The Malta Business Registry has stated that it asked companies for a formal letter, even accepting digital signatures as long as it is in accordance with the eIDAS Regulation, to make the shift to paper free possible.

This came after companies claimed that an electronic copy was not sufficient enough and that a printed letter was needed, as part of the MBR’s shift to paper free. 

“Malta has implemented the EU Regulation on electronic identification and trust services for electronic transactions in the internal market (eIDAS Regulation) which regulation provides a predictable regulatory environment to enable secure and seamless electronic interactions between businesses, citizens and public authorities,” a representative for MBR said.

“The industry and all stakeholders are well aware that the MBR accepts digital signatures in accordance with the eIDAS Regulation and therefore there is no need to specify that the formal letter can be filed either electronically or in paper format.”

“As a matter of fact several were the clients who submitted the requested information electronically and such letters were indeed accepted.”

“The letters that were refused by the MBR were only those that were not signed by one of the officers of the company and this in order to eliminate abuse by third parties not involved in the company.”

“In relation to the submission of the M&A, this was not obligatory and those who opted to change the M&A to include the company’s email address and make it available to the public also had the option to submit these in electronic form through MBR’s online portal or using a qualified electronic signature and send the document by email.”

“As a government entity we retain our commitment towards a paperless environment and in fact such stance was wholly welcomed by the business community and practitioners.”

The Malta Business Registry is estimating that the initiative will reduce use of paper by at least 60%.

The Malta Business Registry has been underoing its shift to a paper free attitude, as part of a new environmental, social and governance (ESG) policy.

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