How to Get an Expat Mortgage in the Netherlands: Step-by-Step Guide

Follow this guide and you will leave knowing exactly how to secure an expat mortgage in the Netherlands — from checking your eligibility on day one to signing the notary deed with full confidence in your numbers. Before you begin, make sure you have the following to hand:

• Your passport or EU identity card
• Your employment contract or employer declaration of intent
• Your three most recent payslips
• Your BSN (Dutch citizen service number), if already issued
• Your 30% ruling letter, if applicable
• Bank statements covering the last three to six months

Table of Contents

1. Step 1 — Check Whether You Qualify as an Expat Borrower
2. Step 2 — Understand How Your Income Is Assessed
3. Step 3 — Know the Key Rules and Limits for Expat Mortgages in the Netherlands
4. Step 4 — Compare Current Rates and Pick the Right Fixed Period
5. Step 5 — Gather Your Documents and Approach the Right Lenders
6. Step 6 — Full Cost Breakdown: What You’ll Actually Pay at Completion
7. Common Mistakes Expats Make on Dutch Mortgage Applications

Step 1 — Check Whether You Qualify as an Expat Borrower

Not all expat borrowers are treated equally by Dutch lenders. In our experience at Expat Mortgage Platform, understanding which profile you fall into is the single most important first step — it determines your maximum loan-to-value ratio, your accepted income sources, and which lenders will even open your file. There are four main borrower profiles:

1. EU citizen with a permanent contract — treated comparably to a Dutch national by most lenders. Full 100% LTV is available.
2. EU citizen with a fixed-term contract — lenders typically require an employer declaration of intent confirming renewal is likely. LTV is usually capped at 90%.
3. Non-EU highly skilled migrant visa holder — now accepted by major lenders including ABN AMRO, ING, and Rabobank, provided the employer supplies a written declaration of intent and the visa carries a meaningful remaining term.
4. Non-resident — generally capped at 90% LTV regardless of contract type. On a €400,000 purchase, budget for at least €40,000 in equity plus closing costs before you approach any lender.

EU citizens with permanent contracts will find the process closest to a standard Dutch application. For highly skilled migrants, the key unlocking factor is the employer letter — lenders respond best when it is on company letterhead, signed by HR, and states clearly that a renewal or permanent position is anticipated.

For a deeper look at why applications get declined — and how to prevent it — read our dedicated guide on common reasons expat mortgage applications are rejected. This step intentionally does not repeat those rejection triggers in detail.

Step 2 — Understand How Your Income Is Assessed for a Dutch Mortgage

Dutch lenders use a toetsinkomen (test income) to calculate your maximum mortgage. How they arrive at that figure diverges sharply from a standard Dutch application the moment your salary comes from abroad or is structured differently — and this is exactly where expat mortgage applications in the Netherlands can stall without specialist guidance.

Euro-denominated income

Income paid in euros is assessed at face value. Most borrowers who successfully obtain a mortgage of around €300,000 have a gross household income between €55,000 and €70,000 per year. A €350,000 mortgage generally requires roughly €65,000 to €85,000 in gross household income.

Foreign-currency income

Income paid in a non-euro currency — sterling, US dollars, Swiss francs — is accepted but discounted to reflect exchange-rate risk. Under the EU Mortgage Credit Directive (2015), lenders must account for currency fluctuation when assessing non-euro income. ABN AMRO, for example, applies a 10% reduction to non-euro income when calculating your maximum borrowing.

In practice, we recently helped a software engineer on a highly skilled migrant visa — earning her salary in GBP — secure a €380,000 mortgage after applying that 10% currency haircut to her income figure. The discount is entirely predictable once you know it exists; a generalist adviser who rarely works with international clients may not flag it until your offer comes back lower than expected.

For a full breakdown of how foreign-currency salaries are treated across lenders, see our detailed article on foreign income mortgages in the Netherlands.

30% ruling income

This is where the biggest lender variation appears. Some Dutch lenders count your full gross salary toward the affordability test; others count only the taxable 70% base. The gap between those two approaches can amount to tens of thousands of euros in maximum mortgage offer — a difference that matters enormously in a competitive bidding situation.

