Can You Get a Home Loan While on Probation?

Yes, your client can get a home loan while on probation if the lender’s employment rules accept the new role or their earlier work in the same field. Lenders treat probation as a question of income continuity, so the client’s work history before the new job can decide the outcome.

The rules differ from lender to lender. Macquarie’s 10 September 2026 guidelines measure tenure without mentioning probation, while BankVic’s July 2026 guidelines set a probation rule of their own. BankVic also needs probation to be complete when lenders mortgage insurance (LMI) applies.

What Changed in the Job

Start by working out what actually changed, because a new employer, a new industry and a new contract type each meet a different lender rule. Probation on its own tells you only that the employer can still review whether the client suits the role.

The Fair Work Ombudsman’s probation page, updated 14 August 2026, says the employer usually sets the length of probation, which often runs 3 to 6 months. Employees on probation keep the same entitlements as other employees. If they don’t pass, they’re still entitled to notice and to a payout of unused annual leave.

New Employer, Same Industry

A client who moves to a new employer in the same occupation is the easiest case. Several lenders count the earlier work in that field towards their tenure rule, so the probation period matters less.

Macquarie’s 10 September 2026 residential credit guidelines accept permanent staff with 6 months in the current job or 6 months in the same field in their prior role. The guidelines don’t consider the time between the two roles.

MyState’s mortgage lending procedure, effective 1 July 2026, asks for 6 months with the current employer or 12 months in the same occupation or industry. It also limits the client to 2 jobs in the past 12 months.

New Industry

A client who has changed industry can’t lean on their earlier work in the same way. The new role has to meet the lender’s tenure rule on its own.

For a career changer, Macquarie’s guidelines need 6 months in the current employment, and MyState’s procedure needs 6 months with the current employer. BankVic’s July 2026 guidelines need 3 months in the role and a completed probation period.

New Contract Type

A move from permanent work to a fixed-term contract can change which rule applies, even with the same employer. Macquarie’s guidelines use the same 6-month test for contract and permanent employment.

MyState’s procedure treats fixed-term contract employees separately. It needs 6 months with the current employer and more than 3 months left on the contract, and it gives this group no same-industry alternative. The contractor home loan guide explains how lenders classify contract income, and the casual employment home loan guide covers a move to casual work.

Check Lender Acceptance

Check the lender’s probation rule against the client’s work history before you choose the lender. Some lenders apply a general tenure test while others name probation directly. The LMI position can also change the answer.

Lender and policy date	Time in the current role	Exception for earlier work	Probation and LMI
Macquarie, guidelines updated 10 September 2026	6 months for permanent and contract employment	6 months in the same field or industry in the prior role, and the gap between roles isn’t considered	The guidelines don’t mention probation
MyState, procedure effective 1 July 2026	6 months with the current employer for permanent staff, plus no more than 2 jobs in 12 months	12 months in the same occupation or industry	The procedure doesn’t mention probation. Fixed-term contracts need 6 months with the employer and more than 3 months left
BankVic, guidelines effective July 2026	3 months in the current position for permanent full-time or contract staff, plus no more than 2 employers in 12 months	12 months of previous employment in the same industry, which also covers a client still on probation	Probation must be complete when LMI applies

Exceptions to Probation Restrictions

BankVic’s broker underwriting guidelines accept a client who hasn’t finished probation when they have 12 months of previous employment in the same industry. For a client with under 3 months in the role, BankVic can also allow for a recently gained qualification. The allowance covers its core member groups, such as police, emergency services and health workers, where stable, ongoing employment is highly likely.

Macquarie’s guidelines and MyState’s procedure don’t name probation at all. At those two lenders, probation isn’t a separate test, so the tenure rule decides whether the new job’s income can be used.

To check the rest of your panel, Bulma’s Policy Advisor puts the probation question to all 52+ lenders it covers in one comparison. The answer quotes each lender’s policy wording and names the lenders whose policy doesn’t address probation.

When LMI Applies

LMI can bring its own employment conditions. BankVic’s guidelines need probation to be complete whenever LMI applies, even when the client meets the same-industry exception.

Helia, one of the LMI insurers, takes a different approach. Its 10 August 2026 underwriting guidelines rely on the lender to verify employment under the lender’s own policy. When Helia insures the loan, the lender’s own employment rule decides how probation is treated.

Prepare the Evidence

Collect evidence for two things: the new job’s income and the client’s work history before it. The lender uses the first to verify the income and the second to support the continuity case.

Employment Agreement and Confirmation Details

The signed employment contract or offer letter is the main record of the new job. Check that it shows these details before you submit.

• The employer’s name and Australian Business Number (ABN).
• The client’s role and employment type, such as permanent full-time, part-time or fixed term.
• The start date and the base salary or hourly rate.
• The length of probation and its end date.
• Signatures from both the employer and the client.

