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Guide for sales agents

Selling UK new build to overseas buyers: a guide for sales agents

Overseas buyers can be some of the best buyers for UK new build: they buy off-plan, there's no chain, and many are buying to let. But tax, lending, money checks and distance all work differently. Here's what to get right, from reservation to completion.

By PlotBot, built by new homes salespeople7 minute readUpdated 22 October 2026

The short version

  • Overseas buyers usually pay more stamp duty in England and Northern Ireland, need bigger deposits, and face fewer lenders. Make sure they know before they reserve.
  • Anti-money laundering and source of funds checks take longer for money from abroad. Start them early.
  • Distance is the real risk. Long gaps between exchange and completion, currency moves and time zones all need watching, so nothing surprises the buyer at notice.

What's different about an overseas buyer

1. Stamp duty

In England and Northern Ireland, buyers who aren't UK resident usually pay a 2% stamp duty surcharge on top of the normal rates. If they already own a home anywhere in the world, the higher rates for additional homes usually apply too, and the 2% sits on top of those. Scotland and Wales have their own taxes and rules.

What you can do
  • Make sure the buyer has had tax advice before they reserve, so the stamp duty bill isn't a surprise at completion.
  • Build it into the numbers you show investors: it changes the return.

2. The mortgage

Fewer lenders lend to buyers who live abroad. Those that do often ask for bigger deposits, commonly 25% to 40%, and some lend less on new build or off-plan homes. Some only count UK income. Criteria change often, and every lender is different.

What you can do
  • Get the buyer talking to a broker who specialises in overseas buyers before they reserve, not after.
  • Check how the lender treats the developer's incentives, and whether the deposit needs to be in a UK account.
  • Watch the mortgage offer's expiry date against the build, as the developer's handover date moves.

3. Money checks

The buyer's solicitor has to check the buyer's identity and where their money comes from, and UK estate agents have their own anti-money laundering duties too. When the money comes from abroad, through several accounts or from family, those checks take longer.

What you can do
  • Ask the buyer to have bank statements and proof of where the deposit and completion money come from ready from day one.
  • Choose a buyer's solicitor used to overseas buyers, and introduce them early.

4. Moving money across borders

Exchange rates move between reservation and completion, and international transfers and bank checks take time. A buyer who planned their budget a year ago can be short on the day if the rate has moved.

What you can do
  • Make sure the buyer knows the currency risk, and plans when to move money.
  • Get completion money to the buyer's solicitor well before it's needed. Notice usually gives around 10 working days, and the lender needs several of those.

5. Distance and time zones

The buyer can't pop into a solicitor's office, and they may be asleep when the UK working day starts. Documents can usually be signed remotely, and some buyers use a power of attorney. The buyer's solicitor will advise on what's needed.

What you can do
  • Agree early how documents will be signed and returned, and what the buyer's solicitor needs in originals.
  • Give the buyer clear dates in their own time zone, especially around notice.
From the sales floor

Before we built PlotBot, with every overseas buyer we made sure they had the right mortgage advice from the start, from a broker who knew lending to buyers abroad. We also prepared the developer early: depending on where the buyer lives, an overseas sale can take a little longer, and a developer who knows that up front isn't worried when it does.

With PlotBot, the developer can see where every sale is and who it's waiting on, wherever the buyer lives.

Getting the reservation right

Overseas buyers often reserve from a distance, sometimes before they've seen the site. That makes the reservation stage matter even more.

A checklist for agents selling to overseas buyers

Where PlotBot fits

Sell to buyers anywhere, with the whole sale on one record.

Overseas agents on PlotBot get the same vetted stock, the same fees agreed with the developer and the same live tracking as UK agents. Every sale has a red, amber or green status and a plain answer to "who are we waiting on?", visible from any time zone. Your introductions are recorded and time-stamped, your fee is forecast for every buyer, and PlotBot never contacts your buyers: they stay yours.

See PlotBot for sales agentsRegister interest

Questions agents ask

Do overseas buyers pay more stamp duty?

In England and Northern Ireland, usually yes: a 2% surcharge on top of the normal rates for buyers who aren't UK resident, and on top of the higher rates if they already own a home anywhere. Residence is judged by time spent in the UK, so the buyer should take tax advice.

Can an overseas buyer get a UK mortgage on a new build?

Often, but from fewer lenders, usually with a bigger deposit, and sometimes with lower limits on new build or off-plan homes. A broker who specialises in overseas buyers is the place to start.

Does the buyer need to come to the UK?

Usually not. Identity checks and signing can often be done remotely, and some buyers use a power of attorney. The buyer's solicitor will say what's needed.

Can overseas agents use PlotBot?

Yes. Overseas agents join under an introducer agreement, with checks on their company registration and any local licence, their principals' identity, their sales record and two references.

Sources

This guide is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice.

Also read: Notice to complete on a new build: what developers need to get right