Income criteria

Acceptable income and proofs required

Please see the below tables for the type of income and proofs we accept.

We'll seek to validate your client's income using credit bureau information. If we can do this successfully, we won't request to see any proofs.

For interest only, the minimum income criteria is £75,000 for sole applicants or £100,000 for joint applicants (based on basic income only). The minimum income criteria will determine if your clients are eligible for our interest only product and the assessment is made using their primary basic source of income. You can't use Secondary income, bonus, overtime or commission. 

Download our packaging support guide for top tips when submitting proofs.

Please don't attach proofs to an application if they aren't requested. This may delay the progress of your case.

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Income from employment (including second jobs*)

Download our guide to payslip requirements

Acceptable income and proofs required table for income from employment

Acceptable income	Proofs required
Basic pay	Latest payslip**
Car Allowance, Location Allowance, Mortgage Subsidies, Shift Allowance, Teaching & Responsibility Payment (TLR) 1 & 2, Value account, Pension Benefit Fund and Housing Allowance for Police	Latest payslip**
Housing Allowance (Non Police) - subject to an employment contract/letter confirming the payment is contractual, guaranteed and will not cease (e.g. in the event the applicant takes on a mortgage). If the payment varies, the average will be taken.	Latest 3 months payslips or relevant weekly /fortnightly /4 week equivalent
*Second job income can only be used where the applicant has been in the job for at least 6 months. **For National Rail and supermarket workers, we will require the last 3 months payslips. Contact us for more information. If a payslip isn't available or your client has a new job, please read our employment criteria. Employer's references will only be requested if your client is working temporarily via an agency. Recruit and Retain (RRP) Armed Forces This must be shown on all payslips in the last 3 months. If the header includes the words Reserve/Reserve Band/Reserve Banding, it can’t be used. If the daily rate* is the same across all 3 months it can be used as basic pay (average of the last 3 payslip amounts). If the daily rate is not the same it can only be used as overtime. *The daily rate is the payslip amount divided by the number of days in the payslip month. Non-Armed Forces This must be shown on all payslips in the last 3 months / 8 weeks AND supporting evidence (employer letter/contract) is needed confirming the payment is ongoing and is permanent/guaranteed. If the amount paid across all payslips is the same it can be used as basic pay. If the payment varies it can only be used as overtime.

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Income from bonus, overtime and commission

• For all applications where Bonus, Overtime* or Commission (BOC) is required, the average amount of any frequency will be applied.
• For any BOC to be acceptable it must be present on the latest payslip.
• Tronc is a common term for tips and service charge payments in restaurants and hotels - this is treated as Overtime.
• Provided BOC is shown on the latest payslip, any remaining payslips not showing BOC will be treated as £0 in the averaging. If the latest payslip doesn't show a payment, it can't be used. Please also note:
• For annual bonus and commission, both proofs must show a payment.
• For half yearly bonus and commission, at least 2 of the 4 proofs (including the most recent one) must show a payment. 
• If BOC is not present on the latest payslip, then a subsequent payslip that shows BOC must be provided once available. BOC will then be calculated using the most recent payslip.
• For Weekly/Fortnightly paid applicants only – where no BOC is on the latest payslip, but the payslip clearly shows holiday/sick pay, you don't need to obtain a subsequent payslip.
• If you're using a combination of BOC (e.g. bonus and overtime), each type of BOC must be on the provided proofs.
• It's important to ensure that the income is entered into the correct income type and with the correct frequency. For income not labelled bonus, overtime and commission see here.

Below you'll find what to use when keying your application within NFI Online, and the proofs to evidence this.

Income Type	Frequency	Amount to be keyed	Proof required
Bonus / Overtime* / Commission (BOC)	Monthly / 4 weekly	The average amount from the latest 3 payslips	Latest 3 consecutive payslips from the same employer The most recent payslip can't be £0.
	Fortnightly	The average amount from the latest 6 payslips divided by 12 and then keyed as weekly. Please note: Where no BOC is present on the latest payslip, but the payslip clearly shows holiday/sick pay, you do not need to obtain a subsequent payslip.	Latest 6 consecutive payslips from the same employer The most recent payslip can't be £0 unless it shows holiday/sick pay.
	Weekly	The average amount from the latest 8 payslips Please note: Where no BOC is present on the latest payslips, but the payslip clearly shows holiday/sick pay, you don't need to obtain a subsequent payslip.	Latest 8 consecutive payslips from the same employer The most recent payslip must not be £0 unless it shows holiday/sick pay.
Bonus / Commission	Quarterly	The average amount from the latest 3 payslips or statements	Latest 3 consecutive quarterly payslips or statements from the same employer (the oldest payslip must not be dated more than 12 months before the original DIP date) The most recent payslip can't be £0
	Half yearly	The average amount from the latest 4 payslips or statements	Latest 4 consecutive half yearly payslips or statements from the same employer (the oldest payslip must not be dated more than 25 months before the original DIP date) At least 2 of the 4 proofs must show bonus/commission (1 of which must be the most recent).
	Annual	The average amount from the latest 2 payslips or statements	Latest 2 consecutive annual payslips or statements from the same employer (the oldest payslip must not be dated more than 25 months before the original DIP date) Both proofs must show a bonus/commission payment.

