Can you get a Saudi mortgage from abroad?

Can you get a Saudi mortgage from abroad?

Saudi bank mortgages are in practice not available to buyers who live abroad, so most fund a home in Makkah (Mecca) or Madinah (Medina) in cash or through a developer’s payment plan. Market guides published between January and August 2026 agree on this, because banks require Saudi residency and income they can evidence locally. One residency route forbids financing outright. The cash you pay yourself moves under strict banking rules.

Why Saudi banks will not lend

The guides we reviewed say lenders typically want Saudi residency and locally evidenced income, which in practice rules out buyers who live and earn abroad. Al Rajhi Bank’s Home Finance shows the pattern: it is offered to Saudis and resident expatriates, and residency in the Kingdom is a condition.

The bank lists a salary from SAR 7,000 with salary transfer or SAR 10,000 without, at least 3 months in service, terms up to 30 years, up to age 70 and up to SAR 5 million. A buyer who lives abroad fails the residency condition before any of those terms are weighed. If you already hold Saudi residency, the bank can tell you what it needs from you.

Is Islamic home finance an option?

Many readers ask about Islamic home finance. The sources we checked describe no home finance product open to people living abroad, and the bank product above sets residency as a condition. If a bank offers you finance, ask whether it accepts customers who live outside the Kingdom, and keep its answer in writing.

Premium Residency and financing

The Premium Residency route has its own rule. For the Real Estate Owner product, the property may not be bought with real estate financing and may not be mortgaged, before or after the residency is granted. Our guide to Premium Residency and property near the Haram explains how that product relates to homes in the two cities. If a loan was central to your plan, the routes to owning near the Haram set out the other ways to hold a stake.

Paying in cash from abroad

Paying in cash still needs a Saudi account. Executive Regulations Art. 2 require a non-resident non-Saudi individual to have three things before owning: a digital ID, a bank account in the Kingdom in their own name, and a Saudi phone number in their name linked to the digital ID.

The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) added rule 200.2.4 to its rulebook by circular 482004268 of 1 July 2026, letting Saudi banks open accounts for non-Saudi individuals living abroad who are covered by the Law of Real Estate Ownership by Non-Saudis. The account may be used only for owning real estate, carries no payment or credit cards, and requires you to be verified in the Kingdom, including by biometric authentication. Ask the bank how and where that check takes place before you make travel plans.

All financial transactions for your purchase must be completed through electronic payment systems approved under Saudi Central Bank regulations before the title is transferred through the Real Estate Registry. The documents the bank asks for, the account limits and the approved channels are set out in Paying for property in Makkah or Madinah.

The sources do not explain how money travels from your home bank into the Saudi account, what transfer charges apply or who pays them. Your home bank and your Saudi bank can confirm both.

Developer payment plans off plan

Off-plan means a unit sold before it is built, and these sales are licensed through Wafi, a platform of the Real Estate General Authority (REGA). Under REGA’s Wafi marketing licence conditions, a developer may not receive more than 5% of the value of each real estate unit as a reservation amount.

A Wafi licence also requires an escrow account agreement between the developer and a licensed bank in the Kingdom, and all reservation amounts taken during marketing must go into that escrow account. The sources we checked do not set out the terms of developer instalment plans beyond the reservation, so read each contract with a licensed adviser. [Verify before you pay shows how to check a developer’s Wafi licence yourself.

Before you look for a lender

• If you hope to borrow, check with a licensed adviser and the bank itself, as market guides say non-residents generally fund in cash or through developer plans.
• If you hold Saudi residency, ask the bank which of its conditions you meet before you plan around a loan.
• If you are applying for the Real Estate Owner product, expect to buy that property without financing.
• Put your digital ID, Saudi phone number and Saudi account in place first, since Executive Regulations Art. 2 make all three prerequisites.
• Make sure your Saudi account is active and its holder details match your Saudi Properties portal application, because the portal rejects an inactive account or a mismatched IBAN.
• For an off-plan unit, confirm the Wafi licence and escrow account with REGA before paying any reservation.

This is not legal advice. Rules change, and each fact above shows the date we last checked it. Speak to a licensed adviser before you commit money.