MALTA, THE 'GATEWAY TO THE EU' INVITES
INVESTORS FROM INDIA
After the
Baltic nations it is Malta's turn to project itself as the 'gateway to Europe'
and woo Indian investment. Even as it tries to catch up with its richer counter
parts in the European Union, the island nation, however, appears a bit choosy
about the investment that comes its way.
Though
Malta Enterprise, a government agency to promote investments, claims anyone can
come to Malta and set up a business, its chief officer Trade,
Investment and Enterprise a Support, Joe Schembri says they are not too keen on
foreign retail chains that may hit the domestic market. "Businesses that will find the country
conducive for growth and help Malta too grow in the process," that is what
they are looking for. Malta's wishlist for Indian investors include
pharmaceuticals, software development, manufacturing of electrical equipment as
well as aircraft and superyacht registration. And it is offering fiscal
incentives in the form of 30-50 per cent rebate on the capital costs, no import
duty and easy taxation.
Listing
its geographical and demographic advantages, Schembri says that unlike several
other EU nations Malta is an English speaking country, thanks to its shared
colonial history with India.
Besides,
it has good air and sea connectivity, sound legislation and political stability
due to a two-party system that seems to have a single voice on most economic
politics, Malta charges 35 per cent corporate tax, but also has a system of up
to 30 per cent refunds—tax paid by the company is credited to the shareholder
upon a distribution of dividends. Besides a no-profit-no-tax policy, Malta has
a double taxation avoidance agreement with 65 countries, including India.
Indian
drug major Aurobindo Pharma set shop in Malta in 2008 to cater to the European
market. The facility now dispatches close to 4,000 batches of medicines a year,
which it plans to increase to 6,000 by 2015, says Federici( Schembri, MD of
Aurobindo Pharma (Malta) Ltd. and Jonathan Farrugia, Qualified Person for Batch
Release (Europe). Since Vijay
Mallya's superyacht, Indian Empress, is registered under the Malta
Flag, the country hopes other high-net-worth individuals from India would
follow suit while looking at yacht registration. In fact; Transport Malta
offers a 24 / 7 registration service with expert guidance, one of the reasons
why the country has 'one of the world's biggest ship registers'. Inviting Indians
to also register their aircraft with it, Transport Malta offers services
ranging from aircraft maintenance and repair to aircraft management. Malta,
which already has over 1400 ICT firms, also has ambitions of becoming a
software hub. It is already Europe's e-Gaming capital, offering operators a
'well-regulated cost-effective' location to develop their business. Malta
Enterprise, an entity under the ministry of finance, has an office in Mumbai
Call
to Bollywood
While
Malta is quite popular with Western filmmakers, with big budget films like
Troy, The Da Vinci Code and Munich extensively shot here, the Film Commission
of Malta is now keen on Indian film makers choosing its picturesque locales for
song and dance sequences.
Malta also
offers post-production facilities and other logistical services
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