Malta Gaming Authority Review

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What Is the Malta Gaming Authority?

Malta Gaming Authority was established in 2001. It is an official government agency, and its responsibility is to regulate the lotteries, casinos, and online gambling services in Malta. The applicant of this license must have a company in Malta, but it is possible to use servers located outside the country. So, the management section of the online casino must be in Malta, but you can hire servers from any other countries in the world. It is even possible to get a license for a cruise ship. In fact, here is a fun fact only a couple people know: Casinos in cruise ships are usually licensed by the Malta Gaming Authority.

Once you obtain a MGA license, you can accept members from almost every country in Europe. Countries with their own licensing system (such as Denmark) and countries who prohibited online gambling (such as Turkey) are the exception, but still, a Malta Gaming Authority license can cover a lot of countries.

There are four types of licenses, but online casinos must apply for a Class 3, Gaming Service license. The application process is entirely online and can be done via the official Malta Gaming Authority website. Applying for a license has a fixed fee of 15.000 EUR minimum and 25.000 EUR maximum, depending on the type of the license. After paying this fee, the Regulatory Directorate starts to review the application and makes a detailed background check. A person who has a criminal record cannot obtain this license. Moreover, the company who makes the application must have a paid-up shared capital of 100.000 EUR minimum.

If the application is accepted, you can set up shop and start operating as a Malta Gaming Authority casino. However, you also need to pay monthly and annual fees. These are calculated as a percentage of your net income from the casino, i.e. you need to pay a 4% fee for every Euro of the first 3.000.000 Euros. In total, the annual fee can be as high as 600.000 Euros. Again, this figure can change according to your income and the type of your license.

The good news is that income taxes are very low in Malta, and fantasy sports are included in the license. Most of the other licensees require getting another license (and paying another fee) for a fantasy sports license, which is more popular than you think. Malta Gaming Authority casinos must comply with a lot of standards, which we will mention below.

Why Choose MGA?

From the perspective of a casino owner, there are three main reasons. First, the MGA license is one of the most prestigious licenses in the world and brings a certain credibility to your casino. Second, income taxes are very low, so it is advantageous to set up shop in Malta. Third, your servers can be in another country and this will further lower the operating costs. This is actually mandatory since Malta is an island and its internet infrastructure is not enough for big data centers.

From the perspective of a player, a MGA license shows a certain level of reliability and security. Malta is the gambling capital of the world for a reason: Players are protected in here. As we will mention below, players can apply directly to the Malta Gaming Authority for complaint resolution. MGA takes complaints seriously and usually rules in favour of the player.

Responsible Gaming and Player Protection with Malta Gaming Authority

Let’s examine these separately.

Player Protection

In terms of advertising, a Malta Gaming Authority casino cannot encourage behaviour which is socially irresponsible and suggest gambling can be a solution to unemployment. So, you won’t be seeing any “get rich!” adverts is Malta Gaming Authority casinos. According to the terms of the license, casino bonuses must be fair and easily understandable. MGA regulations are more liberal than the UK Gambling Commission when it comes to advertising, but they still need to be fair and not misleading.

In terms of player complaints, players can reach directly to MGA for complaint resolution. This is a big advantage actually and the UK Gambling Commission, for example, does not offer this service. You do not need to live in Malta to access this service. A complaint can be sent to MGA via an online form on the official website. Malta Gaming Authority suggests trying to resolve the problem with the casino first, but if doing that does not resolve anything, you can apply to MGA too. In fact, you can even use the live chat player support system on the official website. Once more, Malta Gaming Authority takes player complaints seriously.

Responsible Gaming

Responsible gaming practices were not mandatory for Malta Gaming Authority casinos. However, this is not the case anymore. Since May 2018, Malta Gaming Authority casinos must offer self-exclusion tools to their customers as a part of their license. These tools include but not limited to time limitation, budget limitation, and game limitation. So, you can exclude yourself from playing high-roller games and/or limit the budget you allocated for gambling. You can even limit your playtime and, for example, gamble only for 3 hours within a week.