Most online casinos have a Malta license, a UK license, or a license issued by the government of Curaçao. You might wonder why this is the case and, therefore, our casino experts will shed light on this topic in this extensive guide. Additionally, they will cover the pros, cons, and key features of the best online casinos with Malta license, so you know exactly where to get the biggest bang for your buck when it comes to online casino gaming. First of all, Maltese gambling licenses are issued by a regulatory body called the Malta Gaming Authority. The Malta Gaming Authority or MGA in short, was founded in 2001, which was then named the Lotteries and Gaming Authority (LGA). This was during the dawn of the online casino age and Malta was one of the few countries apart from the United Kingdom where casino operators could apply for a license. Over the years, the MGA casino license became one of the most sought-after and most prestigious casino licenses online casino operators could obtain. But why did every single online casino want to apply for a Malta casino license and not a UK or Curaçao one? The reason for this is that Malta online casinos have built up a great reputation among players across the globe. The world’s biggest online casinos all have Maltese gambling licenses in addition to other (local) gaming licenses and certificates. Apart from being reputable, Maltese gambling licenses aren’t too expensive to come by, which allows start-ups with limited capital to acquire such licenses and start operating their own online casinos, sportsbooks, poker rooms, and gambling platforms as soon as possible. Below, our casino experts have provided top rankings of the best online casinos with Malta license for all kinds of players, including both high rollers and recreational budget players. Use the top rankings to easily compare the key features and welcome bonuses across multiple casinos, and sign up at your preferred online casino to claim its generous welcome bonus. Need more information? Read our comprehensive, independent, and honest casino reviews first.
✓ Real-money tested, published by Jordan Conroy, Senior Casino Reviewer · 18+ · Please gamble responsibly · Read the full method →Ad disclosure: we may earn a commission when you visit a casino through our links. Commissions never influence our scores — here's how we make money. 18+.
These figures are computed from our own casino records for every operator in this pool, not just the ranked list above, and they update whenever a record changes.
Casinos in this pool that launched in 2025 or 2026, newest first. A young site has less of a track record, so check its licence and payout window before you deposit; both are on its card and in its review.
As there are many different casino players, our experts categorized the best Malta casino sites per category in the handy overview below. Find what you’re looking for and sign up at the online casino that exactly matches your needs, preferred playstyle, and games.
An MGA casino is an online casino which is in the possession of a valid gambling license issued by the Malta Gaming Authority. The Malta Gaming Authority is the strictest regulatory body globally, so you can rest assured that an MGA casino adheres to the most strict rules possible when it comes to online casino games. You don’t have to be afraid that you will be playing rigged games or not receive your winnings as these online casinos definitely do not want to lose their MGA gaming license.
| Best for | Casino | Why | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Top pick overall | Winzter | Casinofy score 9.5/10 | Visit |
| Fastest payouts | n1Bet | Instant withdrawals | Visit |
| Biggest game library | Retro Bet | 20,186 games | Visit |
| Lowest minimum deposit | BigClash | €10 minimum | Visit |
| EU or UK licence | N1 | Malta Gaming Authority | Visit |
| Best for crypto | Winzter | 7 crypto payment options | Visit |
| Best live casino | Retro Bet | live dealer lobby, 20,186 games in total | Visit |
Category winners are computed from our tested data (payout times, game counts, app ratings, deposit limits). 18+. BeGambleAware. T&Cs apply.
Most experienced casino players tend to play at new online casinos with Malta license. The main for this is that new online casinos often offer better bonuses, have bigger selections of games, accept more payment methods, and more complex, fun, and rewarding VIP and loyalty programs. Some of our top-rated new online casinos with Malta license include Tsars Casino, Hot.bet, and Playzee.
Online casinos with a valid license in place issued by the Malta Gaming Authority offer great player protection, guarantee safety and reliability, provide excellent customer service, have fair bonus terms and wagering requirements, and often have great game selections. Below, our experts will highlight all of these features in great detail.
