Copyright in Malta is governed by the Copyright Act (Cap. 415, 2000), most recently amended by Act No. XXXV of 2023. Malta follows the droit d’auteur tradition characteristic of continental Europe, granting authors economic and moral rights in original literary, artistic, musical, audiovisual works and databases. As an EU Member State Malta has progressively transposed the EU copyright acquis into Cap. 415 and subsidiary regulations.
Key EU instruments transposed include: Directive 2001/29/EC (InfoSoc) on copyright in the information society; Directive 2004/48/EC on enforcement, transposed through the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights (Regulation) Act (Cap. 488, 2006); Directive 2011/77/EU extending performer and sound-recording protection to 70 years, transposed by the Extension to Term Protection (Neighbouring Rights) Regulations (2014); Directive (EU) 2019/789 on online transmissions of broadcasting organisations and retransmissions; and Directive (EU) 2019/790 on copyright in the Digital Single Market (DSM), transposed in June 2021 by the Copyright and Related Rights in the Digital Single Market Regulations (2021), which supplement Cap. 415 with provisions on press-publisher rights (Article 15) and platform liability (Article 17), text-and-data-mining exceptions, and contract-adjustment rights for authors and performers. The Marrakesh Treaty for visually impaired persons was transposed through Directive (EU) 2017/1564 implementing regulations.
Royalty collection in Malta is structured around the Control of the Establishment and Operation of Societies for the Collective Administration of Copyright Regulations (S.L. 415.05). The Performing Right Society (PRS for Music) operates through a local agent; the Malta Authors and Composers Society represents Maltese authors and composers. The Artists’ Resale Rights Regulation (S.L. 415.3, 2006) grants visual artists an inalienable royalty on resale (see 3.4 and 4.2.4).
The Public Lending Right scheme administered by the National Book Council since 2014 (extended to the University of Malta Library in 2021) remunerates authors, editors, translators, illustrators and photographers for borrowings from public libraries; the 2025 annual allocation was approximately €80,000.
Criticism of the DSM transposition was voiced by the National Book Council in July 2021, which described it as incomplete and shortsighted; the NBC has proposed a comprehensive reform package including an Education Exception contract for use of works in public education, income-tax exemption on royalty payments, and a 200% tax refund for publishers on royalties paid. The reform has not been enacted as of May 2026.
The Criminal Code (Cap. 9, Title IV) and the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights (Regulation) Act (Cap. 488) provide for criminal and civil enforcement; the Police Central Investigation Bureau handles copyright-infringement cases.
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