An LMI waiver removes the lenders mortgage insurance (LMI) premium for a borrower who meets a lender’s professional policy. Eligibility depends on the exact occupation, loan structure and complete borrower profile. A professional title alone does not establish approval.
Start with the eligible applicant’s share of the property. Some professional pathways require at least half when there are two owners. Confirm ownership before comparing waiver options.
Establish the Waiver Route
A professional LMI exemption is a concession under the lender’s own rules. The lender still assesses repayment capacity and the security. An ordinary insured loan follows the lender’s insured-lending pathway and can also require mortgage insurer acceptance.
The Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme uses a Housing Australia guarantee to the participating lender. Its eligibility rules concern the buyer and purchase. A professional waiver depends on the lender’s occupation policy. Record which route the file uses.
Establish the proposed loan amount and the lender-assessed security value, then calculate the loan-to-value ratio (LVR). Record the property type, postcode, purchase or refinance purpose and repayment type. Separate transaction costs from the deposit so a 10% deposit does not imply the borrower has enough cash to settle.
The LMI guide explains the premium and refinance questions. A waiver does not replace the loan serviceability assessment.
Match Occupation to Published Policy
Use the lender’s named occupation list to shortlist a pathway. Compare the applicant’s actual duties and registration with that list before applying its lending limit.
| Lender | Occupation and professional evidence | Employment or income condition | Lending condition to apply |
|---|---|---|---|
| ANZ legal policy | Legal professionals with certificate or judicial evidence. | No minimum income. | Up to 90% LVR, subject to the legal-professional conditions below. |
| NAB professional waiver | Listed medical occupations, practising legal professionals and specified finance professions. Medical applicants need current AHPRA registration. Accountants need CA, CPA or IPA membership. | Applicant must practise in the eligible profession. | Obtain the applicable NAB home loan product, occupation-specific LVR and loan conditions from credit before giving a file verdict. |
| Westpac broker policy | Specified doctors and dentists, listed allied-health occupations, registered nurses and midwives. Legal and accounting applicants need approved accreditation. | Listed doctors and dentists have no minimum income. The 90% medico group needs $90,000 annual income. Legal/accounting income requirements apply separately. | Up to 95% LVR for the listed doctor/dentist group. Up to 90% for the listed allied-health group and legal/accounting pathways. Medico loan cap is $5 million, with $7.5 million total waived lending. |
| St.George professional loans | Registered nurses, midwives and named allied-health occupations. Match the applicant to the published list. | Minimum $90,000 annual income for this 90% pathway. Self-employed and casual applicants are included, subject to assessment. | Up to 90% LVR. Eligible fixed and variable loans can be for a home or investment. |
| CBA low-deposit options | Use the CBA professional policy for the applicant’s occupation and membership evidence. | Obtain the profession-specific income and employment rules from CBA credit. | Establish both professional eligibility and whether the proposed loan otherwise attracts LMI or a Low Deposit Premium. Do not treat these charges as interchangeable. |
LMI Waiver for Lawyers
ANZ waives LMI up to 90% LVR with no minimum income. Lawyers, solicitors and barristers need a current practising certificate. Ownership must be largest or equal-largest, including at least 50% with two owners.
ANZ caps borrowing at $4.5 million and total home lending at $8 million. Standard property-value caps are $5 million for houses/townhouses and $4 million for units/other standard residential property. The 90% pathway covers owner-occupier and investor principal-and-interest loans, excluding ANZ Plus. Apply separate postcode exceptions or interest-only terms only after lender confirmation.
For ANZ, judges and magistrates can provide a current commission, appointment letter or another document proving judicial office, such as a payslip or tax return.
Westpac’s legal pathway has a published 90% LVR ceiling with accreditation, eligibility and income conditions. NAB requires practising legal professionals to hold a current certificate from an accepted state body. Apply each lender’s own certificate list. ANZ’s judicial-officer evidence rule does not establish eligibility at another lender.
Nurses, Teachers, Engineers, Doctors and Accountants
Registered nurses have a named 90% pathway at Westpac and St.George, subject to the stated income condition. Enrolled nurses and other healthcare roles need their own occupation match. NAB’s public medical list does not list nurses.
Teachers and engineers need an occupation-specific pathway. A rule accepting overtime for a trade or public-service role does not establish an LMI exemption. Identify the exact engineering discipline or teaching role and obtain the lender’s applicable professional criteria.
