Financial Audit Malta — Fixed-Fee Audited Accounts, Ready Before Your Deadline

A financial audit is an independent examination of your company’s accounts by a qualified auditor who holds a practising certificate issued by the Malta Accountancy Board. The auditor tests balances, verifies transactions and issues a signed opinion on whether your financial statements present a true and fair view.

Under the Companies Act (Cap. 386), every limited liability company registered in Malta must have its annual financial statements audited — unless it qualifies for an exemption. This applies to trading companies, holding companies, and subsidiaries of foreign groups alike.

The audit report is not just a regulatory formality. Banks review it before extending credit. Investors rely on it for due diligence. The Malta Business Registry requires it for your annual filing. And the Commissioner for Revenue expects it alongside your corporate tax return.

Certain entities can never claim an exemption, regardless of size: public companies, MFSA-regulated firms (banks, insurance companies, payment institutions), listed companies and parent companies of groups that exceed the small group thresholds.

Legal Notice 139 of 2025 overhauled the audit exemption thresholds under Article 185 of the Companies Act. The previous limits — EUR 700,000 turnover, EUR 350,000 balance sheet, 10 employees — had been in place for years and excluded most active businesses from any relief.

The new thresholds are seven times higher for turnover and balance sheet, and five times higher for headcount. This means a significant number of Malta companies that previously required a full statutory audit can now opt for a less costly alternative.

How it works:

• Meet all three criteria for two consecutive years → fully exempt from audit

• Meet two of three criteria for two consecutive years → eligible for a review engagement instead of a full audit

• Meet fewer than two → full statutory audit required

Before December 2025, even companies exempt under the Companies Act still needed an auditor’s report for income tax purposes. That conflict has been resolved — the tax authorities now accept unaudited accounts and review reports where the Companies Act permits them.

Audit fees in Malta depend on company size, transaction volumes, reporting framework and the quality of your accounting records. That said, Malta’s professional fees are 30–60% lower than what you would pay for equivalent work in the UK, Luxembourg or the Netherlands.

To give you a rough sense of the range:

• Micro companies (turnover under €100K): €1,500–€3,500

• Small companies (€100K–€500K turnover): €2,500–€6,000

• Small-medium companies (€500K–€2M turnover): €4,000–€10,000

• Medium companies (€2M–€10M turnover): €8,000–€25,000

Review engagements for qualifying small companies typically cost €1,000–€4,000 — roughly 30–50% less than a full audit.

First-year audits tend to run 20–50% higher because the auditor needs to understand your business, verify opening balances and establish an audit approach. Recurring audits become more efficient as the auditor builds familiarity with your operations.

We quote fixed fees during the planning stage. You know the cost before any fieldwork begins, and there are no hourly-rate surprises along the way.

Malta companies report under one of two accounting frameworks, and the choice affects both the complexity of your financial statements and the cost of the audit.

GAPSME (General Accounting Principles for Smaller Entities) is the default framework for small and medium-sized companies. It is simpler, requires fewer disclosures and costs less to prepare. Most private Malta companies use GAPSME unless there is a specific reason to do otherwise.

IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) is mandatory for listed companies, banks, insurance companies and other MFSA-regulated entities. It is also required where a foreign parent company needs IFRS-compliant subsidiary accounts for group consolidation.

The board of directors decides which framework to use. If your company is not legally required to use IFRS, the board can pass a resolution to adopt it voluntarily — but should weigh the additional preparation cost against the benefits of international comparability.

Our team works with both frameworks. Whether your accounts follow GAPSME or full IFRS, the audit approach and ISA compliance remain the same.

Missing your filing deadline leads to penalties that can exceed €2,300 per return, loss of good standing status and personal liability for directors. Here is the timeline for private companies:

• Board approval of financial statements: within 10 months of your financial year-end

• Annual General Meeting: must be held before filing

• Filing with the Malta Business Registry: within 42 days after the AGM

For a company with a 31 December year-end, this means the absolute filing deadline falls around mid-December of the following year. Public companies face tighter deadlines: 7 months for board approval, plus 42 days for filing.

We recommend engaging your auditor at least three to four months before year-end. This gives enough time for planning, fieldwork and reporting without rushing — and avoids the premium pricing that comes with last-minute engagements.