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Additional income - not labelled bonus, overtime and commission

Acceptable income and proofs required table for additional income

Acceptable income and proofs required table for additional income
Acceptable income	Proofs required
Check the unacceptable income list to see if the income can be used. If it can be used, please ensure it is keyed correctly.
	Weekly / Fortnightly / Monthly / Four Weekly	Quarterly / Half Yearly / Annually
Additional income is same amount across all payslips*	Treat as basic	Treat as overtime
Additional income is variable across all payslips*	Treat as overtime
Additional income is the same or variable but not on all payslips*	This income can't be used as it does not appear on all payslips.
*To calculate any basic, bonus, overtime, commission or additional income we must be in receipt of the correct number of payslips as per the income from employment table above.

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Income from self-employment

Acceptable income and proofs required table for income from self-employment

Acceptable income	Proofs required
Income figures are required for the last two years.
Sole trader/partnerships - Applicant's share of net profit Director's salary Director's dividends	The latest 2 years HMRC Tax Calculation (SA302*) forms and Tax Year Overviews OR An accountant's certificate covering at least the last two years       View our employment criteria for more information.
Fixed Term Contract	The latest 2 years HMRC Tax Assessment forms OR An accountant's certificate covering at least the last two years OR The latest employment contract if income is being assessed as employed).       View our employment criteria for more information.
We reserve the right to request additional information such as Company Accounts. Accounts must be Final Accounts (drafts and projections are not acceptable) and the end of the latest financial period must not be more than 18 months ago. If the last accounting period is greater than 12 months, the income figures will be annualised. Where the latest two years HMRC Tax Calculations are supplied, the corresponding two years HMRC Tax Year Overviews are also required.

We're aware that there is currently a delay in obtaining Tax Year Overviews from HMRC. Please only submit SA302* where the Tax Year Overview has already been obtained.

*The only two SA302’s that are acceptable are those covering the years 2021/22 and 2022/23.

Download our guide to HMRC tax calculation and tax year overview requirements.

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Retirement income

Acceptable income and proofs required table for income from other sources

Acceptable income	Proofs required		Key as
State Pension	Latest annual statement of pension		Pension income (if the proof shows State Pension is awarded jointly, please key 50% against each applicant)
Private/Company/Occupational Pension	Latest annual statement of pension, or Latest payslip from the pension provider, or Latest letter from pension provider, or Latest P60 from the pension provider Lending into retirement The latest annual statement of pension due on retirement or the latest letter from the pension provider confirming pension due on retirement. If the anticipated income into retirement includes a personal private pension scheme then the income used is based on the Medium Growth, 25% pension commencement lump sum (PCLS) figure. If the anticipated income into retirement includes a salary-linked pension scheme, then the income used is based on 25% PCLS.		Pension income
War Disablement pension War Widow(er)s pension	War Disablement/War Widow(er)s Pension Notice		Pension income
Income from a company the applicant owns that will continue to provide an income into retirement	Accountant's certificate		Investment income

See Lending into Retirement for more information.