Player Protection
Malta online casinos have to provide players the option to set deposit, loss, wager, and playtime limits from within their account settings. Additionally, they have to provide links to support groups, such as Gamblers Anonymous, Gordon Moodys, and Gamcare so that problem gamblers or people who might start developing one can seek help for free. Additionally, players are only offered provably fair casino games that have been rigorously tested by external testing agencies, such as eCOGRA, BMM Testlabs, and GLI. If you ever think you are the victim of an MGA casino’s wrongdoing, you are free to contact the Malta Gaming Authority yourself to see how they can help solving the issue.
Safety and Reliability
Online casinos with a valid license in place issued by the Malta Gaming Authority have to adhere to strict safety measurements. For instance, they have to protect their entire websites and gambling platforms with SSL technology, which routes all traffic and payments through secured channels that cannot be intercepted by hackers and other cybercriminals. Additionally, their servers have to be up 99,99% of the time and they have to pay out all their winning players that submit a withdrawal request in a timely manner. By playing at a licensed and regulated Malta online casino, you can rest assured that you will always be paid out in time and as you should.
Excellent Customer Service
After going through the lengthy and extensive process of obtaining a Maltese casino license, casino operators are not keen to lose it. For this reason, you can count on excellent customer service when playing at Malta online casinos. Most of the time, you can easily contact them by email, live chat, and sometimes even by phone. In most scenarios, they will have multilingual support staff so that you can ask your question or communicate your issue in your own language, which is always best in these types of situations.
Fair Bonus Terms and Wagering Requirements
As online casinos with a Malta license have to adhere to the strict rules and regulations as set out by the Malta Gaming Authority, they often provide fair bonuses to their players, rather than entangling them with strict bonus terms and conditions. In the case of Malta online casinos, you can often count on fair bonus wagering requirements between 30x and 40x instead of 50x to 70x or no wagering bonus, which you sometimes see at Canadian and US-facing online casinos, for example. Also keep in mind that there is heavy competition among Malta online casinos, which can often lead to even lower wagering requirements.
Great Game Selection
In most cases, the game selection of Malta online casinos is vastly bigger than those of its Curaçao and UK Gambling Commission counterparts. Online casinos with a Malta license often have thousands of game on offer, whilst other online casinos and gambling operators typically only offer a couple hundred of games. Additionally, Malta online casinos usually have more game categories, including skill-based games, online scratch cards, bingo and keno games, and so-called ‘’crash games’’.
You might wonder what the advantages of playing at Malta online casinos or gambling sites with Maltese licenses are. It might be the case that they have perfectly fine, regulated, and licensed online casinos in your country of residence. However, have you ever taken the time to compare the game selections of local casinos with Maltese casinos? What about the available payment methods? Let us tell you one thing: the best online casinos are Maltese ones. Below, our casino experts will explain to you why online casinos with a valid Malta license are the best ones you can play at in more detail.
Bigger Game Selections
If you compare the welcome bonuses, available payments, game selections of local online casinos, you will hit yourself in the head that you’ve never played at a Malta online casino before. Usually Maltese online casinos have several thousand games, with some MGA casinos even boasting game selections of over ten thousand games. The average MGA casino has about 3,000 to 5,000 games, which is a whole lot more than the under a thousand or just over a thousand most local casinos have. As for software providers, don’t get us started. Local casinos often have partnerships with maybe 10 to 20 software providers and gaming studios. Malta online casinos, on the other hand, often work with at least 50 software providers, if not 70,90, or even more than 100.
More Frequent and Better Bonuses
For the best casino bonuses, don’t bother with UK Gambling Commission or Curaçao E-gaming licensed casinos. UK casinos often have too low bonuses whilst Curaçao ones usually have too high wagering requirements. Malta online casinos, on the other hand, always compete with each other and have 30 to 40x wagering requirements and are usually at least a thousand euros worth, if not two or even three thousand. Additionally, MGA casinos often have attractive reload bonuses, cashback bonuses, and free spins promotions as they have the most experience in the iGaming industry and actually know what players want. They have studied their competition for years and know what promotions work and which ones don’t. Besides, they don’t have to obey certain welcome bonus limits, such as in the UK and Netherlands and can freely give away any bonus they want, including no deposit bonuses. If you compare the bonus selection of a Malta Casino with a local one, the differences become glaringly obvious.
