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Before You Apply

Income · 8 min read

Can you get a mortgage with one year's accounts?

In short

Yes, one year of accounts is not a UK-wide bar to a mortgage. The FCA's rules do not set a universal minimum number of self-employed years; they require a lender to obtain evidence of the income it relies on and say the type and period of evidence must be adequate for the circumstances. Current lender policies differ. As one named example, Saffron's published intermediary criteria say applicants with one year of accounts can be considered on its specialist self-employed range, while the same criteria say Saffron does not lend in Scotland. That is Saffron's policy, not a market-wide rule or a recommendation. The useful preparation is to know exactly what one year of records you have, how the dates line up, and what a lender or FCA-authorised adviser wants for your own structure.

Useful next step

Build my document checklist

A printable starting list of the paperwork commonly requested.

Build my document checklist

What this page cannot do

  • It cannot tell you whether any lender will accept one year of accounts.
  • It cannot recommend a lender, a product or an adviser.
  • It cannot tell you to apply now or to wait — that is not ours to say.
  • It is not tax or accountancy advice. For that, speak to an accountant or tax adviser.
  • Nothing here is a mortgage recommendation or a suitability judgement (see FCA PERG 4.6).

Who this is for

  • Sole traders, partners and directors in their first or second year of trading
  • People who left employment recently and have filed one return
  • Anyone told a fixed number of years is required and wanting to know where that comes from
  • Anyone whose first year looks weaker than how the work is going now

Your one-year evidence map

Records worth having in one place before your first conversation. This is not a lender checklist — no source we cite publishes one.

Dates and business structure

  • The date you started trading.
  • Whether you are a sole trader, in a partnership, or a company director.
  • Your accounting period end date.
  • The tax year the profit falls into, and the date the return was sent.
  • HMRC notes an accounting period and the tax year can differ, which can mean figures are allocated across periods.

HMRC evidence you can obtain

  • SA302 tax calculation — HMRC provides evidence of earnings for the last 4 years once Self Assessment has been sent.
  • Tax year overview for the same years.
  • You cannot print these until 72 hours after sending the return.
  • HMRC says to check your mortgage provider accepts documents you print yourself.

Accounts and business records

  • Any accounts prepared for that period, and whether they are final or draft.
  • Sales and income records, expenses, and supporting proof such as bank statements and sales invoices — these are the records HMRC says to keep for tax.
  • Business bank statements covering the trading period.
  • Contracts or agreements for ongoing work, if you have them.

Recent changes and earlier employment, as context

  • What you did before you started trading, and the dates.
  • Keep any records you already hold from that employment separately; whether they are relevant is a lender/adviser question.
  • Anything factual that makes the first period unusual — a late start, an interruption, a one-off cost.
  • Whether the current pattern of work differs from the filed year, described as fact rather than forecast.

Facts only. Each row describes what a record shows, not whether it will be accepted. Which records are asked for, and over what period, is each lender's own policy.

Key points

There is no universal minimum number of years

MCOB 11.6.8 creates an evidence duty; MCOB 11.6.9 says adequacy varies with the nature and length of the work. Neither sets a number of years. A lender can still have its own trading-history policy, so a fixed threshold belongs to that lender's criteria rather than to the FCA rule.

One-year cases do exist in current published lender criteria

Saffron's current intermediary criteria say applicants with one year of accounts can be considered on its specialist self-employed product range. The same criteria say Saffron does not lend in Scotland. This is useful evidence that one year is not an automatic UK-wide prohibition, but it says nothing about what another lender does and nothing about whether Saffron would accept any individual application.

Self-certification is not an option

MCOB 11.6.8 is explicit that a lender cannot accept your own statement of income without evidence. That is why organising records is the productive step.

Four dates, not one

Trading start, accounting period end, tax year, and filing date are separate. Writing all four down prevents most of the confusion in a first conversation.

A rising year is a description, not a projection

MCOB 11.6.9 notes future self-employed income may be considered where it forms part of a credible business plan. That is the lender's judgement, not ours. You can describe factually what changed and when.

