Malta has tripled gambling taxes from October 1, 2026.

[stadus]

~This shows that regulators are restricting games of chance the most. However, there's an important nuance that's easy to miss: the tax is now calculated on player revenue, but only for those physically located in Malta. This effectively penalizes visitors to brick-and-mortar casinos.

Well, it to me it means only one thing - people will be abandoning brick-and-mortar casinos more and more. I can understand gamblers that want to play in land-based casinos, I mean I can see what they like there, but to me they are dinosaurs. People increasingly dislike the atmosphere inside those casinos, and if they want to gamble, they gamble online. I am one of those people myself. I don't want to spend in casino all day, which is often happens if you go to a land-based casino. I want to be able to play for half an hour, when I feel like it, and that's the time you only spend on driving to a brick-and-mortar casino.

I think just like everyone else, it's how we feel now because we already have many options, particularly since online casinos are very popular now and we can play at different casinos if we want to. There's even a report I read a few days ago that some land-based casinos have already shut down their businesses leaving hundreds of workers unemployed, so it's a testament to how people's preferences are changing now, online casinos are the trend.

[Peanutswar]

Thats how does the government works and earn just to get milk with the gambling casino, well it's their choice if they will make a comply and check if they can still sustain that tax increase or just let go to operate. I guess this is the reason too why there are some casinos shifted into different country just to operate because it has a cheaper license and taxes, one of the best examples is like here in my country tons of them got their license to operate and even promoted by the government.

If their government is not like us as a corrupt and you'll see the outcome of your taxes, I guess it's just okay but if not it's not worth the services.

[OsaiEmma]

~This shows that regulators are restricting games of chance the most. However, there's an important nuance that's easy to miss: the tax is now calculated on player revenue, but only for those physically located in Malta. This effectively penalizes visitors to brick-and-mortar casinos.

Well, it to me it means only one thing - people will be abandoning brick-and-mortar casinos more and more.

I think there is somewhat a bit of misinformation there. The article OP provided actually stated that "brick-and-mortar" casinos are still at 5% tax.

The New Structure, Rate by Rate

Legal Notices 84 and 86 of 2026, gazetted on April 1, 2026, replace that single rate with a tiered gaming tax and narrow the VAT exemption, both effective October 1, 2026. The two changes are legally separate but were announced and timed together, and both fall on operators at once.

The gaming tax and the old device levy are consolidated into one tax, with the rate set by the type of gaming service:

• Type 1 services, casino-style games decided by a random number generator, virtual sports, poker played against the house, and lotteries, move to 15% of gaming revenue. This is the steepest change, a tripling of the previous rate, and it lands on the vertical that accounts for the largest share of online gaming revenue in Malta.

• Type 2, 3 and 4 services, fixed-odds betting against the house, peer-to-peer games such as poker and bingo, betting exchanges, and controlled skill games, move to 10%, doubling the previous rate.

• Controlled gaming premises and lawful junkets, mostly land-based activity, stay at 5%. Because the device levy is being folded into the new tax rather than added on top of it, land-based operators whose previous bill included that levy could see a flat or even lower total charge, even though the headline rate for their segment has not moved.

So, I think those it mostly affects are the casinos running online.

But still, I don't think it's that much of a big deal seeing it's just 15%—which is like the highest percentage—right? But as yaho62278 said, they might just be testing the waters.

[#CapsLOck]

This 15% versus 10% tax differential does not indicate that regulator intend to impose stricter restriction on games of chance than sports betting. This 5% difference does not prove their policy intention.

Based on the news it was just the tax increase that changed, but in terms of policy, I think that could change anytime because eventually a country that is not yet strict now could become stricter as they follow industry standards, particularly on anti-money laundering regulations. As long as it's not hard to comply for legitimate operators, there's no problem with that because with the systems we have now, AI can already help them with compliance so I don't see stricter regulations as a major problem, all they care about is their profit, now it's reduced due to higher taxes but they can still operate profitably and survive.

A factor to keep in mind is if operators will absorb the increased tax or pass some of that on to players in the form of less lucrative bonuses, restrictive promotions and/or narrower betting odds. Smaller operators may not have the space to accommodate the change as much as larger operators. Moreover, this is not just a simple 10% tax hike on all gambling, Malta's new model provides different tax rates per game type, and the old 5% tax rate and separate device tax rate are eliminated. Such a move will be interesting to watch, as operators make adjustments over the coming months.

[YOSHIE]

Malta has tripled gambling taxes from October 1, 2026.

I personally agree with the decisions and new regulations implemented by the Maltese Government regarding online gambling sites operating in Malta, Instead of the government making strict prohibition/regulation rules on gambling sites, it would be good if taxes were increased, at least it could increase state income from gambling taxes.

