Can an Australian living in Hong Kong get a home loan in Australia? Yes. An Australian citizen can fund up to 95 per cent of the purchase from Hong Kong, with Hong Kong income counted in full. Your Hong Kong bank will quote you an Australian-property loan as well, but its overseas-buyer terms usually sit far below that ceiling. Going through a broker opens the whole Australian lender panel instead, which tends to mean a larger loan for the same deposit, a keener rate, and the features a single bank’s product skips. Citizens need no FIRB approval, and the whole process is handled at a distance.
Few overseas postings read as well to an Australian lender as Hong Kong: the pay is strong, the tax is light, the currency barely moves, and the income is easy to document. What quietly costs Hong Kong buyers money is reflex, signing the Australian-property loan their Hong Kong bank offers before checking what the wider market would do with the same income.
For Australians living and working in Hong Kong who want to buy back home, MAP arranges Australian expat home loans across a panel of 31+ Australian lenders. We weigh your Hong Kong income, your currency and your residency against each lender’s policy, then put your own bank’s expat offer beside a genuine Australian mortgage so the call comes down to figures, not loyalty.
Hong Kong is home to some of the most established banks in the world, and if you hold an account with one of the big international names there you have likely been shown a way to finance an Australian property already. It can be a sensible route, and for some buyers it is the one they take. But it is one product on that bank’s overseas-buyer terms, and those terms are usually built around a much larger deposit, frequently a cap near 60 per cent of the value, which means finding 40 per cent yourself.
The deposit gap is the whole point. On a $1m purchase a 60 per cent cap asks you for $400,000, where the right Australian lender, reading that same Hong Kong income, can settle a citizen for a fraction of that. None of this is about steering you away from your bank; it is about not committing before you have seen the alternative. If their number wins, good, and you will have the proof. More often the panel values the same Hong Kong income just as highly and hands back a much larger loan for the deposit you have got.
Hong Kong is, in our experience, one of the expat markets Australian lenders look on most favourably. The profile works for a few reasons:
Lenders on our panel accept HKD, USD and AUD. Your income is converted to Australian dollars and then shaded, a discount applied to allow for exchange-rate movement. Because the Hong Kong dollar is pegged to the US dollar and has held that peg for decades, the right lender takes a measured view of HKD rather than the heavier discount some apply to volatile currencies. The exact shading varies by lender, which is the whole reason comparing the panel matters: one lender’s discount can cost you tens of thousands in borrowing power that another lender will not.
FIRB. Australian citizenship settles the question. You can buy in Australia without Foreign Investment Review Board approval however long you have been in Hong Kong, and a non-Australian spouse does not change it. Permanent residents sit in a greyer area: a PR counted as “ordinarily resident” in Australia is exempt, but one living and working in Hong Kong often is not, and then FIRB can come into play. Because it turns on your facts, run it past us before you sign.
The foreign-buyer surcharge. That surcharge is aimed at people who are neither citizens nor residents. Australian citizens and permanent residents fall outside it, so you skip a charge that can add tens of thousands to the cost of a typical home.
Established homes. The April 2025 restriction on buying established dwellings was written for temporary visa holders. It does not reach Australian citizens or permanent residents, so your options stay open: established, brand new, off-the-plan or vacant land, with nothing ruled out by dwelling type.
Your deposit. There is no need to shift your deposit into Australian dollars months ahead and wear whatever the rate does next. Many lenders let it sit in Hong Kong or US dollars and convert near settlement, and because the Hong Kong dollar tracks the US dollar, that conversion window is steadier than from most expat postings. We map the timing with you.
An overseas bank’s 60% cap is not the ceiling for a Hong Kong-based Australian. With the right lender on our panel we place these loans far higher. Here is a high-level summary of the maximum lending ratios we work with:
No flight home is needed. Identity can be certified at the Australian Consulate-General in Hong Kong or through an approved alternative, and we set the document witnessing to match each lender’s rules. The two-hour gap to the east coast means most of the back-and-forth happens inside your working day.
Match. We put your residency, your situation and your Hong Kong income through the VSL Matrix™ to find the lenders most likely to say yes, then set your own bank’s expat quote alongside so the comparison is honest.
Apply. We assemble the strongest case for whichever lender fits best and carry the cross-border paperwork, the certification and the timing for you.
Purchase. We stay on it through to settlement and shape the loan around your eventual move home, so refinancing down the track is simple.