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Income from other sources

Acceptable income	Proofs required		Key as
Investment income	Documentary evidence of value and nature of investment income i.e. Solicitor/Accountant/Trust Administrator letters. Only income of a guaranteed amount, which will continue for the foreseeable future is acceptable.		Investment income
Dividend income from a portfolio of shares	Accountant's certificate		Investment income
Dividend income from an applicant that owns a share in a business	Accountant's certificate		Investment income
Rental income from a mortgage free property	Applicant’s latest 3 months' bank statements^, evidencing the latest three months’ net rental payments. Rental income must be paid by Direct Debit/Standing Order. We also accept a mix of bank and Association of Residential Lettings Agents (ARLA) statements evidencing the latest three months’ rental payments where this is needed to support evidence of reduced or £0 payments due to repairs/maintenance fees. Or where the latest rental payment is higher due to a rent increase for a new or existing tenant. Rental income from short term or holiday lets, "rent a room" lodgers or foreign property will not be accepted.		Rental income from an unencumbered property
Rental income from a letting business with a mortgage	The last 2 years' income figures via an accountant's certificate covering the applicant's share of net profit, or HMRC tax assessments are required.		Treat as self-employed income
Maintenance	Three months' bank statements^ as evidence of payment. We'll only accept payments that have been received for at least three months. Where there is a difference in the amounts received, the lowest figure received in the last three months will be used for affordability. Where the payments have previously been received into a joint account with the person paying maintenance, we'll require the latest full month's worth of maintenance payments to be made into a sole account, with no ongoing joint association to the maintenance payer.		Maintenance income
Parental leave	For applicants who are on or due to go on parental leave, the existing and future child care costs should be included as an outgoing, and the future number of dependents declared. Employed applicants If your client’s due to go on, or is already on parental leave, they must provide either: the latest payslip which shows the client is on parental leave, e.g. Statutory Maternity Pay information and the payslip prior to going on parental leave or a copy of the letter received from their employer confirming the terms of their parental leave or a copy of their return to work letter. The letter from the employer must be addressed to your client (not to Nationwide or to whom it may concern) and should state the return to work income. Where the letter does not confirm the return to work income, the payslip issued before parental leave started will also be required. Self-employed applicants Refer to self-employed income Bonus, overtime or commission Bonus, overtime or commission can only be accepted when an applicant has been on parental leave for less than 3 months or where the parental leave period taken was less than 3 months. If your client has returned to work, the bonus, overtime or commission received during the parental leave period can still be used.		Depending on the employment type, treat as employed income or self-employed income
Foster Income	A letter from the Foster Agency confirming the total income paid for each of the last 2 years and that the most recent year's figure is likely to continue at the same level for the foreseeable future. The children in foster care of the applicants must be keyed as dependents		Treat as self-employed income
Income Protection Insurance (IPI)	A copy of the applicants IPI policy schedule and confirmation that the payment is being made, e.g. latest payslip or a letter from the insurer.		Treat as employed income

^Please note, for all applications where bank statements are held in joint names with an unknown third party, we will require further proof of eligibility.

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Benefit income

You must key the Benefit income in the correct fields under 'Other Income'. You can't use benefits as income if the client, or proofs provided, indicates that the payment is going to stop. Payment must be expected to continue at least in part for the foreseeable future.

Acceptable income	Proofs required	Key as
Child benefit	Accepted if neither applicant's total income is more than £50,000 No proofs are required	Child benefit
Credits and benefits, including:
Working Tax Credit Child Tax Credit Universal Credit* Employment & Support Allowance* Adoption Allowance** Widowed parents allowance**	Latest 3 months bank statements We'll use an average of the last 3 months benefit payments. If the latest bank statement doesn’t show the payment, we can’t accept that income.^	Universal Credit*/Tax Credits
Special Guardianship Allowance (SAG)**	Latest 3 months bank statements The latest SAG award letter We'll use an average of the last 3 months benefit payments. If the latest bank statement doesn’t show the payment, we can’t accept that income.^
Disabled benefits, including:
Child Disability Payment/Disability living allowance (DLA)* - DLA paid to an applicant for a child under 16 is also acceptable Personal Independence Payment (PIP)/Adult Disability Payment	Latest award notice (Pages 1 and 2 only)	State Disability Benefit
Carers Allowance (CA)* Attendance Allowance (AA)	Latest award notice (Page 1 only)
Incapacity benefit Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit Disablement living allowance on behalf of a child under 16 Armed Forces Compensation Scheme Armed Forces Independence Payment (Applicants who receive an Armed Forces Independence Payment will not be eligible for PIP, DLA or Attendance Allowance)	Latest award notice When attaching the Latest Award Notice, this must not include any of the applicant’s health or medical information. This ensures the document is in line with all GDPR requirements
Reduced Earning Allowance (REA)	Reduced Earnings Allowance Letter When attaching the Latest Award Notice, this must not include any of the applicant’s health or medical information. This ensures the document is in line with all GDPR requirements
Infected Blood Support Scheme (IBSS) – Includes schemes in England (EIBSS), Scotland (SIBSS), Wales (WIBSS) and Northern Ireland (NIIBSS)	Latest Award Notice	State Disability Benefit (Only provide the pages that evidence the benefit is paid to our applicant and confirms the income position. Don't include pages relating to health/medical information)

* Please speak to your BDM and provide them with your clients (m) reference number, if you receive any of the following as part of Universal Credit:

• Employment & Support Allowance (ESA)
• Carers Allowance
• Child Disability payments
• You receive ESA as a standalone benefit and a case has failed on affordability. 