Worldwide Recognition
As we have explained earlier in this Best Online Casinos With Malta License guide, MGA casino licenses are the ones with the utmost highest reputation across the globe. For this reason, Malta online casinos shall always be more reputable than Curaçao ones and this is the exact reason why online casinos that initially started out with a Curaçao license often eventually end up upgrading to a Maltese one.
Provably Fair Casino Games
As Malta online casinos have to adhere to strict rules and regulation set out by the Malta Gaming Authority, you can rest assured you are offered provably fair casino games only. Forget about dodgy ‘’provably fair’’ cryptocurrency casino games that some unknown software company or individual created and think of highly sophisticated software powerhouses like Pragmatic Play, Big Time Gaming, and Play’n GO instead. Malta online casinos only work with prestigious casino software providers and gaming studios that all have their games tested on a bi-yearly basis by external, independent third-party testing agencies, such as eCOGRA, BMM Testlabs, GLI, and iTechLabs.
Wide Range of Payment Options
At local online casinos, you can often only use local payment methods, bank wire transfers, and Visa and MasterCard credit cards. However, at Malta online casinos, you can make use of tens of different payment methods, including all sorts of e-wallets (Neteller, Skrill, PayPal, Muchbetter), prepaid vouchers (PaySafeCard, Neosurf, CashtoCode), and even cryptocurrencies at some casinos (Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, Tether). These payment methods can often be used both to deposit and as withdrawal methods so that you can conveniently fund your account and withdraw your winnings. Added to this, as Malta online casinos compete heavily among each other, they all have lightning-fast withdrawal processing times, with some of them even processing withdrawal requests instantly.
Before an online casino can be regulated in Malta, it must posses the following qualities or have planned to do the following things:
Every applicant must show the required incorporation documents, games to be offered, follow the correct business processes, rules, terms, conditions, policies, and procedures as set out by the Malta Gaming Authority. Additionally, all technical documentation of used gaming systems must be thoroughly examined and evaluated. Added to this, licensees are also required to issue a certain amount of shares and paid-up capital per share, depending on their required type or types of casino licenses.
For Type 1 and Type 2 licenses, €100,000 in paid-up share capital must be deposited as financial stability requirement. For Type 3 and 4 licenses, €40,000 in paid-up share capital is sufficient to start an online casino or gambling platform with a Malta license.
First Stage of License Issuing: Review of the Applicant
When a soon-to-be casino operator has submitted its license application to the MGA, an assessment will be conducted. During this assessment, all documents regarding financing, managing, and technical specifications of the games offered will be taken a look at. When foreign companies wish to apply for a Malta casino license, the MGA will partner up with national and international regulatory bodies to gauge the capability and legitimacy of the casino operator applying for the license.
Second Stage of License Issuing: Business Plan Analysis
Once the applicant has been thoroughly reviewed, the business plan of the soon-to-be casino operator will be analyzed. This business plan should include operational and financial forecasts, such as marketing and distribution strategies, as well as protocols for when a player hits a big jackpot.
Third Stage of License Issuing: Operational and Statutory Requirements Check
Once the business plan has been thoroughly analyzed, the MGA will take a look if the license is meeting the minimum issued and paid-up share capital requirements (€100,000 for Type 1 and 2 and €40,000 for Type 3 and 4).
Fourth Stage of License Issuing: System Review
After the first three stages of license issuing, the MGA will ask the soon-to-be casino operator to provide documentation of the technical environment. The casino operator will now have 60 days to appoint a service provider approved by the MGA to carry out an extensive system audit. If the 60-day deadline isn’t met, the application is canceled and the operator must reapply for its license.
Fifth and Final Stage of License Issuing: Compliance Review
After receiving the notice, casino operator licensees have 90 days to undergo a series of compliance audits. Usually, this compliance audit is conducted after the first year of operation. If the licensee or casino operator doesn’t adhere to the compliance audit, it may face a suspension or termination of its already granted licenses.
