Malta

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This guide contains public integration notes for Malta. Use it for identifier formats, search behavior, and country-specific caveats. The live source of truth for coverage, pricing, data sources, documents, legal forms, roles, and status values is the pricing page.

Malta coverage, pricing, and sources

Open the current catalog for supported datapoints, documents, sources, identifiers, and availability.

Country details below are preserved as integration notes. If a table or example conflicts with the live pricing page, use the pricing page as the source of truth and contact support.

Data Sources
Company Identifiers
Search Capabilities
Quirks & Gotchas
Mappings
Data Availability
Example API Responses

Data Sources

Malta uses a single official registry for all company data. For a given entity, data comes from one source — there is no cross-registry merging.

BAROS (Malta Business Registry Online System) — Operated by the Malta Business Registry (MBR), established under Subsidiary Legislation 497.27. BAROS is the central company register for all commercial partnerships in Malta. The API provides structured company data including company name, legal form (type + subtype), status, registration date, registered address, share capital (authorised and issued), directors, secretaries, legal/judicial representatives, and involved parties (auditors, subscribers, etc.). It also provides a document listing and fee-based document retrieval. BAROS replaced the legacy paper-based registry system and is governed by the Companies Act 1995 (Cap. 386).

Authenticated source: The Maltese register requires authenticated access for some document operations. Topograph handles this as part of the standard API flow.

Company Identifiers

Domestic private and public limited liability companies can return company.identifiers.euid, for example MTROC.C2833. The EUID omits the space in the national registration number. It is available in both onboarding and verification and is not a search key.

Query Identifiers

Entity Type	Source	Format	Example	Notes
Companies	BAROS	C + space + digits	`C 2833`	Standard Malta company number issued by MBR
Partnerships en nom collectif	BAROS	P + space + digits	`P 2241`	General partnerships
Partnerships en commandite	BAROS	P COMM + space + digits	`P COMM 203`	Limited partnerships
Overseas companies	BAROS	OC + space + digits	`OC 1299`	Maltese branches of foreign companies
SICAVs	BAROS	SV + space + digits	`SV 88`	Investment companies with variable share capital
Foundations	BAROS	LPF + space + digits	`LPF 455`	Foundations registered with MBR

Malta Registration Number Format: Malta registration numbers consist of an entity-type prefix (C, P, P COMM, OC, SV, or LPF) followed by a space and digits (e.g., C 2833). The space between the prefix and the number is part of the official format.

Identifiers in API Response

Once you retrieve company data, the identifiers object contains all available identifiers for that entity:

Identifier Type	Format	Example	Found In
`registrationNumber`	Prefix + space + digits	`C 2833`, `SV 88`	All registered entities

Search Capabilities

Search Type	Pattern	Example	Match Type	Expected Results
By Registration Number	Prefix (`C`, `P`, `P COMM`, `OC`, `SV`, `LPF`) + space + digits	`C 2833`, `LPF 455`	Exact	Exact match returned first (matchType: id); other results may follow
By Name	Text string (min 3 chars)	`"Valletta Holdings"`	Partial	Multiple results
By VAT Number	`MT` + 8 digits, or 8 digits	`MT12345678`	Via registered name	Companies matching the name registered for that VAT number

Search Performance: Identifier-based searches use exact matching and return the exact match first (matchReason.matchType = "id"); other results may follow. Name searches use partial matching and may return many results. A VAT number is resolved to its registered name through the EU VAT validation service, then searched by that name. All search types query the Malta Business Registry live.

Active companies only

Search can return companies that are no longer active, but their status is not known at search time, so activeOnly=true has no effect. Check company.status on the company profile. Search results carry no company status, so the filter has no effect.

