Mortgages for non-residents
TL;DR
- Spanish banks typically lend non-residents 60–70% of the property valuation — this is market practice, not a legal cap.
- Under Ley 5/2019, the bank pays the gestoría, the notary fees for the loan deed and the Land Registry inscription; you pay the tasación (valuation).
- The AJD stamp duty on the mortgage loan is paid by the bank since November 2018 (RDL 17/2018).
- A tasación by a homologated appraiser is mandatory before any Spanish mortgage (Ley 5/2019, art. 13).
- Much of what ranks online about Spanish mortgage costs predates 2018–2019 and still bills these costs to the borrower. It is out of date.
Facts verified 10 August 2026 against Ley 5/2019 and RDL 17/2018 on the BOE (boe.es)
A Spanish mortgage as a non-resident is entirely possible — banks write them every day — but the numbers differ from a resident’s loan in one direction and the cost split differs from what most articles claim in the other. The rules that matter, covered in our guide to banking and money in Spain, come from two texts: Ley 5/2019 on real-estate credit and RDL 17/2018 on stamp duty. Both moved major costs from the borrower to the bank, and the top of the search results has still not caught up.
Updated 10 August 2026
Key facts
| Typical loan-to-value for non-residents | 60–70% of valuation (market practice) |
|---|---|
| Valuation (tasación) | Mandatory, by a homologated appraiser — Ley 5/2019, art. 13 |
| Who pays the tasación | The borrower |
| Who pays gestoría, notary, Land Registry | The bank — Ley 5/2019, art. 14 |
| Who pays AJD stamp duty on the loan | The bank, since November 2018 — RDL 17/2018 |
| Copies of the deed | Whoever requests them |
How much banks lend non-residents
Spanish banks commonly finance residents up to around 80% of a primary home’s value. For non-residents the typical offer sits at 60–70% of the tasación value — and note the reference point: the appraised value, not necessarily the price you agreed. This band is standard market practice, not a figure fixed by any law, so individual banks set their own ceilings and adjust them to your income, country and profile.
The practical consequence: plan to bring at least 30–40% of the price plus purchase costs from your own funds. Moving that deposit efficiently is its own subject — see sending money to Spain — and the bank will ask you to document where it came from before completion.
The tasación: the one cost that is yours
Before any mortgage is signed, the property must be valued by a tasador homologado — an appraiser or valuation society certified for the purpose. Ley 5/2019, article 13, makes the tasación a legal requirement, not a bank whim, and article 14 places its cost on the borrower. You are entitled to a copy of the report, and a tasación is valid for use with any lender — if you switch banks mid-application, ask whether your existing report can travel with you.
Who pays what: the Ley 5/2019 split
This is the table that most published guides get wrong. Since Ley 5/2019 (in force June 2019) and RDL 17/2018 (November 2018), the distribution of mortgage set-up costs is fixed by law:
| Cost | Who pays |
|---|---|
| Tasación (property valuation) | Borrower |
| Gestoría (administrative processing of the loan) | Bank |
| Notary fees for the mortgage deed (escritura) | Bank |
| Land Registry (Registro de la Propiedad) inscription | Bank |
| AJD stamp duty on the mortgage loan | Bank (RDL 17/2018) |
| Copies of the deed | Whoever requests them |
Two things this split does not cover. First, it applies to the loan, not the purchase: taxes and notary costs on the property transaction itself remain the buyer’s. Second, articles written before 2019 — still ranking, still quoted — list gestoría, notary, registry and AJD as borrower costs. If a lender or intermediary hands you a cost sheet billing you for those items on the loan, they are quoting a legal regime that no longer exists.
What the bank will ask of you
Non-resident applications run on paperwork from two countries: passport and NIE, proof of income (payslips, tax returns, accounts if self-employed), bank statements, and an overview of existing debts. Everything foreign should be ready in translation. Expect the offer to come with a mandatory advance-information pack (the FEIN) that fixes the terms before signing — read it at leisure; the law builds in time for exactly that. Once the loan is running, the monthly instalments are collected from your Spanish account by direct debit, alongside the rest of your everyday payments in Spain.
⚠ Scams to avoid
- "Investment mortgages" with no tasación. A Spanish mortgage without a homologated valuation does not exist — Ley 5/2019 makes the tasación mandatory. An "off-book loan, no valuation needed" offer is not a mortgage; it is a trap.
- Cost sheets billing you for notary, registry, gestoría or AJD on the loan. The bank pays those by law. An intermediary "collecting" them from you is charging you for someone else’s legal obligation.
- Guaranteed-approval brokers with upfront fees. No broker controls a bank’s credit decision. Paying a large non-refundable "approval fee" before any bank offer exists buys nothing but the fee itself.
FAQ
How much deposit do I need for a Spanish mortgage as a non-resident?
Banks typically lend non-residents 60–70% of the appraised value, so plan for 30–40% of the price plus the purchase costs from your own funds. The band is market practice and varies by bank and profile.
Who pays the notary and stamp duty on a Spanish mortgage?
The bank. Since RDL 17/2018 the lender is the taxable party for AJD, and Ley 5/2019 assigns the notary fees for the loan deed, the Land Registry inscription and the gestoría to the bank. The borrower pays the tasación.
Is a valuation mandatory for a Spanish mortgage?
Yes. Ley 5/2019, article 13, requires a valuation by a homologated appraiser or valuation society before the loan is granted.
Do I need a NIE to get a mortgage in Spain?
Yes in practice: the mortgage deed and the purchase deed are executed before a notary, and the notary requires your NIE to do it. Get the NIE early — it is the slowest document in the chain.
Sources:
Ley 5/2019, reguladora de los contratos de crédito inmobiliario, arts. 13–14 (boe.es, BOE-A-2019-3814); Real Decreto-ley 17/2018 on AJD (boe.es, BOE-A-2018-15344). Loan-to-value figures are market practice, not statute. Retrieved 10 August 2026.
Reviewed by the Happy Residence S.L. team. Every figure on this page is checked against the official source on the date shown above.
We are an administrative assistance service, not a public administration.