EUR 5,000,000. Investments must be held for at least three years.
- Income tax exemption (Philanthropic Work) notice, 2024: New entities added to the list of tax-exempt philanthropic entities include Aditus Foundation, Fondazzjoni Dar il-Hena, Foodbank Lifeline Foundation Malta, KENUP Foundation, LifeCycle Malta Foundation, TAMA, Youth Alive Foundation.