Quirks & Gotchas

Quirk	Details
Fee-based documents	Malta documents are paid (see pricing). The document listing itself is free.
Registration number format includes space	Malta registration numbers include a space after the entity-type prefix (e.g., `C 2833`, `P COMM 203`). The space is normalized during search (whitespace-insensitive matching).
Founding subscribers are not shareholders	Subscribers to the memorandum at incorporation appear under `otherKeyPersons`. Current shareholders come from the separate `shareholders` datapoint.
Activity codes are AI-inferred	Malta’s registry does not provide standardized activity codes (NACE/ISIC). All activity classifications are AI-inferred from company type descriptions. The `isAIInferred` flag is always `true`.
Document names are AI-enriched	Raw BAROS document metadata contains basic filing names. AI enrichment adds human-readable names, descriptions, periods, and category classifications (e.g., `financialStatements`, `articlesOfAssociation`).
Multiple person arrays	Company data splits persons across four separate arrays (`directors`, `secretaries`, `representatives`, `involved_parties`), each with different data structures.
No UBO data	BAROS does not expose Ultimate Beneficial Owner data through its API. Malta’s Register of Beneficial Owners (regulated under S.L. 386.19) is not publicly accessible via BAROS.
Legal form is type + subtype	The local legal form name is composed from `company_type.type` and `company_type.subtype` (e.g., “Limited Liability Company (Private Exempt)”). The `suffix` field provides the abbreviated form (e.g., “Ltd.”, “P.L.C.”).

Mappings

Company Status

Company status is determined deterministically from the company_state.state field in the BAROS API response. The active flag is set deterministically (state === 'Active'). AI enrichment adds the standardized status mapping.

Local Status	Standardized Status	Notes
Active	Active	Company is currently operational
Dissolved	Closed	Company has been formally dissolved
Struck Off	Closed	Company removed from register (defunct procedure)
Being Struck Off	Closed	Company is in the process of being struck off
In Liquidation	Closed	Company is undergoing liquidation proceedings
Being Wound Up	Closed	Company is in the process of winding up

Malta’s Companies Act 1995 provides for three forms of dissolution and winding up: Members’ Voluntary Winding Up (solvent), Creditors’ Voluntary Winding Up (insolvent), and Court Winding Up (by court order). A simplified voluntary dissolution procedure (Article 214A) was introduced for companies with minimal recent activity.

Legal Forms

Malta legal forms are resolved deterministically from the register’s company type, which provides both a type (e.g., “Limited Liability Company”) and subtype (e.g., “Private Exempt”). The local name follows the Type (Subtype) form. English translation, standardized value and ISO 20275 code come from a closed list of the 57 legal forms the Malta Business Registry registers. AI enrichment is used only as a fallback for a legacy form that is not in that list. The full list is on the pricing page.

Limited Liability Companies

Local Name	Suffix	Standardized	ISO 20275
Limited Liability Company (Private Exempt)	Ltd.	Limited Liability Company	`V89C`
Limited Liability Company (Private Exempt Single Member)	Ltd.	Limited Liability Company	`V89C`
Limited Liability Company (Private Non-Exempt)	Ltd.	Limited Liability Company	`V89C`
Limited Liability Company (Public Non-Exempt)	P.L.C.	Corporation	`C061`

Private vs Public: A private company may have a maximum of 50 shareholders, may not invite the public to subscribe for shares, and restricts share transfer rights. A public company has no such restrictions. Exempt vs Non-Exempt: An exempt company has fewer regulatory obligations (e.g., audit exemption eligibility under S.L. 386.20). Private and public companies have different minimum authorised share capital requirements under Maltese company law.

Partnerships

Local Name	Standardized	ISO 20275
Partnership (En Nom Collectif)	Partnership	`JOZN`
Partnership (En Commandite / Limited Partnership)	Partnership	`BVJ0`
Partnership (En Commandite / Limited Partnership by Shares)	Partnership	`BVJ0`

A partnership en nom collectif (general partnership) has partners who are jointly and severally liable. A partnership en commandite (limited partnership) has at least one general partner (unlimited liability) and one limited partner (liability limited to contribution). Both are governed by the Companies Act 1995.