I agree with the current Maltese government tax rules, previously it was only taken at 5%, now it is divided into types 1, 2, 3 and 4.
For example, casino games take 15% and things like sports/sportsbook betting, p2p poker and so on take 10%. In fact, with this new rule, Malta can generate taxes from various games, what is said to be a progressive tax is taken based on the type of game play, the Maltese government is actually more aggressive than before.

Not only that, the Maltese government is not left alone, they also imposed taxes on operators who provide live casino streaming services, as well as those who run studio broadcasting, it looks like the Maltese government will be flooded with tax revenue from online gambling sites this time.

[Awaklara]

The impact of the policy will be seen not only on physical casino players but will also directly affect casino revenue. Although casino revenue is large, with increased tax burdens, there is potential for players to shift to online casinos. This will have a significant effect on offline casino business owners.
What about online casino policies there? They should also undergo adjustments.

[Ishicryptic]

Imposing flat 15% tax on casinos and lotteries would deal significant blow to operators profit margin. I think operators will be quite unhappy about this, as their overhead cost are already very high.

You never know unless there are figures presented. Because if gambling taxes in other countries are high and casinos are still operating there until now, that means they are still profitable despite that. And I don't think Malta would impose this significant change if they had not conducted a thorough study, surely this will not result in casinos stopping their operations.

Despite this tax increase on casinos in Malta, I doubt that any profitable casinos would shutdown, they will only adjust their costs of running their expenses to give more to the government, I'm sure that running gambling business must be profitable in that country otherwise the government could not just increase taxes for them. I agree that Malta, government must have researched about how other countries who's gambling industry is similar to theirs are taxing casinos, maybe they felt that they were under taxing casinos and had to review the tax law. Anyways I'm sure that if any of the casinos that are operating in that country have a problem with the tax increase they will shutdown their services and focus on doing business in tax friendly countries.

[yahoo62278]

That is, until the point comes when, after several tax rises, they end up collecting less than they did before the first tax rise.

Yes but they are going to test raising the taxes until they see a loss and then adjust to the optimal level. All governments do it to a degree. I would be more ok with it if the citizens actually seen the benefits from rising taxes, but we all know it mostly goes into politicians pockets.

[Alex077]

Starting October 1, 2026, licensed gambling establishments in Malta will no longer pay a flat tax on gambling and will pay new taxes, which will vary depending on the product the establishment offers to consumers.
However, the second tax increase does not apply to all categories of games.
Until October 1, Malta had a flat 5% tax on profits. Now, taxes are 15% for casinos and lotteries, and 10% for betting, poker, bingo, and stock exchanges.
...

Malta has been one of the biggest online gambling licensing hubs for many years, so changes like these could have a noticeable impact on the entire industry.
Raising the tax rate from 5% to 15% for casinos is a pretty significant increase. But it's the operator who pays the tax, not the player directly.
What's also interesting is that sports betting, poker, and bingo are taxed at a lower rate. Maybe the regulator is taking into account the differences in profitability between these products, although it does raise the question of how fair it is to have such different tax rates for different types of gambling.

Besides, the new rules only apply to revenue generated from players who are physically located in Malta. This means international online operators might barely notice the changes, while local casinos will face a higher tax burden.
As for how much this will affect regular players, that will depend on how much of the extra cost operators decide to pass on to their customers

[Russlenat]

15% tax on casinos that's very generous because casinos have a house edge so their revenue could easily grow especially if people in that country love to play casino games. Last year Malta's gambling industry contributed over €1 billion to the economy, so if they could maintain that level or increase it, the tax collections by the Maltese government could significantly increase. Possibly even doubling from €82.4 million.

It doesn’t work like that – haven’t you heard of the Laffer curve?

These are new terms for me so I did some research and understood what you meant. And yes of course it's possible that this could result in lower tax collections, but I believe it will only happen if operators find the taxes too high and if the government doesn't have proper safeguards to ensure that the casinos licensed under them will still honestly remit the taxes they owe. That's where stricter regulations come in as no casino would risk violating the rules if they know they will get caught.

[Oshosondy]

I do not think 10 to 15% tax on gambling is too much, but I like how it was 5% before. What that will happen is that most gamblers will be losing money and they will have no tax to pay. Gambling braces is more about the gambling companies to pay the tax from the money their customers have lost. Only few gambers would win. I prefer the countries that are not taxing gambling.

[Maslate]

It's all about how much money they can grab. Governments are nothing but greedy IMO.

You said it right, and this increase seems like a calculated decision already. They know that increasing the tax will not necessarily result in operators shutting down, so they are basically leaving operators with little choice while the government collects more taxes.

Just like Bitcoin though, because they used to call it a scam or fraud, but eventually they realized there's a lot of money in the market so they started regulating it and collecting revenue through different forms of taxation particularly capital gains tax.

[Dr.Bitcoin_Strange]

Given that an additional tax burden significantly prejudices these gambling establishments, it would most necessarily affect the number of these businesses on their operations.

