Mortgage in Spain as a non-resident: how it works

How a mortgage in Spain works for a non-resident: how much banks lend, the documents, who pays which costs, and the protections of Spanish mortgage law.

Last checked 17 October 2026

What you will learn

How much Spanish banks lend on a second home
The documents a bank asks for when you live abroad
Who pays which costs, and what the notary checks

Yes, you can get a mortgage in Spain as a non-resident. Spanish banks lend to buyers who live abroad, and the same law protects you as it protects a Spanish borrower. What changes is how much a bank will lend, the papers it asks for and the time it needs. This guide explains how the process works. We are not financial advisers and we do not advise on loans: the choice of loan is between you, your bank and, if you wish, an independent adviser.

How much banks lend to non-residents

Banks lend against the lower of the price and the bank's valuation. Banco de España says loans are normally capped at 80% of the valuation, in its note on mortgage valuations, but each bank sets its own policy, and for a second home the limit is often lower. Banco Sabadell's standard pre-contract sheet for a mixed-rate mortgage (July 2025 edition), for example, sets a maximum of 80% for a main home and 70% for a second home, in both cases of the lower of price and valuation. A bank can always lend less, so treat these as ceilings, not promises.

Purchase taxes, notary, registry and legal fees are paid on top of the price and are not usually part of the loan. Plan to cover them, and the part of the price the bank does not lend, from your own funds. Our guide to what it really costs to buy a house in Spain lists them.

Before lending, the bank must assess whether you can repay: your income now and over the life of the loan, your savings, other debts and, if the loan will run past retirement, your expected pension. It may not base the decision mainly on the value of the house or on the hope that it will rise, under article 11 of the Spanish mortgage credit law, Ley 5/2019. For a non-resident the bank has to understand income earned and taxed in another country, which is one reason the file takes longer.

For context, the land registrars report that new home loans in Spain in the second quarter of 2026 started at an average rate of 3.03% (2.92% fixed, 3.24% variable), that 63.83% were at a fixed rate, and that the average term was 25.67 years, or 24.92 years in the Comunitat Valenciana, in the Registradores property statistics for the second quarter of 2026. These are averages for all borrowers, not offers you can expect.

A mortgage in Spain as a non-resident: the documents

Each bank has its own list. As an example, the same Sabadell sheet asks non-residents for an identity document, the last two years' tax returns from their country (a P60 or tax return, for instance), the last two payslips or pension statements, proof of other income, the last two statements of any mortgages, loans or cards, a credit report from their country such as Experian or Equifax, and six months of bank statements. Self-employed applicants add two years of accounts. Documents must come with a sworn translation into Spanish or English.

The NIE. You need a foreigner's identification number to sign the purchase and the loan. Our NIE guide explains how to get one in Spain or from abroad.

The valuation. Only valuation companies approved and supervised by Banco de España can value a property for a mortgage. You pay for it, and it is valid for six months. If you commission one from an approved company, every bank you approach must accept it while it is valid, and a bank that turns you down must give you back the original report.

Who pays what

Ley 5/2019 splits the costs of the loan. You pay the valuation and any copies of the deed you ask for. The bank pays the notary's fee for the mortgage deed, the land registry fee for recording the mortgage and the gestoría that handles the paperwork. The stamp duty on the mortgage deed is also the lender's: state tax law names the lender as the taxpayer, and in the Comunitat Valenciana the rate on mortgage deeds is 2%, under Valencian Ley 13/1997, article 14.

A bank may charge an opening fee only once, and it must cover all the costs of studying and granting the loan. It can require home insurance and a policy that protects repayment, but it must accept an equivalent policy from another insurer, both at the start and at each renewal (article 17). If you repay early, the fee is capped: on a variable loan at 0.25% of the amount repaid in the first three years or 0.15% in the first five, whichever the contract chooses; on a fixed loan at 2% in the first ten years and 1.5% after that. In every case it cannot exceed the bank's actual financial loss (article 23).

The ten days, the notary and signing from abroad

At least ten calendar days before signing, the bank must give you the binding offer (FEIN), a standard warnings sheet (FiAE) that flags the key clauses, a draft of the contract with every cost listed and, for a variable rate, a separate document showing your payments in different interest rate scenarios. The basics are in our post on mortgage rates this autumn. Here is what they mean when you live elsewhere.

The notary meeting. During those ten days, and at the latest the day before signing, you, or someone who represents you, must appear before a notary of your choice. The notary checks the documents, explains each clause of the FEIN and the FiAE one by one, and you answer a short test on what you have received. The notary records this in a certificate (acta) that costs you nothing. Without it, the loan deed cannot be signed (article 15).

If you cannot travel. The law allows a representative to attend, so many buyers abroad sign through a notarial power of attorney. Ask the bank and the notary early whether they accept the power you plan to use, and in what form. If your income is in a currency other than the euro, ask about the right to convert a loan in a foreign currency into the currency you earn in (article 20).

Timing. Allow time for the bank to study a foreign file, for the valuation and for the ten days. The mortgage is usually signed at the same notary appointment as the purchase deed, so the dates in your private purchase contract should leave room for it. Whether that contract should depend on getting the loan is a question for your lawyer.

The practical step is to talk to banks before you reserve a property, so you know what you can borrow and how long it will take. Go through the FEIN and the draft contract with an independent lawyer, and confirm your own tax position with a tax adviser in Spain and at home. Then look at the investment properties on the Costa Blanca North with a budget you can rely on.

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Written by Nicolas Strebel.