Malta First-Time Buyer Benefits: Duty Relief, Grants and Deposit Help

An eligible first-home purchase can receive stamp-duty relief. Cash grants and deposit assistance have separate tests, payment schedules and deadlines.

Situation	What to know
Buying a first residence	An eligible buyer can receive a stamp-duty exemption on the first €200,000. The notary handles it at deed signing; it is not a cash grant.
Buying with a bank home loan	The qualifying Housing Authority grant is ordinarily €10,000, paid as €1,000 annually over ten years—not upfront. A purchase without a bank home loan does not qualify under its published terms.
Buying a qualifying UCA, long-vacant or approved new home	A separate, property-specific first-time-buyer grant can reach €15,000 in Malta or €40,000 in Gozo for eligible 2025–2026 deeds. Earlier Gozo deeds require an individual check.

Start with the €200,000 stamp-duty exemption

An eligible buyer purchasing a first residence is exempt from stamp duty on the first €200,000. That is an exemption on part of the purchase value, not a €200,000 payment. Your notary orders the necessary searches and handles the claim when the deed is signed.

For transfers from 28 October 2025, an earlier purchase of non-residential property, such as a garage, does not by itself bar this exemption. Previously acquired residential property—including airspace or other property acquired to develop a residence—does count, except for a prior undivided interest worth less than 25% of the property's real value. Ask your notary to assess earlier interests against the rules applicable to your deed.

The Housing Authority grant arrives over ten years

For a qualifying first residential property acquired after 1 January 2022, the Housing Authority's ordinary grant is €10,000 in ten annual €1,000 payments, not money available at purchase. Its published terms require a bank home loan and exclusive occupation as the applicants' ordinary residence. Payments stop if the loan account closes. Do not include this grant in an upfront purchase budget if you are buying without a bank home loan.

For a deed signed in 2026, apply after signing and by 31 July 2027. The published terms reduce the grant by €1,000 for each year an application is late. Before committing to a purchase, confirm the value limit with the Housing Authority: a Servizz.gov summary still states a €500,000 property ceiling, while the Authority's published 2026 terms do not state one.

The Authority's published terms limit applicants to Maltese and EU citizens and set further conditions for EU applicants. For a married couple or civil-union partners who are not legally separated, they state that one partner must be a Maltese citizen. Check these conditions rather than assuming that residence alone qualifies you for this particular grant.

A qualifying first-time buyer with a disability can receive €20,000 over ten years under the Authority's 2026 terms. Those terms name an EU Disability Card issued by Aġenzija Sapport, but the August 2026 Gazette amendment names a CRPD Special ID Card. Ask the Housing Authority which proof it currently accepts. Where a couple buys jointly and the home is not one applicant's first residence, the ordinary grant is instead €5,000 over ten years; the published terms specify a different amount for a qualifying couple where one partner holds the disability document.

The acquisition-grant terms also cover certain second-time buyers who no longer own their previous residential property and buy a sole primary residence after 1 January 2026. This is an extension of that grant, not a declaration that they qualify for first-time-buyer stamp-duty relief.

A separate grant depends on the home's location and type

The Ministry for Finance has a separate first-time-buyer grant for eligible homes in an Urban Conservation Area (UCA), qualifying long-vacant homes, and newly developed homes meeting its approved criteria. Its published 2025–2026 terms set a maximum of €15,000 in Malta or €40,000 in Gozo for deeds signed from 1 January 2025 through 31 December 2026. The amount is calculated according to the buyer's share of the property. An ordinary first-home purchase does not qualify merely because it is a first home.

Do not use the stamp-duty test as the eligibility test for this grant. The Ministry's terms require a Malta resident acquiring their first immovable property for a sole ordinary residence and say no other property should previously have been bought. Someone who previously bought a garage may therefore need a separate assessment for this grant even though a non-residential purchase does not by itself bar stamp-duty relief for a deed from 28 October 2025. The deed must first be registered with the Malta Tax and Customs Administration under the scheme's requirements.

For an eligible UCA or long-vacant property, the Ministry's terms give six months from purchase to apply. For an approved new development, the owner can apply once it is built, finished and approved; do not assume the same six-month timing applies. Ask your notary to establish the property's category and deed-registration requirements.