Cesar and Kate were Australians living and working in Hong Kong, buying an investment property back home. As expats applying from overseas they had searched for a long time before MAP matched them to a lender that read their situation properly and approved their finance at 90 per cent of the property’s value, the kind of result a single overseas bank’s capped product cannot reach. What they valued most was the personal side: the time we spent explaining how different lenders and products compared, and advice they could reach even at the odd hours they were calling from across the time zones. They have since referred friends and told us they will use MAP again.
Yes. From Hong Kong an Australian citizen can borrow up to 95 per cent of a property’s value, and a permanent resident up to 90 per cent, assessed on Hong Kong income. You don’t need to be in the country, the process runs remotely, and citizens need no FIRB approval.
It depends on the numbers, which is exactly why it’s worth comparing both. A Hong Kong bank offers one Australian-property product on its own overseas-buyer terms, which are often capped near 60 per cent of the value, meaning a 40 per cent deposit. A broker compares a full panel of Australian lenders, where a citizen can reach 95 per cent, and adds features like offset and redraw that a single bank’s product may leave out.
In most cases the same rates and products an onshore borrower sees, with no expat premium added on top. What moves the number is the lender you land with, your LVR, and how your Hong Kong income is read, which is the case for comparing the panel rather than taking a single quote.
It comes down to your income once converted to Australian dollars, your existing commitments, and the discount each lender puts on HKD. The currency’s long-standing US-dollar peg means a well-chosen lender shades it modestly rather than heavily, which leaves more borrowing power in play. We work the panel to find that lender.
Citizens pay neither, no matter how long they’ve been away. Permanent residents are clear of the surcharge, but a PR based in Hong Kong may fail the ordinarily-resident test FIRB uses, so it’s worth confirming with us first.
Yes, though your path is different from an Australian expat’s. If you’re now living in Australia on a visa or as a new permanent resident, your borrowing options depend on your visa and residency rather than on overseas-income rules. Talk to us and we’ll point you to the right approach.
Start with the whole market, not one bank. If your Hong Kong bank has quoted you a 40 per cent deposit, bring it and we will show you how a full Australian panel compares. No quote in hand? Come with your income alone and we will do the same.
Cesar Del Pino and Kate JacksonExpats secured an investment property at 90% LVR
It is with great pleasure that I recommend MAP Home Loans to you as a prospective customer. Their experience was pivotal in securing the right loan for us as expats after much searching. Their personalised service in explaining the benefits of different lenders and products was key in our decision to ask for their help. MAP Home Loans’ professional and timely advice was available even at the odd hours that we were calling from overseas. In my opinion, they thoroughly deserve their place as one of the best brokers in the country. I have already recommended them to my close friends, and we will definitely be using MAP Home Loans again in the future.
Sincerely
Cesar Del Pino
Kelvin & DonnaGot our loan over the line from overseas
We were living overseas and found it difficult with other brokers to get a loan over the line while we were out of the country with foreign income. MAP Home Loans helped us get all the documentation in order and provided clear instruction on what was required. So easy when you have expert guidance. Would have no issues recommending MAP Home Loans to expats wanting to purchase in Australia.
ZamHome loan sorted while working overseas
As an expat working overseas, MAP Home Loans have been great in getting me a home loan. All the processes were seamless, and I never thought buying a home from overseas was easy. Good job, keep it up!
Sandi & CameronAustralian expats on foreign income got pre-approval in weeks
We are so happy we found MAP Home Loans! MAP Home Loans was excellent, reliable and went the extra mile to get us the right home loan. Being Australian expats, earning foreign income, the new APRA regulations really made it difficult for us to get a home loan. Other brokers found us lenders who either would not deal with us at all, or limited severely the amount we could borrow, or would only lend to us with a 60% LVR. After feeling quite dejected, we spoke to my broker, and within a matter of a few weeks, we had pre-approval for a loan that actually worked for us. We have now bought our future home for when we return to Australia and we could not be happier. He worked with us and our agent right up until settlement, and as we are not in Australia, he is still helping us sort out little things like setting up banking facilities. My husband and I highly recommend MAP Home Loans.
Abdulaziz DaérAustralian expat secured property investment back home
As an Australian working overseas, even thinking of property investment via bank loans was a challenge that I could not believe I would pull off. I was determined and I needed a property back home, and that dream came into action only when I got in contact with MAP Home Loans. My broker guided me and my son from the concept up to the signing of the entire loan approval.
MAP Home Loans will remain part of our family on future investments in Australia, InshaÁllah.
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