Which UK Banks Lend to Non-Residents? Deposits, Lenders and Requirements in 2026

Yes — non-residents can get a UK mortgage. But the market you are entering looks quite different from what a UK-resident buyer navigates. Most major high-street banks — the names you would see on every British town centre — have quietly withdrawn from non-resident lending in recent years. What remains is a smaller, specialist market made up of international banking divisions, niche lenders, and private banks, each with their own eligibility criteria, income requirements, and deposit floors.

This guide, from IREIS Properties, maps that market clearly: who lends, what deposit they require, how they assess foreign income, and what buyers from Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore specifically need to prepare.

Why most UK high-street banks no longer lend to non-residents

The retreat of mainstream lenders from non-resident mortgage lending has been gradual but substantial. Several well-known names have exited expat and non-resident lending almost entirely. Others restrict non-resident applications to applicants from a limited list of eligible countries — lists that are reviewed periodically and can change.

The reason is risk management, not hostility: verifying foreign income, assessing cross-border creditworthiness, and managing currency exposure add underwriting complexity that mainstream lenders prefer to avoid. The result is that overseas buyers who approach a standard high-street branch expecting the same process a UK-resident buyer goes through will typically be declined or directed elsewhere.

For overseas buyers, the entry question is not “which bank should I use?” but “which type of lender suits my profile?” — a distinction that the right specialist mortgage broker makes immediately clear. The 2% SDLT surcharge that applies to non-resident buyers is a separate but equally important upfront cost to model from the start.

The three lending tiers available to non-residents

The non-resident mortgage market divides into three practical tiers, each suited to a different buyer profile.

Tier 1: International banking divisions of mainstream banks

A small number of mainstream banks maintain dedicated international or expat lending operations that sit separately from their standard high-street range. HSBC operates through its International and Expat divisions; Barclays has its Barclays International arm; NatWest maintains an international operation through its Channel Islands entity. These lenders offer competitive rates and the reassurance of a recognisable name.

However, they apply tighter country-eligibility criteria than specialist lenders. Approved country lists are reviewed periodically and can change — meaning a lender that accepted your country of residence last year may not today. Income minimums are also higher than for domestic borrowers: income thresholds of approximately £75,000 per year or more are typical at this tier for residential applications.

Tier 2: Specialist lenders and broker-accessed non-resident products

The core of the non-resident market is served by specialist lenders reached almost exclusively through mortgage brokers with dedicated non-resident panels. Skipton International is a well-known name in this space, particularly for buy-to-let purchases. Beyond any single named lender, a specialist broker with access to a broad panel of products can identify lenders that accept the applicant’s country of residence, income currency, and loan size — something no single bank’s product range can match.

This is where most overseas buyers find their financing. Typical terms: minimum 25% deposit, income eligibility assessed with currency haircuts applied, and full documentation requirements throughout. Rates are generally higher than equivalent domestic products, reflecting the additional risk premium lenders price in.

Tier 3: Private banks (for larger loans)

For buyers seeking mortgages above approximately £1 million, private banks become relevant. Institutions such as Investec, Coutts, and Arbuthnot Latham use manual, narrative-driven underwriting: a senior credit officer assesses the case holistically rather than applying a rigid scorecard. This is particularly valuable for buyers with complex income — dividend income, multiple currencies, a mixture of employment and self-employment — that a standard lending matrix handles poorly. Private banks may also offer preferential rates to clients who hold investment assets under management with them.

Deposit requirements: what to expect

For non-residents, the working assumption should be a minimum 25% deposit — or 75% loan-to-value (LTV). This applies across all three tiers as a floor. In practice, the deposit requirement depends on several factors.

Loan size. For larger loans, many lenders require 30–40% down. Purchases above £1 million will commonly require 30–35%, and some private banks and specialist lenders set floors at 40% for high-value properties.

Income profile. Buyers with complex or multi-currency foreign income may find lenders offering more conservative LTVs until additional documentation is provided. A straightforward employed applicant on a well-documented salary in a major currency typically qualifies at 75% LTV more easily than a self-employed applicant with multi-currency income.