** We can only take this if the application has a dependent who is 11 years old or younger.

^ We'll require further proof of eligibility for all applications where bank statements are held in joint names with an unknown third party.

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Zero Hours Contractors

A ZHC contract is where an employer and employee have entered into an open ended contract with no guaranteed minimum working hours.

Example of roles where ZHC contracts may apply include, but are not limited to:

• Bank Nurses (NHS & Non-NHS), Supply Teachers and Locums etc
• Piecework or Pricework are types of employment in which the employee is paid at a fixed rate per unit produced or action performed.
• Income from Retained/on-call Firefighters and Armed Forces Reservists.

These should be keyed as permanent employees.

Applicants must have been employed on this basis for at least 12 months with the same employer, with the exception of the following:

• NHS bank nurses
• NHS Locums
• Supply Teachers
• 12 month history is still required. However this doesn't have to be with the same NHS trust/the same school provided they worked a complete year within the same occupation.

The following continues to apply:

1. Income from the above is only acceptable where it's not the primary income i.e. there must be another employed/self-employed/pension income, which is higher, it doesn’t have to be a second job.
2. The applicant must have been employed on a ZHC basis within the same industry for at least 12 months.
3. The latest P60 and most recent payslip are required to calculate the income.
4. The income should be the lower of the latest P60 total or the most recent payslip year to date annualised.

Piecework/Pricework

Where the employee receives pay at a fixed rate per unit produced or action performed. We'll assess this using the ZHC income criteria above.

If your client's employment contract is subject to a minimum number of guaranteed hours or the contract confirms their income won't fall below the National Minimum Wage, they can use one of the below approaches:

• The ZHC approach
• Treating the guaranteed element as basic income
• Treating as overtime anything over and above the guaranteed element.

If you're using basic income with overtime, we'll waive the 12-month minimum time with employer requirement. For this you must submit:

• A copy of the applicant’s employment contract. AND
• The latest 3 month payslips to verify the overtime element.

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Unacceptable income

List of unacceptable income
Pension Credit	Educational Grants / Bursaries	Expenses / Subsistence payments
Mileage / Fuel allowance	First Aid	Foreign Currency
Shadow Pay	Housing Benefit	Flexible pension income / Income drawdown
Jobseeker's Allowance	Income Support	Income from lodgers
Scottish Child Payments	Third jobs	Bereavement Allowance
Fixed Term Annuities	Income from casual (ad hoc) employment	Seasonal employment
Guardians Allowance / Kinship Allowance	Teaching and Learning Responsibility 3 (TLR) payments	Broadband and phone allowance
Income from short term or holiday lets	Temporary allowances - for example acting up allowance or any allowance which is of a temporary nature. This includes Inflation Bonus or a Cost of Living payment.	Cryptocurrency (including income obtained from Cryptocurrency companies)

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Affordability

Maximum borrowing is based on individual affordability. The actual income multiple will vary depending on the application. We take a range of factors into account to determine how much can be borrowed and the minimum affordable term. Our calculation aims to ensure individuals have a sufficient proportion of their income remaining. This is after their mortgage repayments to cover their outgoings.

Top tips on affordability

• Ask your client to provide their income proofs up front. Before you submit their application, ensure they match the income they've declared.
• Check for any further expenditure or outgoings. For example payslips; bank statements; credit reports (if available from your client).
• Check if your client has any unsecured debt, which has more than six months to run. This could impact their application.
• Once you have the full picture on your client's outgoings, make sure they're entered accurately and in full in the appropriate field. This applies when keying their affordability/DIP/application.

Affordability calculator

Our affordability calculator will allow you to check how much we might lend your client. This is without having to undertake a full Decision in Principle which will involve credit scoring your client.

Saving your affordability calculator results

To save your clients results, follow the steps below:

1. Fill in the calculator as normal.

2. On the results page press ‘Print’.

3. You should then see a Print Options screen that asks you to ‘select printer’. Scroll until you find any of the following options:

• Adobe PDF
• Microsoft XPS Document Writer
• PDF Creator (you can download a free version of PDF Creator here).

4. Select one of the options above, then press ‘print’.

5. After a few moments, a window should pop up asking you to ‘Save File As’. Choose your destination folder as normal and press ‘save’. You have now saved your client’s results.

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Stress testing

As part of the Decision in Principle we'll conduct a stress test on all applications. This is part of our affordability assessment.