Malta is officially part of the European Union. This means that every player should be protected according to European law when it comes to online gambling. The Malta Gaming Authority isn’t only the regulatory body of the gambling industry in Europe, but it also has the task to keep an eye out on all the players and games offered to them. Some countries are even so jealous at the immense power the Malta Gaming Authority has that they have decided to form their own local regulatory bodies, which often copy a lot of regulatory rules from the MGA. One of the questions you might have at this point is: ‘’how does the Malta Gaming Authority operate?’’
Allow our casino experts to explain. Basically the Malta Gaming Authority does three main things: it does extensive due diligence and research on online casinos before granting them a license, it conducts financial background checks and checks the finances of online casinos with an MGA license regularly, and it oversees all the games being offered by these online casinos to their players.
Not a single online casino gets an MGA license just like that. First, they have to meet strict requirements and guidelines set out by the MGA. Then there are also financial requirements the casino operator must meet before being allowed to open its virtual doors to players. For instance, there must be enough cash at hand to be able to pay out winning players. Additionally, there must be enough liquidity to be able to process withdrawal requests in a timely manner when players ask for this or when they hit a big jackpot. So, before an online casino gets a Malta license, it will have to show that it can meet these financial obligations. Additionally, the to-be-licensed casino needs to prove that it will only offer provably fair games of chance that meet the strict requirements set out by the Malta Gaming Authority in this regard.
Once an online casino has obtained an MGA license, the Malta Gaming Authority will continue conducting financial checks from time to time. There are certain rules set in place for this. For instance, online casinos based in Malta have to share their financial statements every six months. They really do have to show that they are financially stable enough to keep running their online casinos and/or gambling sites.
Random checks are carried out as well. This means that employees at the Malta Gaming Authority regularly create online casino accounts to play at the gambling sites to test if everything is in order and as stated in the MGA guidelines. They also check regularly whether the games offered are provably fair. This is done through so-called mystery gamblers, just like you would have mystery shoppers in physical stores. Based on that these mystery gamblers observe, the Malta Gaming Authority can conclude whether the online casino in question is operating as it should or if it is breaking any laws or guidelines.
A Malta gaming license isn’t easily issued to any online casino. First of all, the casino must be based in Malta. Added to this, not only must the website have an MGA license, but every single game as well. This is all being checked during random checks conducted by the MGA. This means that even casino software providers must hold MGA licenses and the Malta Gaming Authority has, again, set out strict rules and guidelines when it comes to the development and marketing of online games of chance in different categories. The software providers and gaming studios are checked upon regularly to see if they all operate within the rules set out by the MGA. Talking about casino games and categories, let’s take a look at the 4 different classes of Malta casino licenses in the section below.
According to Maltese law,’’no person shall provide or carry out a gaming service or provide a critical gaming supply from Malta or to any person in Malta, or through a Maltese legal entity, except when in possession of a valid license, or when such person is exempt from the requirement of a license under the Act or any other regulatory instrument.’’
As such, there is basically a difference between two main things: a Malta Gaming Service License, which is when a business wants to offer a gaming service to consumers, and a Malta Criticall Gaming Supply License, which is a business to business type of license, where one company provides or carries out a critical gaming supply.
In general, there are 4 types of gaming licenses that can be issued in Malta by the Malta Gaming Authority, classified as Type 1, Type 2, Type 3, and Type 4. In the section below, our experts will shed light on the differences and attributes of these casino licenses.
Under a Type 1 license fall games that are played against the house. So this entails players playing against the casino by placing bets on or playing hands of Roulette, Blackjack, Baccarat. Although it might sound weird, e-sportsbetting is also classified as Type 1.
The second type of casino license, the Type 2 one, is required when an online casino or gambling operator wants to offer games of chance that are played by players against the house of which the outcome is determined by an event or competition separate from the game of chance itself. Examples of things that require a Type 2 license are fixed odds betting and pool betting.
When certain games of chance or not played against the house or casino operator, but by players against each other, and the operator generates profits and revenues by introducing a commission or is charging the players certain fees based on their bets or wagers, these games require a Type 3 gambling license from the Malta Gaming Authority. These games include so-called peer-to-peer games like poker and bingo.
