BOQ Business Loans: Lending Criteria for Brokers

BOQ business loans fund business expansion, property transactions and short-term cash-flow needs through different facilities. Match the repayment source and security to the purpose before preparing your client’s application. A business that already banks with BOQ still needs a lending assessment.

Which BOQ Facility Fits the Purpose

Choose the BOQ facility by what the client needs to pay for and how that expenditure will be repaid. As at October 2026, BOQ’s business lending range separates overdrafts from term lending and equipment finance.

Client’s purpose	BOQ facility to consider	Why it fits the purpose
Cover a temporary cash-flow gap or seasonal expenses	Business Overdraft	Access to an approved limit attached to the Everyday Business Account, with interest charged on the amount used
Buy a business or expand operations	Business Term Loan	A defined borrowing amount repaid over an agreed term; the published minimum is $10,000
Commercial property investment, development or business acquisition	Commercial Rate Loan	Project and acquisition funding, with a published minimum of $500,000
Buy or lease a vehicle or equipment	Equipment and Vehicle Finance	Asset-specific structures, including finance lease, commercial hire purchase and chattel mortgage

BOQ’s Business Term Loan suits a capital purchase with repayments over time. An overdraft fits a temporary shortfall that cash receipts can reduce. A permanently exhausted overdraft needs a repayment plan, because another limit increase doesn’t correct an ongoing cash deficit.

For a machinery or vehicle purchase, separate the asset cost from the client’s working-capital request. The BOQ equipment finance guide covers that facility’s assessment in more detail.

General Business Lending and BOQ Specialist

As at October 2026, BOQ Specialist focuses on medical, dental and veterinary professionals. Its practice finance range includes practice purchase, premises and equipment funding. Practice purchase lending can use goodwill and equipment, which changes how you describe the assets being bought.

BOQ Specialist also describes services for accountants who work with medical professionals. That doesn’t make every professional-services business a Specialist client. Present a general professional-services business to BOQ’s commercial team, and identify a healthcare practice as a Specialist enquiry.

Keep a separate home purchase or residential refinance under BOQ home-loan policy. A business loan secured by a house still funds a business purpose.

Trading History and Financial Evidence

Build the evidence around the business’s actual trading history and the cash available for repayments. BOQ’s March 2026 Facility General Conditions tie financial reporting obligations to each borrower’s Facility Details. They also provide for tax returns when requested.

For practice lending, BOQ Specialist’s business loan preparation guide, as at October 2026, calls for financial statements and a business plan with cash-flow projections. It says applicants may also need their two latest tax returns and/or business activity statements (BAS). For a new practice, it points to personal financial statements.

Use the following preparation pack to explain the file. This is a broker’s collection checklist, not a fixed document rule for every BOQ business loan.

Evidence	What it lets the assessor review
Available annual profit and loss statements and balance sheets	Historical earnings, debts and assets for the borrowing entity
Business and relevant personal tax returns	Reported income and the owners’ financial position
BAS and business bank statements	Recent turnover, cash receipts and operating payments
Current management accounts	Trading since the last completed financial year
Cash-flow forecast and business plan	Why funding is needed and how the business expects to repay it
Existing loan statements and tax payment arrangements	Current balances and repayment commitments
Purchase contract, equipment quotes or property details	The transaction the loan will fund

An established business can show trends across completed years, then bridge the gap to today with management accounts. A new business has less historical evidence. Explain the owner’s experience, available personal resources and forecast assumptions instead of treating missing years as existing accounts.

For a practice acquisition, separate the seller’s historical results from the purchaser’s forecast. Identify changes in practitioner hours, staffing costs or rent. Those changes can alter the cash available even when the practice’s previous revenue is strong.

Presenting a Loss or Irregular Income

Explain the loss before the assessor has to infer its cause. Show the reported result first, then itemise any proposed adjustments with supporting invoices or an accountant’s explanation. Present those adjustments for assessment without assuming BOQ will accept them.

In a hypothetical file, a business reports a $20,000 loss after $35,000 of relocation costs. Removing those costs gives a proposed adjusted profit of $15,000. That calculation alone doesn’t prove the business can repay a new loan.

