Malta Customs Duty

Key Takeaways

• Malta’s standard VAT rate is 18% - the second-lowest in the EU, just behind Luxembourg’s 17%.
• Malta is an island nation with no land borders, so every cross-border order arrives by post, courier, or freight - there’s no option to just drive across a border to collect it.
• Malta Tax and Customs Administration is a single unified body handling both VAT and customs, rather than two separate agencies.
• Orders under €150 from IOSS-registered sellers pay a flat €3 customs duty per item type, since 1 July 2026.
• Orders over €150 pay 18% VAT plus category-based customs duty plus a carrier handling fee, regardless of IOSS status.

How Maltese Import Rules Work

Malta is one of 27 EU member states, so it follows the EU’s shared customs and VAT framework rather than a country-specific system - the only thing that varies by country is the VAT rate itself, applied based on where the goods are delivered, not where the seller is based.

At 18%, Malta’s VAT rate is the second-lowest standard rate in the EU, just above Luxembourg’s 17%. Everything else follows the standard EU rules:

• Under €150, IOSS seller: 18% VAT included at checkout, plus a flat €3 customs duty per item type.
• Under €150, non-IOSS seller: 18% VAT collected by the courier, no customs duty.
• Over €150: 18% VAT, customs duty (typically 0-16.5% by product category), and a carrier handling fee, regardless of IOSS status.

For the full EU-wide rules and every member state’s VAT rate, see the EU customs duty guide and full EU import rules explainer.

Malta-Specific Considerations

Malta is unusual among EU member states in that a single body, the Malta Tax and Customs Administration (under the Commissioner for Tax and Customs), handles both VAT and customs matters, rather than splitting the functions across separate tax and customs agencies as many larger member states do.

Because Malta is an island with no land borders, every parcel from outside the EU physically arrives by air or sea freight and goes through postal or courier customs clearance - there’s no equivalent of driving across a border to pick up an order in person. MaltaPost, the national postal operator, provides customs clearance facilitation for postal imports and is a common route for parcels into Malta, alongside international couriers like DHL and UPS. MaltaPost also runs a package-forwarding service called SendOn, with receiving hubs in the UK, Germany, Italy, the US, and Hong Kong - a service Maltese shoppers commonly use to buy from foreign retailers that don’t ship directly to Malta, since it’s a small market that not every overseas store services directly.

Malta also runs several reduced VAT rates below its 18% standard rate: 12% on a handful of specific services, and 5% on categories including certain printed matter, medical accessories for disabled persons, and select confectionery and household items.

Frequently Asked Questions About Customs Duty in Malta

Why is Malta’s VAT rate the second-lowest in the EU?

Malta has kept its standard VAT rate at 18%, just above Luxembourg’s 17% and well below the EU average of roughly 21-22%, making it one of the two lowest-VAT destinations in the bloc.

Does being an island change how parcels are customs-cleared in Malta?

Not the rules themselves, but the logistics: every import physically arrives by air or sea freight rather than overland, and postal parcels typically go through MaltaPost’s customs clearance process before final delivery.

What if a store I want to buy from doesn’t ship to Malta?

Package-forwarding services are common for this reason - MaltaPost’s own SendOn service, for example, gives you a receiving address in the UK, Germany, Italy, the US, or Hong Kong that forwards the parcel on to you in Malta.

Which authority handles both VAT and customs in Malta?

The Malta Tax and Customs Administration, under the Commissioner for Tax and Customs, administers both functions as one body, unlike the separate tax and customs agencies found in many other EU countries.

Are there reduced VAT rates for specific goods bought into Malta?

Yes - Malta applies reduced rates of 12%, 7%, and 5% to specific categories such as certain printed matter, medical accessories, and select household goods, though the €150 threshold and IOSS duty rules apply the same way regardless of the VAT rate on the goods.