Doctors have separate eligibility from other health professionals. Westpac’s 95% group names dentists, general practitioners, medical specialists and hospital-employed doctors. Accountants follow finance accreditation rules, including NAB’s listed CA, CPA or IPA memberships. A job title such as finance manager does not establish membership.
Check LVR and Premium Treatment
Base LVR measures the proposed advance against the accepted security value. If a premium is added to the loan, the total debt produces a higher LVR. Record both figures and identify which measure controls the lender’s ceiling.
In a hypothetical file, a $720,000 advance against an $800,000 valuation has a 90% base LVR. If a $12,000 quoted premium is capitalised, total debt becomes $732,000 and LVR becomes 91.5%. The premium in this example is fictional. Use a lender quote for an actual application.
If the waiver fails, obtain a verified premium or low-deposit fee quote for the proposed product and borrower. Record payment method, total debt and cash needed. CBA’s low-deposit guide distinguishes its insurer premium from its own Low Deposit Premium fee and states these charges are capitalised.
For a NAB LMI waiver assessment, match the listed profession and registration first. Ask NAB credit to confirm the selected product, LVR measure, income test and security limits in writing. Record a conditional verdict against those specific conditions, then update it when credit responds.
Weigh the Waiver Against the Whole Loan
Compare total cost over the client’s expected holding period. A higher rate or recurring package fee can exceed the premium saved, especially when the insured alternative has a small premium.
For a hypothetical $700,000 average balance, an extra 0.20 percentage points costs approximately $1,400 in interest each year. Over five years, that is about $7,000 before additional fees. This shortcut assumes a constant average balance and rate gap. Model actual repayments, offset balances and any capitalised premium for the recommendation.
Compare establishment costs and recurring fees, then assess offset availability and the client’s expected use of it. Confirm investment eligibility, loan-size limits and interest-only conditions. Keep the waiver saving separate from assumptions about future refinancing.
Use the lender policy guides for the lender’s wider credit rules. Choose the loan on the documented cost and fit for the borrower.
Assemble the Eligibility Evidence
Build the submission around the exact pathway the applicant uses.
- Collect the legal practising certificate or ANZ judicial-officer evidence, with applicant identification.
- For NAB medical applicants, capture current Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) registration and evidence of practice. Apply the lender’s named-profession requirements elsewhere.
- For accountants, retain the accepted professional membership evidence. Include any lender-required accreditation or income condition for Westpac’s legal/accounting pathway.
- Provide the income documents needed for the applicant’s employment type. Record probation, casual hours, contract terms or self-employed income separately.
- Include purchase or refinance documents, proposed repayments, security details and ownership shares. Add the investment purpose where relevant.
A hypothetical broker file note can read as follows:
Applicant is an employed solicitor with a current practising certificate. Proposed ownership is 50%. The requested owner-occupied principal-and-interest loan has a 90% base LVR. ANZ legal waiver policy is attached. Security and aggregate lending meet its stated caps. Credit clarification is required for probation. Waiver requested in the initial submission. Final approval must confirm the premium treatment.
Record the policy URL, document version and access date in the actual file. List every unmet condition and attach the lender’s response. Flag the professional policy in the initial submission so the assessor evaluates it from the start.
Resolve Exceptions Before Lodgement
Send credit the applicant facts with questions that produce a file-specific answer:
- Does the eligible profession still qualify when the applicant has a second occupation or income source? Identify the income that meets the waiver threshold.
- Is the applicant’s probation or fixed-term employment acceptable for this professional pathway? Specify the required evidence and employment history.
- Which ownership share must the eligible professional hold with these joint applicants? Confirm the proposed title meets that rule.
- Is this property type and postcode eligible? Identify any LVR reduction for valuation, unit size, acreage or unusual title.
- Does the quoted product support the purpose and repayment type? State whether its ceiling includes a capitalised premium or fee.
A business development manager (BDM) can help identify the pathway and assemble a credit query. A conversation alone does not approve an exception. Keep the credit decision and its conditions with the application, then compare them with the formal approval.
Preserve the Settlement Record
Save the approved waiver alongside the final loan amount and premium treatment. Retain the application and account identifiers, settlement date, accepted valuation, ownership structure and approved product.
When a top-up, security change or refinance follows, use this record to identify what needs reassessment. Match the settled account to the aggregator’s commission report so later trail movements can be traced to the correct loan.
Before closing the file, confirm that the final documents apply the approved waiver and that the settlement identifiers match your records. Resolve a charged premium against the approval before treating the file as complete.