Attach current trading results and show whether the new rent or staffing costs continue. If trading still loses money after the move, describe how the client will fund that deficit. Don’t label an ongoing cost as a one-off expense.

For seasonal or irregular income, forecast month-by-month receipts and expenses. Include tax payments and existing loan repayments, then show the lowest cash balance after the proposed facility. Contracts and debtor ageing can explain the timing of expected receipts.

Security and Guarantees

BOQ’s security requirements depend on the facility and the transaction. As at October 2026, its overdraft page allows residential security at a maximum 80% loan-to-value ratio (LVR), and/or non-residential property. LVR compares the debt secured against a property with its assessed value.

The Business Term Loan page distinguishes residential, non-residential and mixed security. BOQ’s Commercial Rate Loan lists residential property, commercial property and business assets among accepted security. It also lists director guarantees and company charges.

A company charge gives the lender rights over the company’s assets. A director guarantee creates a personal obligation under its terms. Neither the list of available security types nor the company structure establishes which guarantee BOQ will require for a particular file.

Record the proposed guarantors and any limits requested in the submission. Where BOQ makes a guarantee an approval condition, the loan can’t settle on the proposed terms until that condition is satisfied. The business loan guarantor guide explains the guarantor’s exposure and preparation.

An Unsecured Request

If the client wants funding without property or business-asset security, describe that requirement in the initial enquiry. Keep it separate from a director guarantee: borrowing without an asset mortgage can still leave a director personally liable. Obtain a facility proposal that specifies both the collateral and guarantee obligations before recommending that structure.

Existing Debt and a Refinance

Map existing lender claims before describing the assets as available security. A property mortgage or charge over business assets can give another lender priority over BOQ. BOQ’s March 2026 conditions require security to have the priority BOQ specifies.

For a refinance, prepare a debt schedule with each lender, balance, limit and repayment. Identify every asset and guarantee supporting those debts. Include payout figures, discharge or release requirements and any early-repayment costs in the funding calculation.

If another debt stays in place, show its ongoing repayments and which security it retains. Where two lenders need rights over the same assets, resolve the proposed priority with the lenders before settlement. A refinance doesn’t release an old guarantee or charge simply because the new loan is approved.

Preparing the Broker Submission

Introduce the case through BOQ’s commercial broker channel, with a short summary that lets the banker identify the facility and assessment issues. As at October 2026, the BOQ Commercial Broker page provides regional business development manager contacts. It also links a self-service platform for accredited brokers, with policy guidelines and calculators.

BOQ’s commercial channel covers BOQ Business and BOQ Specialist. Use the regional contact for the proposed business transaction and identify whether it’s a healthcare practice. If you’re arranging a direct client enquiry, BOQ’s business product pages provide 1300 714 986 and a branch route.

Prepare the introduction in this order.

1. Identify the borrowing entity, owners and trading start date. Explain the business activity and the client’s existing BOQ relationship.
2. State the amount, purpose and timing. Separate purchases, refinance payouts and working capital so each use can be assessed.
3. Show the repayment source. Tie the cash-flow calculation to the financial statements and current trading evidence.
4. Set out the security and existing lender claims. Name proposed guarantors and any assets the client wants to keep outside the transaction.
5. Explain the assessment issues. Locate any loss, irregular income or short trading history and attach the evidence supporting your explanation.
6. Record why the proposed BOQ facility meets the client’s needs. Include the alternative lender types considered and the reason for excluding each.

Banking with BOQ is useful context, but the recommendation needs more than an existing account. For example, a revolving overdraft can fit seasonal stock purchases, while equipment finance can tie vehicle repayments to the asset. A term facility can give a defined repayment schedule for an expansion.

Compare those structures with other banks’ business lending and specialist asset lenders where the purpose fits. For a client who won’t provide property security, include lenders that assess cash-flow-based funding. Record the differences in repayment burden, security exposure and the client’s required timing.

Before submitting, make the requested amount reconcile to the uses of funds. Check that every debt appears in the repayment calculation and every proposed adjustment has evidence. The banker can then review the requested facility against a complete business case.