In short: GNT Finance arranges home loans for Nepali families anywhere in Australia, in English, Nepali or Hindi, by phone, video and e-signature from our Melbourne office. The federal rules are the same everywhere: 5% deposit, no lenders mortgage insurance, no income caps. What changes at every border is stamp duty, the first home owner grant and the price cap, and those differences are worth tens of thousands of dollars.
Nepali Australians are one of the country's larger and faster-growing communities, long-established in Melbourne and Sydney and growing quickly in Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Canberra, Hobart and Darwin. The path is familiar: a student visa, a graduate visa, skilled or employer sponsorship, permanent residency, then the first home. This page is the national map, written from the assessing side of the desk by a former senior credit officer.
Where Nepali families are buying
- Melbourne, the largest community, concentrated in the northern growth corridor around Craigieburn, Mickleham, Kalkallo, Wollert and Epping, and in the west. Covered in detail on our Nepali mortgage broker Melbourne page.
- Sydney, long-established in Rockdale, Kogarah, Hurstville, Auburn, Lidcombe, Strathfield and Ashfield, with first home buying now concentrated in Blacktown, Marsden Park, Schofields, Liverpool and Campbelltown. See Nepali mortgage broker Sydney.
- Brisbane and Logan, around Sunnybank, Runcorn, Calamvale, Logan Central, Woodridge, Springfield Lakes and North Lakes. See Nepali mortgage broker Brisbane.
- Adelaide, mainly the northern suburbs around Salisbury, Parafield Gardens, Pooraka and Mawson Lakes, and west to Findon and Athol Park. See Nepali mortgage broker Adelaide.
- Perth, in the northern suburbs around Balga, Mirrabooka and Girrawheen, out to Joondalup and Morley, and south around Canning Vale and Willetton. See Nepali mortgage broker Perth.
- Canberra, Hobart and Darwin, smaller but growing, often built around health, aged care and hospitality work.
We lend into all of them. Our office is in Mickleham in Melbourne's north; every other state is served remotely, and the lender panel is national.
The schemes compared, state by state
The Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme is federal. Since October 2025 it has had no income caps and no limit on places, and it lets eligible first home buyers purchase with a 5% deposit and no lenders mortgage insurance. Everything else on this table is set by the state. All figures are at the time of writing, and every state revenue office changes them, so confirm before you sign.
| State or territory | 5% Deposit Scheme cap, capital and major centres | First home duty position | First home owner grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| Victoria | $950,000 Melbourne and Geelong, $650,000 rest | Exempt to $600,000, concession $600,001 to $750,000 | $10,000 on a new home up to $750,000 |
| New South Wales | $1,500,000 Sydney, Newcastle and Illawarra, $800,000 rest | Exempt to $800,000, concession to just under $1,000,000 | $10,000 on a new home up to $600,000, or a build to $750,000 |
| Queensland | $1,000,000 Brisbane, Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast, $700,000 rest | Established home exempt to $700,000 with concession to $800,000; new home concession reduces duty to nil with no value cap | $30,000 at the time of writing on a new home valued under $750,000. Check the current amount |
| Western Australia | $850,000 Perth, $600,000 rest | Exempt to $600,000, concession to $800,000, following the May 2026 changes | $10,000 on a new home, property cap $800,000 south of the 26th parallel |
| South Australia | $900,000 Adelaide, $500,000 rest | No stamp duty for eligible first home buyers of a new home or vacant land to build, thresholds removed | $15,000 on a new home, no value cap for contracts from 6 June 2024 |
| Tasmania | $700,000 Hobart, $550,000 rest | Established homes to $750,000 attract no duty for first home buyers | $10,000 for new builds. Check the current amount |
| Australian Capital Territory | $1,000,000 | Home Buyer Concession Scheme is income tested and can reduce duty to nil | No separate grant |
| Northern Territory | $750,000 Darwin, $600,000 rest of the Territory | Territory concessions apply. Check the current settings | HomeGrown Territory and FreshStart grants at the time of writing |
Two patterns matter for Nepali buyers. First, in most states buying new is treated far more generously than buying established, which is why so many families end up in house-and-land estates on the city fringe. Second, the scheme cap and the duty threshold are different numbers with different purposes: in Sydney you can avoid lenders mortgage insurance up to $1,500,000 but lose all duty relief above $1,000,000. Read the First Home Guarantee explained, then check yourself against the eligibility calculator and estimate duty with the stamp duty calculator.
