solar
Solar Grant Malta 2026: It Is 65%, Not 75%, and It Caps at €3,000
The 2026 RES scheme pays 65% of eligible cost for PV with a hybrid inverter, capped at €3,000 per system and €645 per kWp. The widely repeated "75% up to €9,000" is the battery grant, not the panel grant. The two caps cross over at 4.651 kWp.
We publish the working. We do not install anything. How this works
Almost every page in Malta about the 2026 grant repeats the same line: 75 percent, up to €9,000. For solar panels that is wrong. Here is the arithmetic, taken from the scheme text and the applicant guidelines, including the parts that cost us the sale.
How much is the solar grant in Malta in 2026?
For a new PV system with a hybrid inverter, the 2026 RES scheme pays 65% of eligible cost, capped at €3,000 per system and at €645 per kWp. Whichever of those three figures comes out lowest is what you receive. Battery storage is funded separately at 75%, capped at €6,000 and €600 per kWh.
Eligible cost is VAT inclusive. It covers PV modules, inverters, the support frame, battery storage equipment, interface modules, other materials, works and costs, and certification. REWS deducts discounts and offers (cash or in kind), any extended warranty beyond the standard 10 year warranty, and import duty on overseas purchases. You also cannot claim a tax rebate, deduction or input VAT credit on the same expenditure.
Why does every other page say 75% up to €9,000?
Because two separate grants get compressed into one headline. The 75% and the €6,000 belong to the battery. The panels are funded at 65%, capped at €3,000 and €645 per kWp. €9,000 is simply the two ceilings added together, and REWS does not print that combined number anywhere.
We use €9,000 only when we label it as derived, and only for a household taking new PV, a hybrid inverter and a battery together. Quoted at you as a flat “75% up to €9,000” for panels, it overstates the PV grant by a wide margin.
Which cap binds at your system size?
The two PV caps swap over at 4.651 kWp, because 3,000 divided by 645 is 4.651. Below that size, the per kWp cap decides your grant. Above it, the flat €3,000 per system cap decides, and each additional panel adds nothing to the grant even though it adds to your bill.
| System size | Per kWp cap (645 x kWp) | Per system cap | Which binds | Grant ceiling | Eligible cost needed to reach the ceiling |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 kWp | €1,290 | €3,000 | per kWp | €1,290 | €1,984.62 |
| 3 kWp | €1,935 | €3,000 | per kWp | €1,935 | €2,976.92 |
| 4 kWp | €2,580 | €3,000 | per kWp | €2,580 | €3,969.23 |
| 4.65 kWp | €2,999.25 | €3,000 | crossover | €2,999.25 | €4,614.23 |
| 5 kWp | €3,225 | €3,000 | per system | €3,000 | €4,615.38 |
| 6 kWp | €3,870 | €3,000 | per system | €3,000 | €4,615.38 |
| 8 kWp | €5,160 | €3,000 | per system | €3,000 | €4,615.38 |
| 10 kWp | €6,450 | €3,000 | per system | €3,000 | €4,615.38 |
The last column is the one most quotes skip. A ceiling is only reached if 65% of your eligible cost gets there. Spend less than that and the 65% rate is the binding number, not either cap.
What does a 5 kWp system actually receive?
Take 5 kWp at an eligible cost of €6,250. 65% of that is €4,062.50. The per kWp cap is 5 times 645, so €3,225. The per system cap is €3,000. The lowest of the three binds, so the grant is €3,000 and the homeowner pays €3,250.
The €6,250 is an illustration of the method, not a market price. We have not verified installed costs per kWp in Malta and we will not print one until we have. Put your own quoted figure through the same three lines and take the smallest.
Can you still get a grant for a battery on its own?
No. On 13 July 2026 REWS stopped accepting Part A applications for Option B (hybrid or battery inverter with battery) and Option C (battery storage only). Standalone battery retrofit and hybrid inverter retrofit for existing PV owners are both withdrawn. Battery funding survives only when bundled with a new PV system.
Part A form V2 (reference REWS/254/v2-07-07/26) now carries only two tick boxes. If you already have panels and were waiting to add storage under this scheme, that route is closed.