Investment Vehicles & Special Structures

Local Name	Standardized	ISO 20275
SICAV (Private)	Corporation	-
SICAV (Public)	Corporation	-
CIS	Corporation	-
Segregated Cell of a Company Shipping / Aviation	Corporation	-
International Trading Company (Exempt, Private Non-Exempt, Single Member)	Limited Liability Company	-
International Holding Company (Private Exempt, Private Non-Exempt, Single Member)	Limited Liability Company	-

Other Forms

Local Name	Standardized	ISO 20275
Overseas (Overseas Company)	Branch or Representative Office	-
Foreign Organisation	Branch or Representative Office	-
Societas Europea	Corporation	-
European Economic Interest Grouping	Partnership	-
Cooperatives	Cooperative	-
Purpose Foundation, Private Beneficiary Foundation, Association	Nonprofit Organization	-
Continued (re-domiciled companies, e.g. Private Exempt, Public Non-Exempt, ITC Exempt)	Limited Liability Company (Corporation for public)	`V89C` for private, `C061` for public, none for ITC
Offshore Company (Trading, Non-Trading)	Limited Liability Company	-

ISO 20275 codes are attached only to the forms GLEIF publishes a Malta code for: V89C (private limited liability company), C061 (public limited liability company), JOZN (partnership en nom collectif) and BVJ0 (partnership en commandite). Other forms have no ISO 20275 code.

Legal Representatives

Legal representatives are extracted deterministically from the Malta Business Registry’s directors, representatives, and general partners. Role enrichment (English translation, ISO 5009 codes) is applied by AI in the request.

API Source	Role Assigned	Classification	Person Types
`directors[]`	Director	Legal Representative	Natural persons
`representatives[]` (Legal Representative)	Legal Representative	Legal Representative	Natural persons, legal entities
`representatives[]` (Judicial Representative)	Judicial Representative	Legal Representative	Natural persons, legal entities
`involved_parties[]` (General Partner)	General Partner	Legal Representative	Natural persons, legal entities

Both individuals and corporate entities can serve as representatives. General partners of a limited partnership are returned under legalRepresentatives; the partnership deed may limit who can represent it.Individuals carry the nationality the register records for them (as an ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code). The register does not record signing rules (sole or joint signature); those are set out in the memorandum and articles or the partnership deed.

Other Key Persons

Other key persons include secretaries, limited partners, auditors, and other non-representative parties. Their standardized role is always Other; the register role is kept in localName and translated in englishTranslation.

API Source	Role	Person Types	Notes
`secretaries[]`	Secretary	Individual	Required by law for all Malta companies
`involved_parties[]` (AUDITOR)	Auditor	Individual or Company	Statutory auditor
`involved_parties[]` (Limited Partner)	Limited Partner	Individual or Company	Partner without general-partner representation
`involved_parties[]` (SUBSCRIBERS)	Subscriber	Individual or Company	Initial shareholders at incorporation
`involved_parties[]` (other keys)	Varies by `type.name`	Individual or Company	Other involved party types

The involved_parties array uses a type object with name and key fields to classify party roles. The key field values (e.g., AUDITOR, SUBSCRIBERS) determine the role assignment. Both natural persons and legal entities (including uncategorised legal persons) can appear as involved parties.

Shareholders

Structured shareholders are available as a separate shareholders datapoint, read from the Malta Business Registry’s share register data. No document purchase or AI parsing is involved.

Field	Description
`type`	`individual` or `company`
`individual` / `company`	Shareholder identity: name and address; for companies, the registration number and country when provided
`numberOfShares`	Total number of shares held, across share classes
`nominalCapitalHeld`	Nominal value of the shares held (number of shares times value per share)
`sharePercentage`	Shareholder’s nominal capital as a percentage of the total nominal capital held by all shareholders

Founding subscribers (the signatories of the memorandum at incorporation) are returned under otherKeyPersons and are not treated as current shareholders.

