Due to the continued exceptional circumstances brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic that have created a challenging environment, an extension for the submission of the report containing Financial Account information relating to Reporting Year 2020 has been granted, to provide sufficient flexibility to such Reporting Malta Financial Institutions.

In line with regulations 30, 41 and 45 of the Cooperation with other Jurisdictions on Tax Matters Regulations, Reporting Malta Financial Institutions must report the information specified in Section I of Annex I to the Regulations and the information specified in Article 2(2)(a) and Article 3(2) of the FATCA Agreement on U.S. Reportable Accounts by not later than 30th June 2021 in relation to Reporting Year 2020.

Meanwhile may we also remind you that version 4 of the AEOI Implementing Guidelines has been published.

All above information may be accessed here.

The Commissioner for Revenue notifies that the facility to upload and submit the income tax return and the supplemental document for Year of Assessment 2020 required to be filed by a principal taxpayer in respect of a fiscal unit is now available.

The Malta Financial Services Authority (“MFSA” or “the Authority”) has become aware that a number of individuals have received unsolicited calls via social media mobile applications. The caller profile of these calls or missed calls appear to be received from ’MFSA’. The calls may appear to be received from a foreign number or may not appear at all.

It appears that the callers might be asking the consumers to provide their bank details or otherwise their bank account will be blocked. The MFSA wishes to inform the public, in Malta and abroad, that these calls do NOT originate from the Authority and it likely relates to a scheme of dubious nature with a high risk of loss of money. The MFSA hereby alerts the general public to never provide such sensitive and confidential information over social media, email or other means to unknown individuals.

It should be noted that the Authority communicates with the public only through official channels. Similarly, banks or other government institutions do not contact consumers through such means.
The MFSA would like to remind consumers of financial services not to enter into any financial services transaction unless they have ascertained that the entity with whom the transaction is being made is authorised to provide such services by the MFSA or another reputable financial services regulator. Investors should also be extra cautious when being approached with offers of financial services via unconventional channels such as telephone calls or social media.
For more information on scams please refer to the Scam Detection Guidelines issued by the MFSA. If you are a victim of a scam or any other type of financial scam or think you might be dealing with an unauthorised entity, first of all stop all transactions with the company and contact the Authority as soon as a suspicion arises.

The Malta Financial Services Authority (“MFSA” or “the Authority”) has become aware of an entity operating under the name of PrizeFX Investments (Europe) (“the Entity”) which has an internet presence at Prizefxonline.com. According to this website, the platform promotes the provision of trading services in various industries and the entity declares that “… We Will Do All Our Best To Meet Your Needs With Our Investment Offers Which Diversify Into All Aspect Of International Trading’’.

The MFSA wishes to alert the public, in Malta and abroad, that https://www.Prizefxonline.com is NOT a Maltese registered Company NOR licensed or otherwise authorised by the MFSA to provide any forex trading services, VFA services or other financial services which are required to be licensed or otherwise authorised under Maltese law. Furthermore, information available to the MFSA suggests that https://www.Prizefxonline.com is likely to be a scheme of dubious nature with a high risk of loss of money. The public should therefore refrain from undertaking any business or transactions with the above-mentioned entity.

The MFSA would like to remind consumers of financial services not to enter into any financial services transaction unless they have ascertained that the entity with whom the transaction is being made is authorised to provide such services by the MFSA or another reputable financial services regulator. Investors should also be extra cautious when being approached with offers of financial services via unconventional channels such as telephone calls or social media.
A list of entities licensed by the MFSA can be viewed on the official website of the MFSA.
If you are a victim of a scam or think you might be dealing with an unauthorised entity or any other type of financial scam, first of all stop all transactions with the company and contact the MFSA https://www.mfsa.mt/about-us/contact/as soon as a suspicion arises.

The Malta Financial Services Authority (“MFSA” or “the Authority”) has become aware of an entity operating under the name of Foxicatrading which has an internet presence at foxicatrading.com. Livia Options is promoting the service of forex trading and claims to hold a Category 3 Investment Services Licence.

The MFSA wishes to alert the public, in Malta and abroad, that Foxicatrading is NOT a Maltese registered Company NOR licensed or otherwise authorised by the MFSA to provide any forex trading services or other financial services which are required to be licensed or otherwise authorised under Maltese law. Furthermore, information available to the MFSA suggests that Foxicatrading is likely to be a scheme of dubious nature with a high risk of loss of money. The public should therefore refrain from undertaking any business or transactions with the above-mentioned entity.

The MFSA would like to remind consumers of financial services not to enter into any financial services transaction unless they have ascertained that the entity with whom the transaction is being made is authorised to provide such services by the MFSA or another reputable financial services regulator. Investors should also be extra cautious when being approached with offers of financial services via unconventional channels such as telephone calls or social media.

A list of entities licensed by the MFSA can be viewed on the official website of the MFSA.
If you are a victim of a scam or think you might be dealing with an unauthorised entity or any other type of financial scam, first of all stop all transactions with the company and contact the MFSA as soon as a suspicion arises.

We have received the below circular from the MFSA which we are circulating for all those of you who may wish to participate:

Reference is made to the Company Service Providers (Amendment) Act (Act No. L of 2020), and the publication of Legal Notice 96 of 2021 which brought into force these amendments to the Company Service Providers Act, 2013 (CSP Act). A website page dedicated to the New CSP regime has been created in order to make an assessment on the authorisation requirements under the CSP Act.
In the light of the above, we are pleased to inform you that the Authority is organising a series of webinars addressed to all professionals and practitioners whose activity will now fall under the scope of the new regulatory environment.