The money and document realities for Nepali families
Deposits and gifts from Nepal
Support from parents is normal, and Australian lenders accept gifted deposits. What they will not accept is money without a history. Expect to provide a signed gift letter, evidence of the sender's source of funds, remittance receipts and your Australian bank statement showing the funds arriving, and expect many lenders to require the money held for three months before it counts as genuine savings. See genuine savings explained and the home loan documents checklist.
Nepal's rules on sending money abroad are restrictive and change over time. We will never suggest a way around them. Take legal and tax advice in Nepal before any significant transfer, use the formal banking channel, and keep every receipt. An informal transfer leaves no trail, and no trail means no approval.
Remittances you send home
Regular transfers to family in Nepal appear in your bank statements and are read as living expenses, reducing your assessed surplus. That is not a reason to stop, but it is a reason to disclose and explain them, particularly where they are discretionary and will reduce after settlement.
Thin Australian credit files
If you arrived in the last few years, your credit file may be nearly empty. Some lenders treat that as risk. Others weigh your rental ledger, your savings pattern and your employment stability. Six months of clean banking, no dishonours and one small, well-managed account can widen your options considerably. Read credit score and home loans.
Visa, PR and the timing of your first home
This is the single most common question we get from Nepali families, and the answer is mostly about sequencing.
- Student and graduate visas. Temporary residents generally cannot buy an established dwelling under current federal rules. A new dwelling may be possible with FIRB approval, foreign purchaser duty and a larger deposit, but it is rarely the best value.
- Skilled and sponsored visas. Same restriction, but this is the stage to build savings, credit history and a stable employment record so the file is ready.
- Permanent residency. Most lenders treat permanent residents like citizens. You become eligible for the 5% Deposit Scheme and for state first home concessions. Many families settle within months of grant because they prepared in advance.
See home loans for visa holders, home loans for new migrants and buying property as a temporary resident.
Property in Nepal and NRN status
Owning land or a house in Nepal, or holding Non-Resident Nepali status, does not stop you buying in Australia. The 5% Deposit Scheme asks about property owned in Australia, so overseas property is generally not a barrier there, but some state first home concessions ask a broader question about property held anywhere. Disclose it from the start. A declared overseas asset can be planned around; an undeclared one discovered mid-assessment usually ends the application.
Family purchases with siblings and parents
Buying with a brother, a sister or parents is common and entirely workable. Both incomes count, and both borrowers are liable for the whole loan, which is the part families most often underestimate. Decide the ownership split before contracts are signed, and understand the difference between joint tenants and tenants in common. Where a parent wants to help with equity rather than cash, look at guarantor home loans and the legal consequences in guarantor legal responsibilities.
The work our clients do, and how lenders read it
| Occupation | The assessment issue |
|---|---|
| Nursing, aged care and disability support | Penalty rates, sleepovers and multiple employers, counted at 50% to 100% depending on the lender. See aged care and disability support workers |
| Hospitality | Casual tenure, penalty rates and split shifts; undeclared cash income cannot be used. See hospitality workers |
| Rideshare and delivery | Assessed on lodged tax returns, not platform earnings, and the car loan counts against you. See rideshare and delivery drivers |
| Trucking and transport | Employee versus owner driver changes everything, and truck finance is a major drag. See truck drivers and transport operators |
| IT and engineering | PAYG contract versus a company or trust can swing borrowing power by hundreds of thousands. See IT contractors |
| Teaching | Permanent, fixed-term and relief work are assessed very differently. See teachers |
| Small business: grocery, restaurant, cleaning, childcare | Two years of returns with add-backs. See self-employed loans |
A worked example that works anywhere
Take a $700,000 purchase, the sort of price that appears in most of the corridors listed above, bought by a couple who are permanent residents and first home buyers using the 5% Deposit Scheme.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Purchase price | $700,000 |
| Deposit at 5% | $35,000 |
| Loan amount | $665,000 |
| Lenders mortgage insurance | Nil under the scheme, where a 95% loan would ordinarily attract a five-figure premium |
| Monthly repayment, for illustration at 6.00% p.a. over 30 years | $665,000 ÷ $100,000 × $599.55 = about $3,987 |
| Assessed repayment at 9.00% p.a., your rate plus the 3 point APRA buffer | $665,000 ÷ $100,000 × $804.62 = about $5,351 |
The loan and the repayment are identical in every state. What is not identical is what happens at settlement. At $700,000, a first home buyer pays no transfer duty in New South Wales and none in Queensland on an established home, pays no duty in South Australia if the home is new, sits in the concessional band in Victoria and in Western Australia, and would receive a grant of $10,000 to $30,000 depending on the state and whether the home is new. That is a five-figure swing on an identical purchase. Figures are illustrative and ignore lender fees and expense floors. Run your own numbers with the borrowing power calculator and the upfront costs calculator.