Self-employed income

Self-employed applicants typically need two to three years of audited accounts. Lenders average the annual profit figures and use the lower result as a ceiling on borrowing.

Practical tip: Before approaching any bank directly, request a mortgage capacity calculation (maximale hypotheek berekening) from a specialist broker. This protects your credit record from multiple hard enquiries and gives you a realistic ceiling before you start bidding on properties. Our expat borrowing capacity guide explains the methodology in full.

Step 3 — Know the Key Rules and Limits for Expat Mortgages in the Netherlands

Dutch mortgage regulation is updated annually. The 2026 changes affect expat borrowers in several specific ways — and knowing these rules upfront prevents expensive surprises at offer stage.

Loan-to-Value (LTV)

• Residents with permanent contracts: up to 100% of the purchase price.
• Non-residents and temporary-contract holders: capped at 90%.
• Energy-saving improvements: borrowing can reach up to 106% of the property value — or an additional €40,000 — for qualifying insulation, heat pumps, and solar panels.

Since 1 April 2026, energy efficiency directly affects the mortgage rate offered. Properties with an A+++ label access the lowest available rates, while lower-rated homes face a premium.

National Mortgage Guarantee (NHG)

The NHG (Nationale Hypotheek Garantie) threshold rose to €470,000 (standard) and €498,200 (energy-efficient) in 2026, up from €450,000 in 2025. The guarantee fee is 0.6% of the loan amount, paid once at completion. In return, lenders typically offer a rate 0.3 to 0.5 percentage points lower than a non-NHG product — making the fee net-positive on most loans within a few years of ownership.

Transfer tax

The standard rate is 2% for a primary residence. First-time buyers under 35 pay zero transfer tax on purchases up to €555,000 in 2026 — an increase from the €525,000 ceiling that applied in 2025, as confirmed by rijksoverheid.nl. Full eligibility criteria are explained in our guide to claiming the transfer tax starter exemption in the Netherlands.

Mortgage interest deduction

In 2026, mortgage interest is deductible at a maximum rate of 36.97%, as confirmed by the Dutch tax authority (Belastingdienst). The deduction applies only to annuity or linear repayment structures. For expats on the 30% ruling, the two benefits stack — creating a meaningfully lower effective tax rate than most new arrivals anticipate.

Note: the Dutch government has announced that the 30% ruling will be reduced to 27% for everyone from 1 January 2027. Rulings granted before that date are not retroactively reduced — so if you are joining a Dutch employer late in 2026, signing a contract with a start date before 1 January 2027 locks in the 30% rate for your full five-year term.

Step 4 — Compare Current Rates and Pick the Right Fixed Period

Dutch mortgage rates have entered a period of unusual stability in 2026. The European Central Bank held its deposit rate at 2.0% at its April 2026 meeting, and most forecasters expect rates to remain within a 3.0–4.6% range through the rest of the year.

Rate snapshot (early 2026)

• 10-year fixed: 3.6–4.0% (NHG borrowers access roughly 0.4% below this range)
• 20-year fixed: 3.9–4.3%
• Variable rate: 4.2–4.6%
• Best available rate: 3.11% on a 10-year fixed for NHG-eligible borrowers purchasing an A+++ energy-label property

One important risk flag: ING’s chief economist has warned the ECB could raise rates if geopolitical tensions escalate, potentially adding 0.5–1.0% to current rates for new applications. Fixed-rate products insulate you from that scenario — which is precisely why most expats prefer them.

Why expats favour 10- or 20-year fixed rates

Predictability matters especially during visa-dependent income phases. Furthermore, the 30% ruling expiry creates a natural income inflection point — typically in year five or six of your time in the Netherlands. A 5- or 10-year fixed rate creates a refinancing window that aligns with that income change, making the transition less disruptive.

The split-mortgage strategy

Dutch lenders allow most borrowers to split a mortgage into up to three or four leningdelen, each with its own fixed-rate period. A common approach is one part at 10 years and a smaller part at 20 years, which spreads refinancing risk across two separate windows rather than concentrating it in a single year.