During the webinars, MFSA officials will delve into the details of the reform and will provide all the necessary information about the new authorisation process affecting all warranted professionals and other individuals who were exempt in terms of the Company Service Providers Act as issued in 2013. Moreover, the webinars are a good opportunity to discuss further the context and the necessity of this reform as well as the general benefit for the industry, the clients and the Maltese jurisdiction.

The two webinars will take place on 15 April 2021 at 1000hrs and 1400hrs and will be broadcast through Microsoft Teams. Both sessions will have the same content and will be organised to meet the industry’s flexibility requirements. A certificate of attendance will be issued to all attendees who have joined the webinar with their personal details. Guidelines to set up a Microsoft account to join the live event are available in the registration page.

The MFSA would like to remind financial services consumers especially retail investors to be careful when trading in highly volatile shares. When consumers invest in certain financial instruments, the price of which is highly volatile, they should keep in mind the risks associated with these type of investments and keep in mind that they can lose part or all of the money invested. It is very important that consumers understand the features of the financial instruments they would like to invest in especially the risks associated with that investment and the implications that such risks may pose.

Consumers should invest in a financial instrument if that product meets their needs and the decision to invest or otherwise should not be based on media hype. Retail investors should always get the required information from reliable sources. Consumers should always transact with licensed entities and should always check the fees that they will incur. In particular, retail investors should consider consulting an investment advisor before investing in this type of financial products and should always assess the risk involved in particular if the investment to be undertaken involves trading on margin.

Consumers are also encouraged to read the statement issued by the European Securities and Markets Authority (‘ESMA’) on the risks connected with trading decisions based exclusively on exchanges of views, informal recommendations and sharing of trading intentions through social networks and unregulated online platforms. This statement may be accessed here.

The Malta Financial Services Authority (“MFSA”) has become aware of an entity operating under the name of Freewallet which has an internet presence at https://freewallet.org/.

The MFSA wishes to alert the public, in Malta and abroad, that https://freewallet.org/ is NOT a Maltese registered Company NOR licensed or otherwise authorised by the MFSA to provide any investment services or other financial services which are required to Freewallet be licensed or otherwise authorised under Maltese law.

The MFSA would like to remind consumers of financial services not to enter into any financial services transaction unless they have ascertained that the entity with whom the transaction is being made is authorised to provide such services by the MFSA or another reputable financial services regulator. Investors should also be extra cautious when being approached with offers of financial services via unconventional channels such as telephone calls or social media.

A list of entities licensed by the MFSA can be viewed on the official website of the MFSA.

If you are a victim of a scam or think you might be dealing with an unauthorised entity or any other type of financial scam, first of all stop all transactions with the company and contact the MFSA as soon as a suspicion arises.

The Malta Financial Services Authority (“MFSA” or “the Authority”) has become aware of an entity operating under the name of Fast FX Trading (“the Entity”) which has an internet presence at https://www.fastfxtradings.com/. According to this website, the entity states to be ‘’ A place for everyone who wants to simply buy and sell Bitcoins. Deposit funds using your Visa/MasterCard or bank transfer. Instant buy/sell of Bitcoins at fair price is guaranteed. Nothing extra. Join over 700,000 users from all over the world satisfied with our services.’’

The entity is making unauthorised use and reference to the licence number and other company details of an MFSA licensed company.

The MFSA wishes to alert the public, in Malta and abroad, that Fast FX Trading is NOT a Maltese registered Company NOR licensed or otherwise authorised by the MFSA to provide any forex trading services, VFA services or other financial services which are required to be licensed or otherwise authorised under Maltese law. Furthermore, information available to the MFSA suggests Fast FX Trading is likely to be a scheme of dubious nature with a high risk of loss of money. The public should therefore refrain from undertaking any business or transactions with the above-mentioned entity.
The MFSA would like to remind consumers of financial services not to enter into any financial services transaction unless they have ascertained that the entity with whom the transaction is being made is authorised to provide such services by the MFSA or another reputable financial services regulator. Investors should also be extra cautious when being approached with offers of financial services via unconventional channels such as telephone calls or social media.

A list of entities licensed by the MFSA can be viewed on the official website of the MFSA.

If you are a victim of a scam or think you might be dealing with an unauthorised entity or any other type of financial scam, first stop all transactions with the company and contact the MFSA as soon as a suspicion arises.

The FIAU would like to inform subject persons that the 2021 REQs are now available on the Compliance and Supervision Platform for Assessing Risk (CASPAR) System for completion by subject persons. Subject Persons are hereby reminded that REQs can only be submitted through the CASPAR System.

Moreover, the FIAU has issued sector specific guidance documents, to assist subject persons in completing the REQ. The guidance documents can be accessed through the following link: REQ Guidance Document

The deadlines for submission of the 2021 REQs are as follows:

Wednesday 14th April 2021
Virtual Financial Assets Agents
Real Estate Agents
Notaries
Gaming Operators

Wednesday 21st April 2021
Trustees and Fiduciaries
Company Service Providers
Accountants and Auditors
Advocates
Tax Advisors

Wednesday 28th April 2021
Credit institutions
Financial Institutions
Investments Service and Securities Markets
Insurance and Pensions

Subject persons operating in categories falling on different deadlines should follow the last deadline for their relevant sectors. Submission of the REQ following the respective deadlines will be considered as a late submission and may result in subject persons being liable to an administrative penalty.

Subject Person Profile
Subject persons are also reminded to populate the’ Subject Person Profile’ module on CASPAR. Guidance on populating this module can be viewed by accessing the FIAU website.

Subject persons are required to complete this module by the deadlines stipulated above. Going forward, the FIAU expects subject persons to keep the ‘Subject Person Profile’ module up-to-date.

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