To my knowledge, Malta has been a low tax jurisdiction for gambling operators, even as other countries like France and some US state raised their tax for gambling operators, their rate is still very high and can not be compared with the new increase that Malta just made, so I believe that the operators will absorb the tax, it won't really affect their business because they must have also prepared for it knowing that it is bound to happen, perhaps they see how other country raised their so high. The casinos there will just be pushed to increase the house edge of their games to favour them more and cover their tax.

[Itz-prisigold]

I do not think 10 to 15% tax on gambling is too much, but I like how it was 5% before. What that will happen is that most gamblers will be losing money and they will have no tax to pay. Gambling braces is more about the gambling companies to pay the tax from the money their customers have lost. Only few gambers would win. I prefer the countries that are not taxing gambling.

Seriously you have actually said it all, I also believe that these companies may come up with some other way to make up for this additional tax, perhaps by lowering the bonuses offered to their customers or making the promotions less appealing. The bottom line is, players might even feel the effect of the impact without even knowing.  This means that the government who is not even losing money to these casino's is likely to collect more revenue from these platforms, but the players that is losing their hard earn money may end up getting less out of the same platforms.

[bakasabo]

I think that is going to affect Maltas budget. Gambling provider Evolution Gaming with total equity of $4b is registered in Malta not just for a joke. I think other huge gambling providers are also registered in Malta. Does not look that Malta was getting too little gambling tax that they have decided to triple it. Tax amount suited Malta for so long, why they decided to change it? I dont think it is only greed. Imo that decision is not going to have a positive effect.

[Chibit01]

A factor to keep in mind is if operators will absorb the increased tax or pass some of that on to players in the form of less lucrative bonuses, restrictive promotions and/or narrower betting odds. Smaller operators may not have the space to accommodate the change as much as larger operators. Moreover, this is not just a simple 10% tax hike on all gambling, Malta's new model provides different tax rates per game type, and the old 5% tax rate and separate device tax rate are eliminated. Such a move will be interesting to watch, as operators make adjustments over the coming months.

The tax is it placed on operators or also to gamblers? If the new increased tax law, which is different from the old, targets both operators and gamblers i don't see any reason why operators will increase how they debit players, since the tax is going to be calculated based on revenue generated on those games with slots being taxed the most. Maybe operators could just reduce how much they give out as bonus and, even when given a wager, will be very much on the high, making it nearly impossible to fully claim.

[Bryan jessy]

This will make people adopt online casinos more, since they are beginning to make access to physical casino a bit difficult like this, because is not everyone that will want to pay this tax imagine if a gambler has not made any profit or the profit is not that reasonable and you still need to pay 15% for tax. I remember last year the government thought of imposing tax payment to everyone in a certain age employed, in my country, the mentioned of it alone scares people because some persons earns are very low with other expenses, adding tax payment again would be a financial stress, but all thanks to God it has not been being initiated yet but they are still planing on making it come to manifest. It is going to benefit them somehow I feel they should consider the effects on people as well.

[Supreme Donvic]

I prefer the countries that are not taxing gambling.

Is it possible for a country not to tax a casino who is being licensed by them, I don't think it is possible and I believe every country that license a casino company is taking tax from them.
Weather a country is taking tax from a casino company or not does not stop people from winning or losing money in that casinos, the government make money from taxing companies and people and no company operating in that country should be exempted especially when they are making good amount of money from the citizens.

[eisen33]

Starting October 1, 2026, licensed gambling establishments in Malta will no longer pay a flat tax on gambling and will pay new taxes, which will vary depending on the product the establishment offers to consumers.

However, the second tax increase does not apply to all categories of games.
Until October 1, Malta had a flat 5% tax on profits. Now, taxes are 15% for casinos and lotteries, and 10% for betting, poker, bingo, and stock exchanges.
https://betstarters.com/maltas-gaming-tax-overhaul-what-changes-for-operators-from-october-1-2026/
This shows that regulators are restricting games of chance the most. However, there's an important nuance that's easy to miss: the tax is now calculated on player revenue, but only for those physically located in Malta. This effectively penalizes visitors to brick-and-mortar casinos.

In any case this should only affect casinos, not players. In other words, casinos will have to pay higher taxes on players who physically located in Malta. But what about online players, will everything stay the same, or will taxes increase for online casinos as well?

I don’t think players should be affected at all, because I can’t recall any cases where either online or land based casinos directly charged players taxes on their winnings. Or am I mistaken?

[Mr. Magkaisa]

Even they will not give higher tax to casino it will go bigger and bigger as many people will gamble as gambling now has easy access to everyone and internet now is available anywhere. online payment, banking and e-wallet are easy to use.
Government will dig more idea to leech more and more to casino. I just hope every taxes will go to its people and make the country better.