One period shows a level, not a trend

This is arithmetic, not a rule. Being able to explain what the period represents is the preparation available to you now.

We do not publish who accepts what

This site does not compare lenders or recommend products. A suitably qualified FCA-authorised mortgage adviser can discuss the market with you.

Exceptions and things that vary

  • Named lender examples are deliberately narrow. Saffron's current one-year policy belongs to Saffron's specialist self-employed range, and its current criteria say it does not lend in Scotland.
  • Sole traders, partners and company directors hold different records. If you take income from your own company, see the director evidence guide.
  • HMRC says the SA302 and tax year overview cannot be printed until 72 hours after the return is sent.
  • Whether earlier employment in the same field is relevant is a lender question, not a general one.
  • How many of the four available HMRC years you have depends on how long you have been filing.

How to work through it

  1. Write down your four dates

    Trading start, accounting period end, tax year, filing date. One line each.

  2. Download what HMRC holds

    Your SA302 tax calculation and tax year overview for every year available, saved somewhere you can find again.

  3. Gather the records for that period

    Accounts (noting final or draft), business bank statements, invoices and any contracts.

  4. Describe the year in plain facts

    A few sentences on what you do, how work comes in, and anything unusual about the period. Facts, not forecasts.

  5. Take it to an adviser

    Ask a suitably qualified FCA-authorised mortgage adviser what evidence and period would be needed for your structure. That question has no general answer.

Illustrative example (not a real case)

Imagine someone who left employment fourteen months ago and has filed one return. They note the trading start date, the accounting period end, the tax year and the filing date; download the SA302 and tax year overview; and put statements and invoices for the same period together. They have not turned one year into two. They have made one year fully evidenced and describable, which is what was actually available to them. Illustrative only.

Illustrative only. Figures and situations in examples are made up to show a method. They are not typical, not a benchmark and not a prediction of any outcome.

What not to assume

  • Do not assume a specific number of years is required. No source we cite states one.
  • Do not assume an accountant, or a forecast, is required. Nothing we cite says so.
  • Do not assume waiting automatically improves your position.
  • Do not assume documents you print yourself will be accepted — HMRC says to check with your provider.
  • Do not assume employment before self-employment counts, or does not.
  • Do not assume this page predicts any lender's response.

Your one-year evidence snapshot

Write this out yourself and take it with you. Nothing you write is sent to us — this site stores none of it.

  • Date I started trading:
  • Structure: sole trader / partnership / limited company director
  • My accounting period ends:
  • Tax year(s) filed, and the date each return was sent:
  • SA302 and tax year overview: years I have downloaded
  • Accounts for the period: final / draft / none prepared
  • Business bank statements I hold, and the months they cover:
  • What I did before trading, with dates:
  • Anything factual that makes this period unusual:
  • Questions I want to ask an adviser:

A factual snapshot, not an assessment. It says nothing about whether a mortgage is available to you.

Questions for a qualified adviser

We cannot answer these for you, and we do not introduce or recommend advisers. Take them to a suitably qualified FCA-authorised mortgage adviser of your own choosing.

  • What evidence of self-employed income would you need for my structure, and covering what period?
  • Would you want accounts as well as HMRC documents, and does draft or final matter?
  • Is there anything about my previous employment history you would want recorded?
  • Do the gaps between my accounting period, tax year and filing date affect timing?
  • What would you like me to bring to a first appointment?

Related reading

Sources

Primary and official sources used for the factual information on this page.

Written by

Before You Apply editorial

Written by the publisher's editorial function, not by a named individual and not by a mortgage adviser. Before You Apply is not FCA authorised.

Editorial accountability

Published by Before You Apply, which is responsible for this guide. See About, editorial policy and corrections.

  • Last updated 2026-10-05
  • Last fact-checked 2026-10-05
  • Next review due 2026-11-05

Disclosure: this guide is educational. Before You Apply receives no payment for mentioning any lender, product or firm. Any named examples are used for factual context, not ranking or recommendation.

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