Malta has a long standing tradition of serving Europe’s health and pharmaceutical sectors dating back to 1574 when the Knights of St John built a hospital that was considered the most advanced in Europe in its time.  

Today’s pharmaceutical industry is composed of generics manufacturers, producers of active pharmaceutical ingredients and other healthcare products including a whole range of services.

Malta’s political and industrial stability, a highly skilled and efficient English-speaking workforce makes it an attractive location for pharmaceutical manufacturers to set up in.

Malta’s patent legislation is robust and fully protects the interest of proprietors of a patent against third parties. However, because of the small size of the domestic market, very few patents have been registered until recently. 

Therefore, generic pharmaceutical companies may develop, produce and package their products in Malta for first-to-market launch in EU countries on the day of patent expiry. Moreover, as Malta's Patents and Design legislation also incorporates the "Bolar" provision, generic manufacturers are able to develop their new drugs (conduct tests and trials on patented pharmaceuticals in support of filing applications for marketing authorisation) whilst the originator product is still under patent.