UK Mortgages for Non-Residents: What Lenders Ask For and What Deposit to Expect
Yes, a buyer who lives outside the UK can get a mortgage on a London flat, but from a much smaller group of lenders than a UK resident can use, and on stricter terms. The lenders are mostly the international or expat arms of high-street banks, specialist lenders and private banks, usually reached through specialist brokers, and many lend only to residents of the countries on their approved list.
Expect to put down 25% to 40% of the price, sometimes more. Some buyers will be offered less lending than they hoped for, or none. For an off-plan flat there is a second constraint: mortgage offers usually expire within three to six months, so the loan is normally arranged close to completion, while the deposits paid at exchange and during construction come from your own cash.
The figures below are typical ranges, not offers. Lender line-ups change often, and only a broker can tell you what is available to you in October 2026.
Who lends to non-residents
Each lender sets its own restrictions. HSBC lends to non-residents only in approved countries and Barclays only in qualifying countries. NatWest International works through brokers. Skipton International offers only buy-to-let loans to overseas applicants and stopped taking new applications from EU residents after 31 March 2026. Private banks are another option.
We list these to show the shape of the market, not as a recommendation. Lenders change their country lists and criteria often, and a lender that suited a buyer in one country last year may not consider a buyer from the same country today. A specialist broker is the practical way in, and we would not treat any lender as available to you until a broker has checked.
The deposit: plan for 25% to 40%
Non-residents buying from abroad typically need a deposit of at least 25%, sometimes up to 40%. Residential loans to expats and non-residents usually cap at 75% loan-to-value. Buy-to-let typically needs 25% to 40%, and buyers with a thin UK footprint, or buying in the UK for the first time, often need 30% to 50%.
| Situation | Typical deposit |
|---|---|
| Non-resident buying from abroad, general | At least 25%, sometimes up to 40% |
| Residential loan for an expat or non-resident | Usually 25% or more (loan capped at 75% of value) |
| Buy-to-let | Typically 25% to 40% |
| Thin UK footprint or first UK purchase | Often 30% to 50% |
On a £600,000 flat, the gap between a 25% and a 40% deposit is the difference between £150,000 and £240,000 of your own money, before any costs. That is why the first conversation with a broker should happen before you reserve, not after exchange.
The deposit is only part of the cash you need. Stamp Duty for most overseas buyers combines the standard bands with a 5% surcharge and a 2% non-resident charge, and it is due at completion. On a £1 million flat that is £113,750 at the rates in force as of October 2026, before the 28 October Budget. Our Stamp Duty guide has the full table.
Income, currency and the paper trail
Lenders assess whether you can afford the loan, and income earned in another currency is usually discounted for that test. Discounts of 0% to 15% are usual for major currencies such as the US dollar and the euro, and currencies pegged to the dollar, such as the UAE dirham and the Hong Kong dollar, are treated in a similar way. Other currencies attract larger discounts or are not accepted at all. Minimum incomes range roughly from £40,000 to £100,000 across lenders.
Expect to document where your deposit comes from, and to provide certified translations of documents in other languages. Separately, your solicitor must check your source of funds and possibly your source of wealth under the Money Laundering Regulations 2017, which usually means months of bank statements and documents that match your explanation. The two sets of checks overlap, so it saves time to prepare one well-organised file and give it to both.
Off-plan purchases: why the mortgage comes last
An off-plan purchase and a mortgage run on different clocks. The developer usually wants 10% of the price at exchange and sometimes further stage payments, up to about 30% before completion, and these are normally your own cash. A mortgage offer typically lasts three to six months, so it cannot be arranged years ahead. In practice you apply when completion is close.
If you already hold an offer and completion slips, the offer may expire and need to be renewed. Watch the developer’s anticipated completion date and the long-stop date in your contract, and time the application to them.
That leaves two further risks to plan for. The first is that lending criteria, or your own circumstances, may change between exchange and completion. The second is valuation: the lender values the flat at completion, and if the valuation is lower than the contract price, you fund the difference. Off-plan buyers commit at today’s price for a completion that can be years away, and London’s average price fell 3.3% in the 12 months to July 2026. Keep a cash buffer, or have a fallback plan to complete without the full loan.
Our step-by-step buying guide shows where the mortgage fits in the whole timetable.
What the flat itself must pass
Lenders look at the property as well as the borrower. A few points come up often with London new builds:
- The warranty. Mortgage lenders require a new home to carry a 10-year warranty from a provider such as NHBC, Premier Guarantee or LABC Warranty. The first 24 months of that cover must include Building Regulations non-compliance and developer liability, including insolvency.
- The service charge. In 37% of flats the annual service charge is above 1% of the flat’s value, and some lenders have tightened their criteria above that level.
- Building safety. After the Grenfell fire, the EWS1 external-wall review was introduced in December 2019 for blocks of 18 metres and above, and lending on many flats stalled until government guidance narrowed the number of buildings that needed one; major banks resumed lending on affected flats from January 2023. For a new build, the relevant document is the Building Safety Regulator’s completion certificate.
- The lease and the letting plan. Buy-to-let mortgages commonly require tenancies of at least six months, which rules out short lets.
Rates, currency and tax on the interest
We do not quote mortgage rates: they depend on the lender, the loan size, the deposit and your profile. For context, the Bank of England’s Bank Rate was 3.75% after the decision of 17 September 2026, and the next decision is due on 5 November 2026.
Currency is a risk of its own. Prices, deposits, service charges, rents and mortgage payments are all in pounds sterling. If you earn or hold another currency, every payment and the eventual sale proceeds carry exchange-rate risk. Decide how you will handle that exposure before exchange, not at completion.
If you let the flat, the rate of tax relief on mortgage interest is about to change. From 6 April 2027, relief for residential finance costs will be given at 22%, matching the new property basic rate legislated in the Finance Act 2026. This is as of October 2026, before the Budget on 28 October 2026; anything announced but not yet legislated is not law. See our guide to taxes for overseas owners.
Government schemes: not for overseas buyers
The Help to Buy equity loan closed to new applications on 31 October 2022, and in any case it was only for first-time buyers’ main homes. A new scheme, “Your First Home”, was announced on 26 September 2026: a 2.5% buyer deposit plus an interest-free government equity loan of 20% of the price, for first-time buyers of new-build homes in England. It is a proposal. Its full rules are due at the Budget on 28 October 2026, it is not open for applications, and it is not yet clear whether non-UK residents could use it. Until the rules say otherwise, assume it is not available to buyers living abroad.
Before you apply: what to check
- Has a specialist broker confirmed which lenders accept residents of your country, and on what deposit?
- Do you have the cash for the exchange deposit, any stage payments, Stamp Duty and fees without the loan?
- How will a lender treat your income currency, and does your income meet the lender’s minimum?
- Is your source-of-funds file ready, with translations where needed?
- For an off-plan flat, what is your plan if the valuation at completion comes in low, or if lending terms change?
- Does the flat’s warranty meet lender requirements, and is the service charge below 1% of the value?
- If you will let the flat, does the mortgage allow the kind of tenancy you plan?
The London homes we currently work with are on our United Kingdom properties page.
