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SettleMetric

MTOfficial rules, modeled

Freelancer taxes in Malta (2026).

A freelancer earning €60,000 a year in Malta keeps between 44,038 EUR and 54,000 EUR depending on the scheme — the best option is "Nomad Residence Permit holder — 10% income tax on remote work for foreign clients or employers" at an effective burden of 10.0%. 2 schemes below, each computed from official rules.

VerifiedUpdated

2 schemes · 6 source records · every result follows the published scheme rules

MT · 2026

01

At €60,000 a year

A like-for-like view of every eligible scheme before the full rules below.

  1. 01Nomad Residence Permit holder — 10% income tax on remote work for foreign clients or employersBest result at this incomeNet income54,000 EUREffective burden10.0%
  2. 02Self-employed (self-occupied) — progressive income tax plus Class 2 social securityNet income44,038 EUREffective burden26.6%

Reference profile: self-employed · €60,000 annual gross income · no deductible expenses · full-year tax residency.

Full rules

Inside each tax scheme

01activeNo registration

Nomad Residence Permit holder — 10% income tax on remote work for foreign clients or employers

Effective burden at €60k

10.0%

What you pay

  • Income tax on authorised work (S.L. 123.210) — only if "nrpFirstYear" = false: 10% of profit

Eligibility

  • Activities: remote employment with an employer not resident in Malta, freelance or consulting services for clients outside Malta, delivered remotely, business activity for a company registered abroad in which the holder is a partner or shareholder
  • Limited to first 4 years
  • Only for third-country nationals holding a Nomad Residence Permit (see mt-nomad-residence-permit in legalization). S.L. 123.210 taxes their income from 'authorised work' — work for an employer that is not resident in Malta and has no fixed place of business there, or self-employed services for clients in the same position, delivered remotely — at 10% of chargeable income, subject to double-tax relief. That income is not taxed before twelve months have passed from the later of the permit's issue and 1 January 2024, unless the holder declares that their residence in Malta is not merely casual. The permit is issued for a year and can be renewed three times.

Net income examples

Gross/yearNet/yearBurden
30,000 EUR27,000 EUR10.0%
60,000 EUR54,000 EUR10.0%
120,000 EUR108,000 EUR10.0%

Computed by our open tax engine — assumes no deductible expenses, full-year tax residency. Rules as of Mar 12, 2026.

Important context

The 10% is a Maltese minimum: if the holder proves to Residency Malta that at least 10% foreign tax was paid on the same income, it need not be reported in Malta at all, and lower foreign tax is credited on a Maltese return. Social security: the Rules, the MTCA guidelines and Residency Malta's FAQs do not mention Maltese contributions, and the FAQs state that holders are not entitled to Maltese social benefits or a Maltese pension, so none is modelled; a home country may still require its own. Other income — and the income of family members on the permit — is taxed under the ordinary rules. The permit does not of itself make the holder tax resident.

02activeSole proprietor

Self-employed (self-occupied) — progressive income tax plus Class 2 social security

Effective burden at €60k

26.6%

What you pay

  • Class 2 social security contribution (self-occupied) — 15% of profit (min 1,881, max 4,362/year)
  • 02
    Income tax, single rates 2026

    Progressive scale · base: annual profit

    Annual profit · EURRate
    ≤ 12,0000%
    12,000–16,00015%
    Annual profit · EURRate
    16,000–60,00025%
    > 60,00035%

Eligibility

  • Activities: any trade, business, profession or vocation carried on as a self-occupied person, including freelance work for foreign clients
  • Requires tax residency
  • Residents pay income tax on net profit under the progressive rates of Article 56 of the Income Tax Act; the single rates model a person without dependent children (married couples and parents have wider bands). A self-occupied person — anyone earning more than €910 a year from a trade, business, profession or other economic activity who is not employed — pays Class 2 social security: 15% of the previous year's net income, with a weekly minimum of €36.18 and, for people born from 1962, a weekly maximum of €83.89 in 2026.

Net income examples

Gross/yearNet/yearBurden
30,000 EUR21,538 EUR28.2%
60,000 EUR44,038 EUR26.6%
120,000 EUR83,038 EUR30.8%

Computed by our open tax engine — assumes no deductible expenses, full-year tax residency. Rules as of Jan 1, 2026.

Important context

Class 2 is assessed on the previous year's net income; the model applies the current year's profit, which is the steady state for a stable income. Annual amounts use 52 weekly contributions. The contributions are not deducted again from the income-tax base: neither the Income Tax Act (Cap. 123) nor the MTCA's tax-return guide lists social security among the allowable deductions. Not modelled: the 10% tax on up to €12,000 of profit from part-time self-employment that qualifies under the part-time rules; the married and parent rates; persons born before 1962, whose 2026 cap is €73.56 a week; and VAT.

02

Try your own numbers

Change income, currency and expenses to recalculate every active scheme for Malta.

full calculator
  1. 1 Nomad Residence Permit holder — 10% income tax on remote work for foreign clients or employers
    54,000 EURnet/year
    10.0% burden
  2. 2 Self-employed (self-occupied) — progressive income tax plus Class 2 social security
    44,038 EURnet/year
    26.6% burden