Process of reviewing and assessing the dossier to support a medicinal product in view of its marketing (also called licensing, registration, approval, etc.), finalized by granting of a document also called marketing authorization (MA).
3. MARKETING AUTHORISATION PROCEDURES 3.1 Centralised procedure For medicinal products which fall within the mandatory scope of the centralised procedure in accordance with the Annex to Regulation (EC) No 726/2004, the application is submitted to the EMA.  1 Applications for the centralised procedure are made directly to the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and lead to the granting of a European marketing authorisation by the Commission which is binding in all Member States. The EMA and the authorisation procedure. In 1993 the European Medicines Agency (EMA) was founded with the primary task of providing scientific advice of the highest possible quality to the Community Institutions on all matters relating to medicinal products for human and veterinary use. An authorisation is thus granted in accordance with Regulation 4(2) of the Medicines (Marketing Authorisation) Regulations (Subsidiary Legislation 458.34), under the Medicines Act, 2003 (Chapter 458 of the Laws of Malta). The authorisation will not be renewed unless a Renewal Application Form is submitted in a timely manner. If during the five-year period the same product has been granted a national MA, the Authorisation in line with regulation 4(2) of the Medicines (Marketing Authorisation) Regulations, will not be renewed. In the absence of a marketing authorisation (MA) for a medicinal product, the Licensing Authority may authorise the placing of that medicinal product on the market in Malta, provided that the said product is authorised in another Member State (EU/EEA country). The authorisation will not be renewed unless a Renewal Application Form is submitted in a timely manner. If during the five-year period the same product has been granted a national MA, the Authorisation in line with regulation 4(2) of the Medicines (Marketing Authorisation) Regulations, will not be renewed. To obtain an MA, a Marketing Authorisation Application (MAA) is submitted to the appropriate Competent Authority(s) (CAs), for assessment and MA approval. In accordance with EU Directive 2001/83 and Regulation (EC) No. 726/2004 governing medicinal products, in order to legally place a medicinal product on the market in the European Economic Area (EEA), a Marketing Authorisation (MA) or ‘licence’ must first be approved. A national Marketing Authorisation (. ) is initially valid for five years from the date of first authorisation. At the end of the five year period it will be subject to renewal, which is a mechanism for reviewing the product to ensure the benefit/risk balance remains favourable. Whether for human or veterinary use a medicinal product must be the subject of a valid Marketing Authorisation (. ) before it can be placed on the market for sale and supply. The Marketing Authorisation Holder (. ) has to market the product in compliance with the terms of the Process of reviewing and assessing the dossier to support a medicinal product in view of its marketing (also called licensing, registration, approval, etc.), finalized by granting of a document also called marketing authorization (MA) (equivalent: product license). Authorization processes follow either a purely national procedure, with rules and requirements as per national legislation in force, as it occurs in most of countries worldwide, or should follow a centrally approval or a mutual recognition or decentralized procedure within the European Union. This is denoted by a product licence or marketing authorisation number. Such careful scrutiny takes time to complete, and explains why a new medicine cannot immediately be prescribed to large numbers of patients.  Marketing Authorisation Application (MAA) is an application submitted by a drug manufacturer seeking permission to bring a newly developed medicinal product (for example, a new medicine) to the market. 
http://ec.europa.eu/health/files/eudralex/vol-2/a/vol2a_chap1_2013-06_en.pdf http://ec.europa.eu/health/authorisation-procedures_en.htm http://www.medicinesauthority.gov.mt/126a http://www.medicinesauthority.gov.mt/126a http://www.s-cubed.dk/services/regulatory/marketing.php http://www.hma.eu/medicinesapprovalsystem.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marketing_authorization http://www.mhra.gov.uk/home/groups/comms-ic/documents/websiteresources/con025908.pdf https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marketing_Authorization_Application
what is a marketing authorisation