Written and reviewed by John Pierre Saliba, Director and Senior Finance Broker, MFAA Accredited, ACL 511092. Last reviewed 8 October 2026.
Whether a healthcare worker qualifies for an LMI waiver in 2026 depends almost entirely on which of three policy tiers your profession sits in: doctors, dentists, vets and optometrists typically access 90-95% LVR with no LMI at many lenders; physiotherapists, chiropractors and pharmacists reach 90% at some; nurses and most allied health professions access 85-90% concessions rather than full waivers. Everything is subject to lender assessment and registration checks. This page is the entry point: find your tier below, then follow the link to your profession's dedicated page for the detail.
Which Healthcare Professionals Get LMI Waived in 2026?
The short answer by tier, with the usual caveat that every lender draws its own list:
Tier 1: typically 90-95% LVR, no LMI, at many lenders
- Doctors, from intern to consultant: see the doctors and medical professionals hub, with dedicated pages for GPs and medical specialists
- Dentists and dental specialists: home loans for dentists
- Veterinarians: home loans for vets
- Optometrists: home loans for optometrists
Tier 2: up to 90% LVR, no LMI, at some lenders, often with income minimums
- Physiotherapists: home loans for physiotherapists
- Chiropractors: home loans for chiropractors
- Pharmacists, midwives and several other registered professions, lender by lender
Tier 3: concessions, typically 85-90% LVR, plus generous shift-income treatment
- Nurses, midwives, paramedics and most allied health (OTs, speech pathologists, psychologists, podiatrists, radiographers, sonographers): nurses and allied health
If your profession is not listed above, it may still appear on an individual lender's extended list, and non-professional routes (government schemes, sharp standard pricing) often close most of the gap. That is a case by case conversation.
What Do the Tiers Actually Mean in Dollars?
LMI scales with LVR and loan size, so the value of each tier does too. Illustrative estimates on a $1,000,000 Sydney purchase, excluding stamp duty and costs:
- Tier 1 at 95%: deposit $50,000, LMI of roughly $35,000 to $45,000 waived.
- Tier 1 or 2 at 90%: deposit $100,000, LMI of roughly $20,000 to $24,000 waived.
- Tier 3 at 88-90% with reduced LMI: deposit $100,000 to $120,000, LMI reduced or waived depending on lender.
All figures are estimates for illustration only. Price your own scenario in the LMI calculator and check capacity in the borrowing power calculator.
What Every Tier Has in Common
- Registration is verified. AHPRA for most professions, the state Veterinary Practitioners Board for vets. Lapsed registration means no waiver, whatever your income.
- Serviceability still rules. A waiver removes LMI; it does not add a dollar of borrowing power. Income, debts and expenses are assessed with the standard buffers.
- Policies move. Lists, LVR caps and income minimums change through the year, which is why we confirm eligibility in writing with the lender before you spend money on the purchase.
- Best Interests Duty applies. As credit assistance providers under ACL 511092, we must recommend what is best for you, including when that is a government scheme or a plain low rate rather than a professional policy.
How to Check Your Eligibility in Three Steps
- 1. Confirm your registration status. Look yourself up on the AHPRA public register (or your state veterinary board register). Current registration is the credential every concession hangs off; conditions or lapses need addressing first.
- 2. Place yourself on the tier map above. Your profession sets the ceiling: full waiver, 90% list, or concession territory. If you straddle categories, for example a nurse practitioner or a psychologist with a medical-adjacent role, the answer is lender-specific and worth a phone call rather than a guess.
- 3. Test the alternative routes before committing. Price the same purchase under your professional concession, under the Home Guarantee Scheme if you are eligible, and as a plain 80% or 90% loan. The winner is not always the professional policy, and under the Best Interests Duty we will tell you when it is not.
Why This Matters More in Sydney
The tier system exists nationally, but Sydney purchase prices magnify it. When the home you are buying costs over $1 million, a 20% deposit means finding more than $200,000 before costs, and the LMI on a high-LVR alternative is commonly estimated in the tens of thousands. For Sydney healthcare workers, the difference between Tier 1, Tier 3 and no concession at all is frequently the difference between buying this year, buying in three years, or buying a suburb further out. That is why we treat the eligibility check as the first conversation, not the last.
We are based at Barangaroo and work with hospital and practice staff across every Sydney health precinct, from Westmead and Randwick to St Leonards and Liverpool, as well as healthcare workers buying anywhere in Australia. Appointments run by phone or video around shift patterns, including evenings.
Healthcare Shift Income: The Overlooked Concession
Separate from LMI tiers, some lenders assess 100% of regular overtime, penalty rates and shift loadings for healthcare workers, where others count only 80%. For hospital-based staff, nurses, paramedics and junior doctors alike, that assessment difference often matters more than the waiver itself, sometimes by $100,000 or more of borrowing power. It is covered in depth on the nurses and allied health page.
Book a free 15-minute call with John Pierre Saliba
Not sure which tier you fit, or whether a government scheme beats your concession? John answers that in one free 15-minute call, with current policy in front of him.
Start With Your Profession's Page
Doctors hub · GPs · Specialists · Dentists · Vets · Optometrists · Physiotherapists · Chiropractors · Nurses and Allied Health · All professional loans · Contact us