Activity Code Mapping

Malta does not provide official activity codes (NACE, ISIC) directly through the BAROS API. Activity information is derived from the company type and subtype description, then AI-enriched to provide NACE and ISIC codes.

Company Type + Subtype Description --> AI Inference --> NACE Rev. 2 / ISIC Rev. 4

Classification	Source	AI Inferred?
NACE	Derived from company type description	Yes (always)
ISIC	Derived from NACE or company type description	Yes (always)

Since Malta’s registry does not provide standardized activity codes, all NACE and ISIC classifications are AI-inferred. The isAIInferred flag will always be true for Malta activity codes. The activityDescription field is composed from company_type.type + company_type.subtype (e.g., “Limited Liability Company - Private Exempt”), which provides limited signal for meaningful activity classification.

The inferred code is flagged with isMainActivity: true. As it always carries isAIInferred: true, it cannot be mistaken for a main activity the register declared; if the flag is absent, the source did not designate a main activity.

Data Availability

Data Availability Matrix

Data Type	Commercial Companies	Partnerships	Notes
Company Profile	✅ Async	✅ Async	Full structured data from BAROS
Legal Representatives	✅	✅	Directors, representatives and general partners
Other Key Persons	✅	✅	Secretaries, limited partners and other non-representative parties
Shareholders	✅	⚠️	Separate datapoint: identity, number of shares, nominal capital held, ownership percentage. Returned only when the register holds share data for the entity
Ultimate Beneficial Owners	❌	❌	Not available via BAROS API
Establishments	❌	❌	Not available via BAROS API
Activity Codes	⚠️ AI-inferred	⚠️ AI-inferred	Derived from company type description
Documents	✅	✅	Fee-based retrieval; see pricing

Legend: ✅ Available | ❌ Not Available | ⚠️ Conditionally Available | Async = Asynchronous processing

Documents by Company Type

Malta documents are fee-based and retrieved from the Maltese register. Document types and pricing are determined by register metadata and surfaced through availableDocuments.

Typical Document Types	Notes
Prospectus	Public companies only
Memorandum & Articles of Association, Annual Accounts	Key corporate documents
Annual Returns	Financial statements and shareholder snapshots
Other filings	Notices, forms, resolutions, and other miscellaneous filings

Paid Documents: Malta documents can incur a register fee. Check the pricing page or availableDocuments before purchase. The document listing itself is free.

Document Classification: Malta documents are classified into API categories such as articlesOfAssociation, financialStatements, and officialPublications. The register provides document metadata such as filing name, type, date, filing year, and document number.

Example API Responses

All examples use placeholder data. Query: POST /v2/company with { "id": "<id>", "countryCode": "MT", "dataPoints": ["company", "legalRepresentatives"] }

Active Private Limited Company (Private Exempt)

{
  "company": {
    "id": "C 12345",
    "countryCode": "MT",
    "identifiers": { "registrationNumber": "C 12345" },
    "legalName": "Example Malta Holdings Ltd.",
    "registrationDate": "2010-04-15",
    "activityDescription": "Limited Liability Company - Private Exempt",
    "status": { "localName": "Active", "active": true, "statusDetails": { "status": "ACTIVE" } },
    "legalForm": { "localName": "Limited Liability Company (Private Exempt)", "englishTranslation": "Private Exempt Limited Liability Company", "standardized": "Limited Liability Company", "iso20275Code": "V89C" },
    "capital": { "amount": 1200, "currency": "EUR", "formatted": "1200 EUR" },
    "activities": {
      "NACE": [{ "code": "6420", "description": "Activities of holding companies", "isAIInferred": true, "isMainActivity": true }],
      "ISIC": [{ "code": "6420", "description": "Activities of holding companies", "isAIInferred": true, "isMainActivity": true }]
    },
    "legalAddress": { "addressLine1": "42 Republic Street", "city": "Valletta", "postalCode": "VLT 1234", "countryCode": "MT" }
  },
  "legalRepresentatives": [
    { "type": "individual", "role": { "localName": "Director", "standardized": "Director" }, "individual": { "name": { "fullName": "Mr John BORG", "firstName": "John", "lastName": "BORG" } } },
    { "type": "individual", "role": { "localName": "Director", "standardized": "Director" }, "individual": { "name": { "fullName": "Ms Maria CAMILLERI", "firstName": "Maria", "lastName": "CAMILLERI" } } }
  ],
  "otherKeyPersons": [
    { "type": "individual", "role": { "localName": "Secretary", "englishTranslation": "Secretary", "standardized": "Other" }, "individual": { "name": { "fullName": "Mr Paul ZAMMIT", "firstName": "Paul", "lastName": "ZAMMIT" } } },
    { "type": "company", "role": { "localName": "Auditor", "englishTranslation": "Auditor", "standardized": "Other" }, "company": { "legalName": "ABC Audit Services Ltd.", "id": "C 99999", "countryCode": "MT" } }
  ]
}

