Short lets in Malta: check whether you need an MTA licence
Tourist accommodation in Malta is licensed by the Malta Tourism Authority, and letting without a licence is an offence with fines that can exceed €10,000. Two questions tell you whether your let needs one.
- Licence needed for
- All tourist stays
- Fines can exceed
- €10,000
- Airbnb listings in Malta
- About 9,300
- Licensed premises
- 7,552
Check your own case
Answer the questions above and the verdict appears here, with the deadline and the figures that apply to your case.
Get the licensing checklist
What the MTA looks for, what the application needs, and the numbers to run before choosing short lets over a long let, in one email.
Who needs the licence
Any premises offered to tourists for short stays needs a Malta Tourism Authority licence: whole apartments and farmhouses, and also single rooms let in your own home, which the MTA licenses as host family accommodation. The licence attaches to the premises, carries a classification, and must be in place before the first guest, not after.
The trigger is who you host and how, not which platform you use. A flat let by the night to visitors needs the licence whether the bookings come from Airbnb, Booking.com or a WhatsApp group.
One in five listings is unlicensed
Malta has about 9,300 Airbnb listings against 7,552 licensed premises, which puts roughly 1 in 5 listings outside the regime. That gap is closing from both ends: fines for unlicensed operation can exceed €10,000, and the platforms themselves increasingly require a licence number on the listing.
Being in the unlicensed fifth is therefore a position that gets worse on its own. The licence is the cheaper side of the trade at any realistic occupancy.
What licensing involves
You apply to the Malta Tourism Authority for the premises, meet the standards for its category, and receive a licence with a classification. From then on the licence number belongs on every advert, including platform listings, and the licence and classification are kept current with the MTA as the property or its use changes.
- Apply to the MTA before advertising, not after
- Meet the premises standards for the category you apply under
- Display the licence number on every listing and advert
- Keep the licence and classification current
If you let long term instead
Residential lets of six months or more are not tourist accommodation and need no MTA licence. They live under the other regime: every private residential lease must be registered with the Housing Authority within 10 days of starting. Different regulator, different clock, same principle that the paperwork precedes the tenant.
If you are weighing short lets against a long let, compare net figures, not gross: the short let carries cleaning, utilities, the licence and, if you outsource, a management share of revenue that typically runs 10% to 25%.
Common questions
- Do I need a licence to list on Airbnb in Malta?
- Yes. Any premises offered to tourists for short stays needs a Malta Tourism Authority licence before it is advertised, and platforms increasingly ask for the licence number on the listing.
- What is the fine for an unlicensed holiday let in Malta?
- Fines for letting to tourists without an MTA licence can exceed €10,000, and the exposure sits alongside a platform simply delisting the property for having no licence number.
- Do I need a licence to rent a room in my own house to tourists?
- Yes. Hosting paying visitors in your own home is licensed by the MTA as host family accommodation. The licence covers the premises and the rooms you host in.
- Does a long term rental need an MTA licence?
- No. Residential lets of six months or more are outside the tourism regime; their obligation is Housing Authority registration within 10 days of the lease starting.
- Do I have to show the licence number on my listing?
- Yes, the licence number belongs on every advert for the premises, including platform listings, and platforms increasingly refuse listings without one.