Language, and how we work nationally
Gorakh Timilsina speaks English, Nepali and Hindi, and every consultation can be held in either. For any other language we arrange a professional interpreter on request, and we are experienced with the paperwork migrant families face. GNT Finance is based at Mickleham in Melbourne's north. Clients in every other state are served by phone, video and e-signature, with documents signed and lodged electronically, on a national lender panel. See mortgage broker Australia for the general service and communities we serve for our work with families from Nepal, India, the Philippines, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, China and every other community and country.
Frequently asked questions
Can a Nepali citizen on a temporary visa buy a home in Australia?
Generally not an established dwelling, under current federal rules. A new dwelling can be possible with FIRB approval, foreign purchaser duty and usually a larger deposit, but it is rarely good value. Most Nepali families are better served preparing during the temporary visa stage, building savings, credit history and stable employment, and buying once permanent residency is granted, when the concessions and the 5% Deposit Scheme become available.
Which state is best for a Nepali first home buyer?
It depends on where your work and family are, but on the numbers alone South Australia and Queensland are currently the most generous to buyers of new homes, with no duty and grants of $15,000 and $30,000 respectively at the time of writing. New South Wales offers the most useful scheme cap at $1,500,000 for Sydney. Victoria sits in between. We model your actual situation rather than the averages.
Can my parents in Nepal pay my deposit?
Often yes, provided the transfer is lawful under Nepal's rules and properly documented in Australia. Lenders generally want a signed gift letter, evidence of the sender's source of funds, remittance receipts and your bank statement showing the money arriving, and many want it held for three months. Take legal and tax advice in Nepal first, use formal banking channels, and keep every receipt.
Do you have an office in Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide or Perth?
No. GNT Finance operates from Mickleham in Melbourne's north and serves the rest of Australia by phone, video and e-signature. In practice that means an initial call at a time that suits you, secure document upload, electronic signing and the same national lender panel a local broker would use. Nothing about your postcode changes which lenders we can approach on your behalf.
Does owning property in Nepal affect my first home buyer eligibility?
It can. The 5% Deposit Scheme asks whether you have owned property in Australia, so an overseas property is generally not a barrier there. Some state first home duty concessions ask a broader question about property held anywhere in the world. Always disclose it. Working around a declared asset is straightforward; an undeclared one found during assessment usually ends the application.
Talk to GNT Finance
Wherever in Australia you are buying, we will tell you honestly what is achievable, prepare the gift and source-of-funds evidence properly, and take your file to the lender whose policy actually fits your income and visa stage. Consultations in English, Nepali or Hindi, with an interpreter in your language on request. Book a free consultation or call 0426 403 703.
This page is general information only and not legal, tax, migration or financial advice. Grants, duty thresholds, scheme caps and lender policies change, and Nepal's rules on sending money abroad change too. Confirm current rules with your state revenue office, the ATO or a licensed professional, and get legal advice in Nepal before transferring funds.
Written by Gorakh Timilsina
Founder, CEO & Senior Mortgage Consultant at GNT Finance. Gorakh started as a broker assistant, spent years as a senior credit officer assessing loan applications, and now helps Melbourne families get the right loan approved. English, Nepali and Hindi spoken.