Public Limited Company (P.L.C.)

{
  "company": {
    "id": "C 22222",
    "countryCode": "MT",
    "identifiers": { "registrationNumber": "C 22222" },
    "legalName": "Example International Holdings P.L.C.",
    "registrationDate": "2000-03-10",
    "activityDescription": "Limited Liability Company - Public Non-Exempt",
    "status": { "localName": "Active", "active": true, "statusDetails": { "status": "ACTIVE" } },
    "legalForm": { "localName": "Limited Liability Company (Public Non-Exempt)", "englishTranslation": "Public Limited Liability Company", "standardized": "Corporation", "iso20275Code": "C061" },
    "capital": { "amount": 500000, "currency": "EUR", "formatted": "500000 EUR" },
    "activities": {
      "NACE": [{ "code": "6420", "description": "Activities of holding companies", "isAIInferred": true, "isMainActivity": true }],
      "ISIC": [{ "code": "6420", "description": "Activities of holding companies", "isAIInferred": true, "isMainActivity": true }]
    },
    "legalAddress": { "addressLine1": "Tower Business Centre, Level 5", "city": "Swatar", "postalCode": "BKR 4012", "countryCode": "MT" }
  },
  "legalRepresentatives": [
    { "type": "individual", "role": { "localName": "Director", "standardized": "Director" }, "individual": { "name": { "fullName": "Mr Joseph VELLA", "firstName": "Joseph", "lastName": "VELLA" } } },
    { "type": "individual", "role": { "localName": "Director", "standardized": "Director" }, "individual": { "name": { "fullName": "Ms Anna FARRUGIA", "firstName": "Anna", "lastName": "FARRUGIA" } } }
  ],
  "otherKeyPersons": [
    { "type": "individual", "role": { "localName": "Secretary", "englishTranslation": "Secretary", "standardized": "Other" }, "individual": { "name": { "fullName": "Dr Mark GRECH", "firstName": "Mark", "lastName": "GRECH" } } }
  ]
}

Dissolved Company

{
  "company": {
    "id": "C 33333",
    "countryCode": "MT",
    "identifiers": { "registrationNumber": "C 33333" },
    "legalName": "Old Trading Company Ltd.",
    "registrationDate": "1998-07-22",
    "activityDescription": "Limited Liability Company - Private Non-Exempt",
    "status": { "localName": "Dissolved", "active": false, "statusDetails": { "status": "CLOSED" } },
    "legalForm": { "localName": "Limited Liability Company (Private Non-Exempt)", "englishTranslation": "Private Limited Liability Company", "standardized": "Limited Liability Company", "iso20275Code": "V89C" },
    "capital": { "amount": 5000, "currency": "EUR", "formatted": "5000 EUR" },
    "legalAddress": { "addressLine1": "15 Triq il-Kbira", "city": "Mosta", "postalCode": "MST 1011", "countryCode": "MT" }
  },
  "legalRepresentatives": [
    { "type": "individual", "role": { "localName": "Director", "standardized": "Director" }, "individual": { "name": { "fullName": "Mr Toni GALEA", "firstName": "Toni", "lastName": "GALEA" } } }
  ]
}

Note: Dissolved companies have active: false and status Dissolved. Historical data (directors, secretaries) is preserved in the response.

