NEWS
Malta’s Sovereignty & the Jurisdiction of Maltese Courts
Is a Status of Force Agreement (SOFA) with the United States incompatible with Malta’s neutrality clause in the Constitution? What is a Status of Force Agreement (SOFA)? The Status of Force Agreement finds its footing in military alliances and the presence of military...
Two Bills in Parliament Promoting Human Rights, Equality and Non-Discrimination
Bill 96 and Bill 97 read for the first time at the Parliamentary sitting of 17 July 2019 provide for the prohibition of discrimination in various spheres of life and for the establishment of the Human Rights and Equality Commission respectively. These two Bills have...
Malta Property Private Residential Leases – One Year On
It has been almost one year since the coming into force of The Private Residential Leases Act (Chapter 604, Laws of Malta) aimed to regulate the residential letting sector, and placing such contracts under the watch of the Housing Authority. The law got off to a shaky...
Consequences of Brexit on Intellectual Property Rights
Following the UK exit from the EU, on the 1st January 2020 the UK shall no longer be an EU member state and UK citizens will no longer be members of EU. However, there was a transition period throughout which Union law continues to be applicable to and in the UK and...
The FIAU publishes a Revised version of the Implementing Procedures – Part I
Following the issues highlighted by the Moneyval’s Mutual Evaluation Report (2019) for Malta, which drew up a number of recommendations for local authorities to adopt in order to avoid being black-listed, the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit (FIAU) has issued an...
Malta Government Budget for 2021 – Impact on Property Sales & Transfers
The 2021 Malta budget was announced in Parliament by the Minister of Finance on 19th October 2020. The following is a brief review of the budget measures concerning transfers of immovable properties. Property Tax & Stamp Duty exemptions on purchase of property...
The Guidance on the Register of Beneficial Owners of Commercial Partnerships issued by the MBR
The MBR published on the 5th October 2020 a guidance on the Register of Beneficial Owners of Commercial Partnership which provides an overview of requirements in terms of the Companies Act (Register of Beneficial Owners) Regulations. Legal Notice 374 of 2017...
The Revised Implementing Procedures Part II for Remote Gaming Sector
The FIAU (“Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit”) published on the 2nd July 2020 and in cooperation with the MGA (the “Malta Gaming Authority”), the revised version of the Implementing Procedures Part II for the Remote Gaming Sector with the aim to reflect realities...
New Regulations to the Malta Aviation and Shipping Companies: Shipping and Aviation Cell Companies Regulations 2020
As of 3rd March 2020, with the introduction of Act V of 2020 which amended various financial services laws including the Companies Act, there is the possibility of setting-up Cell companies also within the areas of maritime and aviation, which up till now, was...
The Companies Act Register (Register of Beneficial Owner) (Amendment) Regulations, 2020
The Companies Act (Register of Beneficial Owners)(Amendment) Regulations came into force on the 16th June 2020 by means of Legal Notice 247 of 2020 which has introduced a number of changes to further implement the Companies Act (Register of Beneficial Owners)...
Cohabitation Act
A new Cohabitation Act repealing the previous Cohabitation Act has recently been implemented. Act XXVII of 2020 has completely overhauled the previous Act introducing new provisions and definitions. Definition of Cohabitant A “cohabitant” is defined as a person who is...
Covid-19 Measures & Financial Assistance for Company Recovery Procedures
On the 12th May 2020, Legal Notice 192 of 2020, Companies Act (Company Reconstruction Fund) Regulations 2020 (the “Regulations”) was published to create and regulate the administration of a fund known as the Company Recovery Fund intended to facilitate company...
How Covid-19 Might Change the Criminal Landscape
The economic and social impacts of COVID-19 pandemic have changed how society and organisations operate, including criminal organisations. The pandemic has created the perfect storm for money laundering in the current period where a high volume of financial...
The Gender Pay Gap
The Gender Pay Gap is different across the EU Member States. The narrowest is 3.5% in Romania whereas the widest gender pay gap is registered at 25.6% in Estonia. Unlike the provision of equal pay, which is legally binding and refers to men and women being paid the...
Consumer rights – Air Passengers entitlements under Covid-19 (Corona Virus)
One of the measures that the Maltese Government took when the coronavirus pandemic hit Malta and the first cases were registered, was to stop commercial flights in order to limit the importation of the virus. As a result, all prospective travellers had their flights...
Maltese Citizenship – Potential Applicants
Maltese Citizenship can be acquired by birth, descent, marriage, or residence depending on a number of factors and conditions. The Independence Constitution in 1964 established who was automatically entitled to Maltese citizenship while the Maltese Citizenship Act...
Directive 18 Moratoria on Credit Facilities in Exceptional Circumstances – Central Bank of Malta
Faced with the exceptional circumstances the commercial and social sectors are being challenged with as a result of COVID 19 and the now household name Corona Virus, in the middle of April, the Central Bank of Malta intervened on local banks and issued a Directive...
Suspension of Legal and Judicial times. An overview of the Regulations following Covid-19
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in Malta in order to sustain the spread of the virus, the Maltese Government has introduced a number of measures affecting legal and judicial timeframes as well as the operations of the Maltese courts. These measures came into...