Can I get a mortgage?

Yes: Dutch lenders lend to expats on the same legal norms as everyone else. What differs is the paperwork and each lender's own policy on residence status, contracts and foreign income. That is where an adviser who works with many lenders earns their fee.

EU/EEA or Swiss citizen: Treated like a Dutch applicant. You need a BSN and a Dutch address.
Non-EU with a residence permit: Most lenders accept a valid permit (for example highly skilled migrant). Some ask for a permanent permit or a minimum remaining validity. Policies differ, so check before you bid.
Living abroad: Few lenders finance a Dutch home for someone not living here, and usually not as an owner-occupied home with deduction.

Part of the series Buying a home in the Netherlands: every step and every mortgage topic, with worked examples.

Your income: what lenders count

Permanent contract: An employer's statement (werkgeversverklaring) and recent payslips. Probation must usually be over.
Temporary contract: Counts if your employer signs an intent statement (intentieverklaring) that the contract will become permanent if things stay as they are.
Flexible or no intent statement: A perspective statement (perspectiefverklaring) or an income test over the past years can work. Lenders differ.
Self-employed: Usually one to three years of annual figures; the newer your business, the fewer lenders.
Income in another currency: Some lenders count it with a safety margin, many do not. Lenders must warn you about the currency risk.

The 30% ruling: more net pay, not a bigger mortgage

Lenders test your gross salary against the same 2026 table as anyone else; the tax-free allowance does not raise it. A single expat on €90,000 gross:

Maximum mortgage on income (10 yrs fixed, 3.8%): €414,000
With the single-person extra (if the lender uses it): €431,000
Net pay per month with the 30% ruling: €6,048
Net pay per month without it: €4,859
Gross monthly payment on a €414,000 loan: €1,929
Tax saving from the deduction, year 1, with the ruling: €6,279
The same once the ruling has ended: €5,538

Plan for the day the ruling ends: net pay drops by about €1,189 a month in this example, while the mortgage stays. From 2027 the tax-free part goes from 30% to 27%. See the 30% ruling.

Expat checklist

1
BSN, address and a Dutch bank account
Lenders collect the payment from a Dutch account. See banking.
2
Savings for the buying costs
You can borrow up to 100% of the value, not the costs. Money from abroad: keep the paper trail, lenders check the source.
3
Your credit record
Dutch loans and credit cards are registered at the BKR. Loans abroad do not show there, but you must declare them, and they count as debts.
4
Advice in English
Many advisers work in English. The deeds at the notary are in Dutch; you may bring a sworn interpreter, and must if you do not understand Dutch.
5
If you might leave
Renting out your home needs the lender's permission, and the home moves to Box 3: no deduction. See leaving the Netherlands.

General information for 2026, not financial advice. Lenders apply the rules in their own way, and rates change daily. Before you sign, have your own situation checked by a registered mortgage adviser.

How much can I borrow? · Annuity, linear or interest-only · Interest rates and fixed periods · Mortgage interest deduction · NHG · Buying costs · Mortgages for expats · Moving, repaying, divorce, selling · Mortgage glossary