The regularisation pipeline
23,590 cases, 108 refusals
Summary
The RG (Regularisation) case type is Malta's dedicated fast-track for retroactively legalizing development. Since its introduction around 2016, it has processed 23,590 cases and refused just 108 — a 99.5% approval rate. Combined with PA-route sanctioning, Malta processes roughly 4,500+ retroactive legalization applications per year.
Key findings
RG case outcomes (all time)
| Decision | Count |
|---|---|
| Grant Permission | 21,947 |
| Modified as per Article 80 | 1,019 |
| Pending | 388 |
| Refuse Permission | 108 |
| Withdrawn by Applicant | 49 |
| Dismissed (non-compliance) | 51 |
| Modification/Revocation rejected | 28 |
Out of 23,590 RG applications, only 108 were refused — 0.46%.
RG volume by year
| Year | Applications |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 958 |
| 2017 | 4,565 |
| 2018 | 5,077 ← peak |
| 2019 | 3,055 |
| 2020 | 1,897 |
| 2021 | 1,544 |
| 2022 | 1,426 |
| 2023 | 1,563 |
| 2024 | 1,671 |
| 2025 | 1,671 |
| 2026 | 163 |
The RG route exploded in 2017–2018, processing over 4,500–5,000 cases/year, before settling to ~1,500–1,700/year.
The full retroactive legalization picture
| Route | Annual volume (recent) | Approval rate |
|---|---|---|
| PA sanctioning | ~3,000/year | 82.2% |
| RG regularisation | ~1,650/year | 99.5% |
| Combined | ~4,650/year | — |
Malta retroactively legalizes roughly 4,650 developments per year through two parallel tracks. The RG route is effectively automatic — with a REG commission that approves 99.3% of cases it hears (Discovery 06).
Connection to sanctioning discovery
The 2017–2018 RG surge coincides exactly with the spike in PA sanctioning rates (Discovery 02) and the overall application volume boom. This suggests a coordinated policy shift that opened multiple channels for retroactive legalization simultaneously.