Step 5 — Gather Your Documents and Approach the Right Lenders

Having the right paperwork ready before you approach a lender dramatically shortens the timeline from application to offer. Here is the core document checklist for an expat mortgage application in the Netherlands:

• Valid passport or EU identity card
• BSN (Dutch citizen service number)
• Three months of recent salary slips
• Employment contract or employer declaration of intent
• Last two years’ tax returns
• Three to six months of bank statements
• Residence permit (non-EU applicants)
• 30% ruling letter, if applicable
• Property valuation report (taxatierapport), costing approximately €400–€700
  
  

The lender landscape for expats in 2026

Among the major banks, ABN AMRO has established itself as a frontrunner for the international community through its dedicated International Desk. Advisers there are specifically trained to handle residence permits, international tax treaties, and multi-country financial histories — and they can conduct the entire process in English. ING and Rabobank also lend to expats. Additionally, specialist lenders such as Obvion and Aegon Hypotheken are increasingly active in this segment of the market.

Why a specialist broker makes a measurable difference

At Expat Mortgage Platform, we pre-screen every application against lender-specific criteria before a single form is submitted. This protects your credit record from the impact of multiple hard enquiries — which can, in themselves, reduce what a lender is prepared to offer. Moreover, our advisers know which lenders count the full 30% ruling gross versus only the 70% taxable base, which ones require an employer letter on specific company letterhead, and which accept foreign-currency income with the most favourable discount applied.

Timeline: from full document submission to mortgage offer, expect two to six weeks. Add one to two weeks if foreign-income verification or an international tax treaty review is required.

Step 6 — Full Cost Breakdown: What You’ll Actually Pay at Completion

One of the most common surprises for first-time buyers is the gap between the mortgage amount and what they need in cash on completion day. In the Netherlands, buyers should budget roughly 3–6% of the purchase price in cash for closing costs, over and above the purchase price itself — because the mortgage covers only the property value, not the fees.

Worked example: €350,000 purchase, under-35 first-time buyer

• Transfer tax: €0 (eligible for starter exemption — purchase price below €555,000)
• NHG fee: Not applicable — this buyer is borrowing above the NHG threshold; the purchase price itself sits at the threshold but loan amount determines NHG eligibility
• Valuation report: approximately €500–€600
• Notary fees: approximately €1,200–€1,800
• Estimated total out-of-pocket: roughly €2,000–€2,500 (excluding adviser fees), compared to approximately €9,000 if transfer tax were payable

For a full breakdown of every buying cost, including structural surveys and estate agent fees, visit our complete buying costs guide for expats in the Netherlands.

Common Mistakes Expats Make on Dutch Mortgage Applications

After guiding hundreds of international buyers through the Dutch mortgage process, these are the errors we see most often — and the ones that are most avoidable:

• Applying directly to multiple banks simultaneously. Each hard credit enquiry is recorded. Multiple enquiries in a short period signal financial stress to lenders and can reduce your maximum offer. Use a broker to apply to the right lender first time.
• Underestimating the foreign-currency discount. Applicants earning in GBP or USD frequently assume their income is assessed at face value. It is not — the 10% reduction applied by lenders like ABN AMRO can shift your maximum mortgage by €30,000 or more.
• Misunderstanding the 30% ruling and mortgage capacity. Whether your lender counts full gross salary or only 70% makes a substantial difference to your maximum loan. Always confirm this with the lender — or, better, have a specialist broker confirm it for you before you start viewing properties.
• Forgetting closing costs in the budget. The mortgage covers the purchase price only. Budget 3–6% of the purchase price in cash on top — or more if you are not eligible for the under-35 transfer tax exemption.
• Waiting for a permanent contract before applying. Many highly skilled migrants assume they cannot borrow without a permanent contract. In practice, major lenders accept temporary contracts and highly skilled migrant visas, provided the right employer documentation is in place.
• Not locking in the 30% ruling rate before 2027. The ruling drops from 30% to 27% for new rulings from 1 January 2027. If you are about to join a Dutch employer, the timing of your contract start date can have a meaningful impact on both your net income and your mortgage capacity.

Curious about what these steps look like for you?

Book your first free consultation with one of our experts. The first consultation is always free and non-binding.