A 2024 Gozo deed needs particular care. The Ministry's 20 February 2024 Gazette notice said the €40,000 maximum applied to eligible Gozo deeds signed from 1 January 2024. A later notice, reflected in the Ministry's January 2025 published terms, instead assigns €30,000 to pre-2025 Gozo deeds for which the grant had not yet been received. The current Ministry summary gives the €40,000 period as starting in 2025, while Servizz.gov still says 2024. If your 2024 grant is unpaid, obtain the Ministry's determination for your deed rather than assuming either amount.

Other property relief is not reserved for first-time buyers

For qualifying transfers through 31 December 2026, separate rules exempt stamp duty on the first €750,000 of a UCA property or a building constructed at least 20 years earlier and vacant for at least seven years. For a property subsequently developed to approved traditional-feature criteria, duty is paid first and the relief is available by refund after approval. These are property-category rules, not an extra €750,000 automatically added to the €200,000 first-home threshold. Ask your notary which relief applies to your deed and how any overlap is treated.

An eligible energy-efficient home may also qualify for the 2026 Buy Sustainable Property Scheme. It offers up to €4,500 or €9,000 over three years, depending on energy performance, to qualifying Maltese and EU citizens with a deed signed from 1 October 2025. An Asset Energy Performance Certificate is among the application documents. This is not exclusively a first-time-buyer benefit or an automatic payment for any new home.

Help with a deposit or finishing works

If you qualify for a home loan but lack the deposit, the Housing Authority's 10% Deposit Scheme is aimed at applicants aged 21–39 buying a home valued at no more than €250,000 under its current scheme page. Subject to the Authority's and bank's assessments, the Authority initially pays the deposit to the notary. If the sale completes, the notary returns that advance and the bank finances the deposit through a separate personal loan, repayable over up to 25 years; the Authority covers its interest. You repay the principal—it is not a free 10% grant. See Deposit Needed to Buy a House in Malta when planning upfront costs.

For eligible construction, completion or rehabilitation works on a first home, a separate grant covers 15.254% of qualifying fiscal receipts, capped at €5,824. A further €1,165 may be available for a property built at least 15 years before application. Servizz.gov lists a €23 non-refundable application fee; check the scheme's full conditions and qualifying receipts before committing to works.

If you are not Maltese, separate grant eligibility from purchase permission

The Housing Authority's annual acquisition grant has published Maltese- and EU-citizenship conditions. The Ministry's property-specific grant instead describes an eligible applicant as a Malta resident, subject to its other requirements. Neither test decides whether you need an Acquisition of Immovable Property (AIP) permit.

An EU citizen without five years' continuous residence in Malta does not need an AIP permit to buy a primary residence but generally needs one for a secondary residence. Non-EU citizens generally need a permit, subject to exceptions including purchases in Special Designated Areas. Have your notary check the rules for your transaction separately from any grant application.

Questions people ask

Is the €10,000 Housing Authority grant paid when I buy?

No. If you qualify, it is ordinarily paid in ten annual €1,000 instalments. The published terms require a bank home loan.

Does an earlier garage purchase rule out every first-time-buyer benefit?

Not necessarily. For deeds from 28 October 2025, a prior non-residential purchase does not by itself bar the first-home stamp-duty exemption. The Ministry's separate property-specific grant has a stricter first-immovable-property test. Check each benefit separately.

Can I add the €200,000 and €750,000 stamp-duty exemption thresholds?

Do not assume so. Ask your notary which relief applies to the particular deed and whether the exemptions overlap.

What if I signed a Gozo deed in 2024?

The February 2024 notice provided for up to €40,000 for eligible deeds from 1 January 2024, but later published terms assign €30,000 to certain pre-2025 deeds whose grant was still unpaid. Ask the Ministry for a determination on your claim.

Is there a current general reduced stamp-duty rate just for buying in Gozo?

Do not assume one. The former general reduced-duty measure ended; a separate grant may apply if the buyer, property and deed meet its conditions.

Sources

General information, not individual legal advice. Check your contract and current official rules before acting.

First-home benefits depend on the buyer, property and deed