All controlled skill games, where players can ‘’get better’’ in are classified under type 4. Fantasy sports are a great example of games of chance that require a Type 4 license issued by the MGA before being allowed to be offered by casino operators. For some reason, e-sports do not fall under this category.
It can be the case that a casino operator must apply for several licenses. Once they obtain any of these licenses, they are valid for a ten year period. After these ten years, they must be reevaluated again. Some games do not require a license at all, including games of skill which does not require a stake or grants returns in the form of prizes, a game which has a prize but is not known to be a controlled skill game, games of chance that doesn’t require a stake to participate and where there is no possibility of winning a prize, so-called ‘’mini-games’’, licensed games that already have other forms of gambling licenses that are offered on board any vessel that wants to fly under the flag of Malta or is registered in Malta.
Malta does not tax gambling winnings for players. Under Maltese tax law, gambling winnings are classified as non-taxable receipts and are completely exempt from income tax. This applies to winnings from both online and land-based casinos.
Malta’s tax-friendly approach to gambling extends to operators as well, which is one of the key reasons why over 300 gambling companies have established operations on the island, making it the global hub of the iGaming industry.
As the world’s leading iGaming jurisdiction, Malta takes responsible gambling seriously:
The MGA conducts regular compliance audits of all licensed operators to ensure player protection standards are maintained.
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Find answers to the most common questions about Best Online Casinos Malta below.
Yes, an online casino Malta is safe in almost all cases. However, this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do your research and extensive due diligence before signing up, depositing, uploading identity documents, and accepting casino bonuses blindly at online casinos with a Maltese license. For this reason, the founders of Casinofy have founded this very website! Our experts provide you with loads of information regarding online casinos, including their pros, cons, and key takeaways. We always recommend reading our honest and independent casino reviews before signing up at an online casino. If an online casino isn’t listed on our site, that probably has its reasons and we suggest avoiding it.
Yes, technically, you can join a Maltese online casino from any country. However, not all countries allow online gambling. For this reason, our experts highly recommend checking the laws of your local or national government regarding playing online games of chance and betting on sports. Additionally, some countries restrict online gambling to national online casinos only that have valid licenses in place from their corresponding gaming regulatory body, such as the Netherlands, which only allows online gambling at online casinos that have a license issued by the Kansspelautoriteit, which is the Dutch version of the Malta Gaming Authority.
No, unlike the regulatory situation in Curaçao, where every online casino practically has the same license (issued by Antillephone under license number 8048/JAZ), every online casino with a Maltese license actually has its own license as there is no such thing as a master and sub licensing system in place in the country. This means that every casino has to adhere to the strict rules set out by the Malta Gaming Authority and treat its players well as it can be fined if it doesn’t, or in the worst case even lose its license.
As early as 1996, InterCasino was the first online casino to open its virtual doors to the public as part of the InterCasino Group. This casino holding corporation was a subsidiary of Goldstar Acquisitionco Inc, which was a registered company in Malta with a valid license in place, issued by the Lotteries & Gaming Authority of Malta.
The main reason why there are so many online casinos in Malta is because every country in the world has special gaming authorities that regulate the gambling industry in order to collect taxes and protect players from any wrongdoings of casinos. The Malta gaming Authority is known to be the most strict regulatory body globally and for this reason acquiring and maintaining a valid gambling license from it is seen as highly reputable and a feat of strength on its own. Apart from wanting to have the most prestigious gambling license attainable on earth, online casino operators often register their company in Malta because of the mild tax climate of the country. The country has a so-called 30/35 percent tax rule in place, which online casino operators can use to effectively reduce their payable taxes to about 5% to 6%.
You verify whether an online casino has a gambling license issued by the Malta Gaming Authority by scrolling all the way down on its homepage. In the so-called footer of the website, you will find a logo of the MGA. In most cases, if you click on this logo, you will be redirected to a special page where you can see whether the license is still valid or not. This is called the license validator.
Yes, every company pays tax, including online casinos with an MGA license. However, the tax climate in Malta is a bit milder compared to other European and global tax systems. Apart from taxes, online casinos with a Malta license also have other costs, including staff, server costs, licensing costs, and revenue share deals with the software providers they feature on their sites.
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