We may be required to do a stress test at a higher rate when your client is porting an old product to their new property. This is due the interest rate of your client's existing product.

Once you've decided that you want to port the relevant account, we'll do this extra stress test (where necessary) within NFI Online.

It may be possible for our affordability decision to change between DIP and Reserve Product if your client does not meet our affordability criteria after the additional stress testing has been applied.

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Like for like

If your client(s) is an existing Nationwide mortgage customer moving home, we'll consider their application on a ‘Like for Like’ basis where:

• The total amount of the borrowing (excluding product fees if added), is no more than the existing borrowing
• There is no change of applicant(s) (i.e. not adding, removing or replacing an applicant)
• The borrower is not changing their current repayment method
• The term of the new mortgage is not shorter than the current term.
• We'll allow term extensions unless the borrower(s) is
  • already retired  OR
  • the term extension takes the borrower(s) into retirement OR
  • further into retirement.

On Like for Like applications we'll require you to provide all generated proofs. This includes Proof of Income.

If your client(s) mortgage is on Interest only and meets the above criteria (but fails affordability assessment), you must manually appeal these cases. You can do this through your BDM. They will then send your appeal to our underwriting team to review.

We'll require 3 months bank statements. This is in addition to the documents automatically requested when you submit an application.

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Lending into retirement

The maximum retirement age is 70. The mortgage term must not extend beyond the 75th birthday of the eldest applicant.

Where the mortgage term extends into retirement, the following criteria apply.

Retirement is less than 10 years away

• Provide details of both current income and expected retirement income.
• For affordability purposes, use the lower of the current income or expected retirement income.

Retirement is 10 years or more away

• Current income used for affordability purposes
• Evidence of the existence of a current and/or past pension (other than State Pension). For example a payslip showing a pension deduction, pension statement or pension payment on a bank statement.

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Clients with additional properties

Where your client has, or will have on completion, only one mortgaged property, standard LTV limits will apply. 85% maximum LTV will continue to apply if the client will own two or more mortgaged properties on completion. Even if the purchased or remortgage property will be your client’s main residence, we'll treat this as a Second Property application.

If your client owns more than one property, we require all addresses and mortgage details. Please see our products, loan size and maximum LTV criteria. 

We'll consider the outstanding balance of any mortgages that are continuing. Unless there is a simultaneous TMW Let to Buy application submitted for the existing residential. Or they are let and satisfy the following:

• The rent received is less than 165% of the current mortgage payment. We'll include the difference in the affordability calculation.
• We treat let properties as self-financing where the rent received is at least 165% of the current mortgage payments.
• Evidence of the latest three months’ rental payments using the Applicant’s latest three months' bank statements.^
• Pay the rental by Direct Debit / Standing Order.
• Unless they're owned as part of a property letting business, we'll review each rental property owned by your client one by one. See Rental Income from a Letting Business.
• We can't use rental income from properties let abroad. However, you should key the mortgage details into the application where the mortgage is continuing. Where the mortgage debt is in a foreign currency, it should be converted to sterling.

There is no requirement to obtain past payment history proof for foreign currency mortgages. Normal requirements apply to mortgages in sterling secured on properties abroad.

^If your client has an existing Nationwide current account or mortgage, there’s no need for you to provide their statement(s) if it’s generated as a case requirement. Complete this form, then Scan and Attach it to clear the requirement.

If you're completing a Let to Buy application with The Mortgage Works, then you can find further guidance in our Let to Buy processing guide.

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Outgoings

We'll need to consider any regular outgoings your client has in addition to their income for affordability. These include:

	Outgoing examples
Credit commitments:	Outstanding credit card balances. This including store cards, mail order and budget accounts. Outstanding mortgage balances. This includes mortgages held abroad. See Clients with Additional Properties for details of when we treat mortgages as self-financing. Monthly payments for personal loans and hire purchases with more than 6 months to run. Deferred purchase agreements with more than 6 months to run. This includes payments both current or future.
Non-Credit commitments (monthly outgoings):	Child care School fees CSA / Maintenance Additional cost for financial dependents Student loans Monthly travel costs for regular travel (e.g. to work and school) - to include for example: Season ticket loan deductions Rail/Bus company deductions that the customer confirms will be regular Regular car costs e.g. fuel, car tax, parking fees and car insurance Any other regular expenses your client wants us to consider when assessing affordability.
Non-Credit commitments (annual outgoings)	Council Tax Ground rent Service charges Buildings insurance Shared ownership rent

For joint applications, if your clients' are splitting their outgoings, input half the amount against each applicant.

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