When only base income is used and two payslips aren’t yet available, Macquarie’s 10 September 2026 guidelines accept one payslip no more than 60 days old. It must come with a signed contract or letter showing the start date and base income. For overtime, commission or shift allowances, Macquarie needs year-to-date income covering at least 3 months, or last year’s income records and the lower of the two figures.

BankVic’s July 2026 guidelines take either a signed contract confirming the start date and salary or an employer letter on letterhead. Each option needs an employer contact. MyState’s 1 July 2026 procedure accepts an employer letter showing gross income, pay frequency, role, length and type of employment when its usual prior-year records aren’t available.

Earlier Employment Records

The earlier records prove the same-industry history that the exceptions depend on. Gather records that show the previous employer, the role and when it ended.

When year-to-date income covers less than 3 months, MyState’s procedure asks for more. It needs the last payslip from the previous financial year or that year’s MyGov income statement. A previous employer’s final payslip and the client’s income statement usually show both the employer and the income.

Transition Summary in the Submission Notes

Set out the job change as a short timeline the assessor can match to the documents. Cover these points in this order.

1. The previous role, employer and dates, with the document that proves them.
2. Any gap between roles and its reason.
3. The new role, employer, employment type and start date.
4. The probation length and end date, taken from the contract.
5. How the client’s tenure meets the lender’s rule, naming the rule.

Worked Example: A Nurse Changing Hospitals

This fictional example shows how one client meets three lenders’ rules. Priya is a registered nurse who worked at a public hospital for 4 years. She started a permanent full-time role at a private hospital on 4 August 2026, on a base salary of $98,000 with a 6-month probation ending 3 February 2027.

Her broker receives Priya’s latest fortnightly payslip from the new hospital, dated 25 September 2026. Its year-to-date income covers about 8 weeks.

Priya is buying a $500,000 home with a $475,000 loan, which is a 95% loan-to-value ratio (LVR). She’ll pay any premium or fee upfront. MyState and BankVic need LMI at that LVR, while Macquarie applies its low deposit fee.

Lender	How Priya meets the tenure rule	Evidence needed	Result at 95% LVR
Macquarie	4 years in nursing beats the 6-month prior-role rule	Her 2 latest payslips, the newer no more than 60 days old and the older no more than 4 months old at submission, so submit by 24 November 2026 to keep the 25 September payslip within 60 days	Meets the employment rule
MyState	4 years in nursing beats the 12-month same-occupation rule, and she’s had 2 jobs in 12 months	Her 2 latest payslips, the newer no older than 30 days at submission, plus her June 2026 payslip or her 2025-26 MyGov income statement because her year to date is under 3 months	Meets the employment rule
BankVic	4 years in the same industry meets the rule for staff with under 3 months or an unfinished probation	Her most recent payslip, no older than 5 weeks at application, plus her signed contract with the start date, salary and an employer contact	Not until probation ends on 3 February 2027, because LMI applies

At 90% LVR or less on a metropolitan owner-occupied purchase, BankVic’s LMI waiver for core members, which include hospital staff, could remove LMI and with it the probation condition. Priya would then meet BankVic’s employment rule now as well. At 95% LVR, her broker can submit to Macquarie or MyState now, or wait until February 2027 for BankVic.

Explain the Submission

State the continuity case as facts the lender can verify, not as a promise that the job will last. The facts are the client’s history in the field, the terms of the new role and any confirmation from the employer.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) covers probation in Regulatory Guide 209, issued 9 December 2019. In its example of a new employee on probation, the probation review is a reasonably foreseeable event that could affect the borrower’s income. ASIC says confirmation from the employer gives the most certainty, and earlier employment beyond probation periods is an alternative.

Wording the Continuity Case

Write each claim so it points to a document. The two notes below describe the same fictional client.

Incorrect: “Priya’s job is secure and she will pass probation. Her employment is effectively permanent.”

Correct: “Priya has worked as a registered nurse for 4 years and moved to a private hospital on 4 August 2026. Her contract is permanent full-time on $98,000, with probation ending 3 February 2027. She meets the lender’s same-occupation rule: her 2025-26 income statement shows a full year at the public hospital.”

The incorrect note predicts an outcome nobody can promise. The correct note gives the lender verifiable facts and shows which policy rule they satisfy.

Employer Confirmation

An employer letter adds weight when the case is borderline. Ask the employer to confirm the role, employment type, salary, start date and probation end date, and to give a contact the lender can call.

Report what the employer says in the employer’s words. A letter saying the client is “performing well in the role” supports the case, but it isn’t confirmation that the role will continue after probation.

Your notes also record the inquiries behind your best interests duty and responsible lending obligations. When the facts meet the lender’s tenure rule, submit now with a short, accurate continuity case. When they don’t, choose a lender whose rule fits or wait until probation ends.