---
title: Student Visa 500 Home Loans in Australia | GNT Finance
description: Can a student visa holder buy property in Australia? What subclass 500 holders can buy, why most lenders decline, and the joint purchase route that works.
url: https://gntfinance.com.au/guides/visa-500-student-home-loans/
section: guides
updated: 2026-09-02
author: Gorakh Timilsina, GNT Finance
---

# Home loans on a student visa (subclass 500)

**In short:** A subclass 500 student visa holder can legally buy Australian property, but only a new dwelling, an off-the-plan home or vacant land, and only with foreign investment approval first. Almost no lender will approve a home loan on student income alone. The workable route is buying as joint tenants with a spouse who is an Australian citizen or permanent resident.

The student visa is the hardest visa in Australia to get a home loan on. Everything a lender wants, stable long-term Australian income and a visa with years left on it, is what this visa is designed not to give you. It is still worth understanding properly, because many student visa holders have a partner whose status changes the answer completely.

## What the visa is

Subclass 500 is a temporary visa granted for up to six years, aligned to your enrolment. It is not a pathway to permanent residency in its own right; the usual sequence is 500, then a [485 graduate visa](/guides/visa-485-graduate-home-loans/), then a skilled or employer-sponsored visa. Work rights are capped while your course is in session, which is the biggest obstacle to serviceability.

One distinction matters for foreign investment. If your visa lets you stay for a continuous period of more than 12 months you are a temporary resident; if it is shorter you are a foreign non-resident, a more restrictive category again. Either way you are a foreign person.

## What applies to you

| Question | Position for a subclass 500 holder |
|---|---|
| Visa type | Temporary |
| Pathway to permanent residency | Not on its own |
| Foreign investment approval needed | Yes, before an unconditional contract |
| Can buy an established dwelling | No, while the federal ban runs to 30 June 2029 |
| Can buy new, off the plan or vacant land | Yes, with approval and conditions |
| 5% Deposit Scheme eligible | No, requires citizenship or permanent residency |
| State first home owner grant | No, unless a co-applicant is a citizen or PR |
| Victorian first home buyer duty exemption | No, all purchasers must be citizens or permanent residents |
| Typical maximum LVR | Rarely available alone; 80% at most |
| Foreign purchaser duty surcharge | Yes, 8% in Victoria, 9% in NSW at the time of writing |

## Why lenders say no

Serviceability is assessed on income a lender believes will still be there in three years. On a student visa that is a hard case to make. Common blockers:

- **Capped work hours.** Work rights are limited during study periods, so a lender shades or ignores part of the income.
- **Course-length visa.** A visa expiring with your course reads as repayment risk on a 30-year loan.
- **Parental support as income.** Regular transfers from family overseas are not income to a lender, however reliable they have been.
- **Deposit source.** Money that arrived from overseas needs a documented trail. See [genuine savings explained](/guides/genuine-savings-explained/).

A small group of lenders on our panel will consider a student visa holder where there is a strong co-borrower or a very large deposit. Policy differs lender to lender and changes without notice, so we check before you commit rather than after a decline is on your file.

## The route that usually works: buying with a citizen or permanent resident spouse

If your spouse or de facto partner is an Australian citizen, a permanent resident, or a New Zealand citizen eligible for a Special Category visa, and you buy **as joint tenants**, you do not need foreign investment approval at all. The exemption does not apply to buying as tenants in common, a distinction with a five-figure price tag. Read [joint tenants vs tenants in common](/legal/joint-tenants-vs-tenants-in-common/) before you instruct a conveyancer.

Victoria has a matching duty exemption: a foreign purchaser buying a principal place of residence with a partner who is not a foreign purchaser can be exempt from the 8% additional duty, provided the foreign purchaser lives there for 12 continuous months starting within 12 months of settlement. Confirm the conditions at [sro.vic.gov.au](https://www.sro.vic.gov.au).

Two things do **not** come back. The Victorian first home buyer duty exemption requires all purchasers to be citizens or permanent residents, so you pay full duty, and the 5% Deposit Scheme requires every applicant to qualify.

## Worked example: two ways to buy the same $580,000 apartment

Dipesh holds a subclass 500 visa. Victorian land transfer duty on $580,000 is $2,870 plus 6% of the excess over $130,000: $2,870 + $27,000 = **$29,870**.