Partnership en nom collectif

{
  "company": {
    "id": "P 44444",
    "countryCode": "MT",
    "identifiers": { "registrationNumber": "P 44444" },
    "legalName": "Borg & Sons Trading",
    "registrationDate": "2015-01-08",
    "activityDescription": "Partnership - En Nom Collectif",
    "status": { "localName": "Active", "active": true, "statusDetails": { "status": "ACTIVE" } },
    "legalForm": { "localName": "Partnership (En Nom Collectif)", "englishTranslation": "General Partnership (en nom collectif)", "standardized": "Partnership", "iso20275Code": "JOZN" },
    "legalAddress": { "addressLine1": "78 Triq San Pawl", "city": "Rabat", "postalCode": "RBT 1234", "countryCode": "MT" }
  },
  "legalRepresentatives": [
    { "type": "individual", "role": { "localName": "Director", "standardized": "Director" }, "individual": { "name": { "fullName": "Mr Noel BORG", "firstName": "Noel", "lastName": "BORG" } } }
  ]
}

Note: Partnerships may not have share capital data. The suffix field is typically absent for partnerships.

Available Documents

Documents are returned when "dataPoints": ["availableDocuments"] is requested. Malta documents are fee-based and AI-classified.

{
  "documents": [
    {
      "name": "Annual Return 2024",
      "description": "Company annual return filed for the year 2024",
      "type": "financialStatements",
      "format": "pdf",
      "date": "2024-06-15",
      "period": { "year": 2024 }
    },
    {
      "name": "Memorandum and Articles of Association",
      "description": "Memorandum and Articles of Association filed at incorporation",
      "type": "articlesOfAssociation",
      "format": "pdf",
      "date": "2010-04-15"
    },
    {
      "name": "Change in Directors",
      "description": "Notice of change in company directors",
      "type": "officialPublications",
      "format": "pdf",
      "date": "2022-09-01"
    }
  ]
}

Document pricing summary: Malta document pricing varies by filing type. Use availableDocuments or the pricing page before purchase.

Europe

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Asia

Offshore Centers

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Malta coverage, pricing, and sources

Table of Contents

Data Sources

Company Identifiers

Query Identifiers

Identifiers in API Response

Search Capabilities

Active companies only

Quirks & Gotchas

Mappings

Company Status

Legal Forms

Limited Liability Companies

Partnerships

Investment Vehicles & Special Structures

Other Forms

Legal Representatives

Other Key Persons

Shareholders

Activity Code Mapping

Data Availability

Data Availability Matrix

Documents by Company Type

Example API Responses

​Start here

Malta coverage, pricing, and sources

​Table of Contents

​Data Sources

​Company Identifiers

​Query Identifiers

​Identifiers in API Response

​Search Capabilities

​Active companies only

​Quirks & Gotchas

​Mappings

​Company Status

​Legal Forms

​Limited Liability Companies

​Partnerships

​Investment Vehicles & Special Structures

​Other Forms

​Legal Representatives

​Other Key Persons

​Shareholders

​Activity Code Mapping

​Data Availability

​Data Availability Matrix

​Documents by Company Type

​Example API Responses

Start here

Table of Contents

Data Sources

Company Identifiers

Query Identifiers

Identifiers in API Response

Search Capabilities

Active companies only

Quirks & Gotchas

Mappings

Company Status

Legal Forms

Limited Liability Companies

Partnerships

Investment Vehicles & Special Structures

Other Forms

Legal Representatives

Other Key Persons

Shareholders

Activity Code Mapping

Data Availability

Data Availability Matrix

Documents by Company Type

Example API Responses