Property type. Buy-to-let lending for non-residents typically requires a 25–30% deposit; new-build buy-to-let properties can attract a slightly larger requirement depending on the lender.

The contrast with the UK domestic market is stark: UK residents can access mortgages with deposits as low as 5–10%. Non-residents should plan the deposit as a significantly higher proportion of the purchase price, and factor in stamp duty on top. Use the IREIS stamp duty calculator to model your total upfront costs accurately before fixing a budget.

How lenders assess foreign income

UK lenders are broadly willing to accept foreign-currency income — but they apply a discount, commonly called a currency haircut, to reflect exchange-rate volatility. The size of the haircut depends on the currency.

Major reserve currencies (USD, EUR, JPY, CHF): haircuts are typically 0–15%, with most income accepted at close to face value.

Established Asian currencies (HKD, SGD): haircuts typically fall in the range of 10–25% applied to the sterling equivalent of income.

Other currencies (NTD and others): haircuts can be 20–50%, or the currency may fall outside certain lenders’ eligible income list entirely, making the choice of lender more significant.

Practically, this means the total borrowing capacity you calculate from your salary will be lower after the haircut is applied — and the extent of that reduction varies meaningfully between lenders. A specialist broker who understands currency assessment can identify which lender in their panel applies the most favourable approach to your specific income currency and profile.

Income documentation requirements are also more extensive than for a UK-resident application: typically three to six months of payslips (with certified translations if not in English), two to three years of accounts for self-employed applicants, three to six months of bank statements, an employer letter, and international credit references. GOV.UK confirms that overseas buyers completing a UK purchase must also satisfy AML identity and source-of-funds requirements — assembling this file early is the single most reliable way to keep a transaction on schedule.

What buyers from Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore need to know

The non-resident mortgage market is not uniform in how it treats different countries of residence. Lenders maintain their own country-eligibility lists, and these are reviewed and changed periodically — sometimes with little advance notice to applicants.

Hong Kong buyers are well-served by the current market. HSBC, Barclays International, NatWest International, and multiple specialist lenders maintain active lending to Hong Kong residents. The combination of HSBC’s long-established presence in the region and broad lender familiarity with Hong Kong-based income means the market for HK buyers is wider than for many other nationalities.

Singapore buyers similarly find strong options. Major UK lenders with international operations maintain active eligibility for Singapore residents, and Singapore-currency income is typically assessed with moderate haircuts.

Taiwanese buyers will benefit most from working with a specialist broker rather than approaching mainstream banks directly. Individual lender eligibility for Taiwan residents varies by institution, and the landscape is narrower than for Hong Kong or Singapore applicants. The right broker will identify which lenders within their panel actively welcome Taiwanese income and residency — this is precisely the value a specialist adds, and exactly the type of introduction IREIS Properties facilitates for our clients.

In all cases, mortgage policy changes faster than any single guide can track. The only reliable approach is to have a specialist broker review current lender eligibility with your specific circumstances in hand, rather than relying on general information that may already be outdated.

Working with IREIS Properties

IREIS Properties does not provide mortgage advice directly — we refer our clients to specialist mortgage brokers with demonstrated expertise in non-resident lending. These are brokers with access to the specialist panels described in this guide: advisers who understand Asian buyer profiles, foreign income documentation, and the nuances of lender eligibility by country.

IREIS Properties recommends starting mortgage discussions in parallel with your property search, not after you have found a property. The process of preparing documentation, obtaining a decision in principle, and completing enhanced due diligence takes longer for overseas applicants than for UK residents. Beginning early gives you clarity on your budget and puts you in a position to move decisively when the right property is identified.

For a complete guide to the non-resident mortgage process — including the full documentation checklist, timeline, and how Section 24 affects buy-to-let investors — see our UK Mortgage Guide for Overseas Buyers. To explore available properties, visit our London listings or contact the IREIS team to discuss your search. You may also find our buying guides hub a useful starting point.