Who cannot get the 2026 grant?
Landlords, anyone in a household that has received a grant for a similar system since 2010, and any installation still holding a feed in tariff allocation. The property must not be used principally for business, and the guidelines count letting on a commercial basis as business use even where the tenants live there.
The prior grant lockout is the one that catches people. It applies to the applicant and to any member of the same household, going back to 2010. Households with an open grant offer under a similar scheme are also excluded. On feed in tariffs, any previously allocated guaranteed period must have expired.
Who can apply: private individuals for their residential property, and organisations not carrying out an economic activity for communal residences. You must be resident in Malta and aged 18 or over on the day you apply. On tenure, you qualify as owner, emphyteuta, or long leaseholder with more than the durability period remaining (more than 5 years) plus the owner’s consent. A joint owner may apply on behalf of the others with their agreement.
When must you apply, and can you pay a deposit first?
Part A must be submitted before purchase and before installation. REWS advises applicants not to enter a binding contractual commitment or pay any money, including a deposit, before the grant offer letter arrives. That sequence protects you if the application is refused.
An installer pressing for a deposit before your offer letter is asking you to carry the risk of a decision neither of you controls. There is no rule that a quote must be signed within a set window.
How long does the grant stay valid, and how long does REWS take?
The grant offer letter is valid for 8 months, covering installation, commissioning and Part B. Extensions are granted only in duly justified cases outside the applicant’s control. No processing period is set at law, but a complete application generally takes about 5 weeks. Incomplete files are what stretch that.
What VAT applies to solar panels in Malta?
18%, the standard rate. There is no reduced rate for residential solar in Malta. The VAT Act contains no occurrence of the words solar or photovoltaic, and the Eighth Schedule that sets the 7% and 5% rates does not list PV. Any quote showing 0% or 5% VAT on solar is wrong, and the error usually favours the seller.
What have we not verified yet?
Feed in tariff rates, installed cost per kWp, annual yield per kWp for Malta, ARMS tariff bands, and payback in years. We are checking the tariff against the statutory instrument and this page will be updated when that is done. Payback depends on the tariff, so no payback figure appears here.
We do not install anything and we have no official standing. Check every figure above against the REWS scheme page before you sign anything.
Questions
- Is the Malta solar grant 65% or 75%?
- Both, for different things. PV with a hybrid inverter is funded at 65% of eligible cost, capped at €3,000 per system and €645 per kWp. Battery storage is funded at 75%, capped at €6,000 per system and €600 per kWh. Pages quoting a flat 75% for panels are applying the battery rate to the wrong item.
- Can I get €9,000 from the 2026 scheme?
- Only a household installing new PV, a hybrid inverter and battery storage together can reach €9,000, and that figure is derived by us (3,000 plus 6,000). REWS does not print a combined ceiling. A panels-only installation cannot exceed €3,000 whatever the system size.
- Can I add a battery to my existing solar panels under this scheme?
- No. On 13 July 2026 REWS stopped accepting Part A applications for Option B (hybrid or battery inverter with battery) and Option C (battery storage only). Standalone battery retrofit and hybrid inverter retrofit for existing PV owners are withdrawn. Battery funding now exists only bundled with a new PV system.
- Can I apply if I rent out the property?
- No. The scheme excludes property used principally for business purposes, and the guidelines state that this includes letting the property on a commercial basis even where the tenants use it as a home. Domestic use expressly excludes use by landlords or developers.
- Should I pay a deposit before my grant is approved?
- REWS advises applicants not to enter a binding contractual commitment or pay any money, including a deposit, before receiving the grant offer letter. Part A must be submitted before purchase and installation. An installer asking for money before your offer letter arrives is moving the risk onto you.
- What VAT applies to solar panels in Malta?
- 18%, the standard rate. There is no reduced rate for residential solar. The VAT Act contains no occurrence of the words solar or photovoltaic, and the Eighth Schedule that sets the 7% and 5% rates does not list PV. A quote showing 0% or 5% VAT on solar is wrong.