**Option A — Dipesh buys alone, new apartment, 80% loan**

| Line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Purchase price (new, off the plan) | $580,000 |
| Deposit at 80% LVR | $116,000 |
| Loan | $464,000 |
| Land transfer duty | $29,870 |
| Foreign purchaser additional duty at 8% | $46,400 |
| Foreign investment application fee (band up to $1m) | $15,600 |
| Conveyancing, inspections, adjustments | about $3,000 |
| **Cash needed at settlement** | **$210,870** |

For illustration, at 6.00% p.a. over 30 years, $464,000 costs about $2,782 a month. The obstacle is not the repayment; it is finding a lender that accepts student-visa income, and finding $210,870.

**Option B — Dipesh buys as joint tenants with his wife, a permanent resident**

| Line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Purchase price (new apartment, same property) | $580,000 |
| Deposit at 90% LVR with mortgage insurance | $58,000 |
| Loan | $522,000 |
| Land transfer duty | $29,870 |
| Foreign purchaser additional duty | Nil, spouse principal place of residence exemption |
| Foreign investment application fee | Nil, joint tenants exemption |
| First Home Owner Grant on a new home under $750,000 | $10,000 back |
| Conveyancing and costs | about $3,000 |
| **Net cash needed at settlement** | **about $80,870** |

Same apartment, roughly $130,000 less cash, and the loan is assessed largely on his wife's income, which is what makes it approvable. It is why the first question we ask a student visa client is about their partner.

## If you are buying alone anyway

Some students do buy, usually with family money and a large deposit. If that is you:

- Get [foreign investment approval](/legal/firb-approval-for-property/), or make the contract conditional on it, before you sign. Buying without approval is a breach with penalties and a possible forced sale.
- Check the dwelling is genuinely new. A substantially renovated house is still established.
- Budget the surcharge and the application fee as cash; you cannot borrow either.
- On vacant land, approval normally requires construction to finish within four years. See [construction loans](/services/construction-loans/).

Our [home loans for visa holders](/services/home-loans-for-visa-holders/) page sets out how we screen lender policy, [buying property as a temporary resident](/guides/buying-property-as-a-temporary-resident/) covers the rules common to every temporary visa, and the [visa subclass comparison](/guides/home-loans-by-visa-subclass/) shows how the 500 compares.

## Frequently asked questions

### Can an international student buy a house in Australia?

Yes, with limits. You need foreign investment approval before you buy, and while the federal ban on foreign persons purchasing established dwellings runs to 30 June 2029 you are restricted to new dwellings, off-the-plan properties and vacant land. You will also pay a foreign purchaser duty surcharge, 8% in Victoria at the time of writing. Buying is legal; financing it is the hard part.

### Will any bank give a student visa holder a home loan?

Very few, and never as a matter of course. Most lenders exclude subclass 500 outright because of capped work rights and a visa tied to course length. A small number will consider an application where a citizen or permanent resident co-borrower carries the serviceability, or where the deposit is far above 20%. Policy changes without notice, so it is checked file by file.

### Does a student visa holder pay extra stamp duty?

Yes, unless an exemption applies. Victoria charges foreign purchaser additional duty of 8% of the dutiable value on top of ordinary duty, which on a $580,000 purchase is $46,400 extra. New South Wales charges 9% at the time of writing. The main relief is the spouse exemption for a principal place of residence bought with a partner who is not a foreign purchaser.

### Can I use my parents' money from overseas as a deposit?

You can, if it is transferred properly and documented. Lenders want the funds in an Australian account, the transfer receipts, and a statement of whether the money is a gift or a loan. A loan repayable to family counts as a liability and reduces borrowing power. Never move money in a way that breaches the laws of the source country.

### Should I wait for a 485 or skilled visa before buying?

Usually yes. A graduate or sponsored visa with full work rights opens far more lenders, and permanent residency removes the surcharge, the application fee and the established-dwelling ban altogether. On a $580,000 purchase that is roughly $62,000 of cost that disappears, and waiting builds an Australian credit file at the same time.

## Talk to GNT Finance

If you are on a student visa and thinking about buying, we can tell you honestly whether it is possible now or worth waiting for. Gorakh Timilsina worked as a senior credit officer before founding GNT Finance and knows how these files are read. Consultations are available in English, Nepali or Hindi, with an interpreter in your language on request. [Book a free consultation](/contact/) or call 0426 403 703.

*This page is general information only and not legal, tax, migration or financial advice. Visa and foreign investment rules change — confirm current requirements with the Department of Home Affairs, the Foreign Investment Review Board or a registered migration agent.*