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Can I amend last year's tax return to show more income before I apply for a loan?
Bayley Clarke · Mortgage broker on the road · Last checked 11 November 2026 · 2 min read
The short answer
It depends on whether your tax return was done incorrectly in the first place and genuinely needs an amendment. That's all in your accountant's corner, and it's up to them what they're willing to support.
If there's a real reason to amend, and once that's finalised with the ATO it shows more income on paper, you'll be issued a new notice of assessment. We can take that to the banks when we're working out how much you can borrow.
The 60 second version, filmed from the driver's seat. The rest of this page is the detail underneath it.
When an amendment makes sense
Returns get amended for legitimate reasons all the time. Income that got left off, an expense that was claimed and shouldn't have been, a payment summary that came through late. If your accountant looks at last year's return and agrees it was wrong, they lodge the amendment, the ATO processes it, and you get a fresh notice of assessment.
That new notice is what the bank works off. If the corrected figures show more income, your borrowing power is assessed on the corrected figures. So yes, it can be done, as long as the amendment is the real fix for a real mistake. This comes up most for self employed people, where the bank leans heavily on the tax returns and the notices of assessment.
What the bank will make of it
Banks see amended returns, and one lodged just before a loan application is going to get a second look. Expect the credit team to ask why it was amended, and they may want the original return and notice of assessment as well as the new ones, plus a note from your accountant explaining the change.
That's fine when there's a clear reason. It's not fine if the plan is to make income appear on paper that wasn't really earned. Overstating your income to a bank is a serious problem, both with the lender and with the ATO, and the extra tax you'd owe is the least of it. If you want to borrow more, the honest levers are the real ones: your actual income, your debts, and which lender assesses you best.
The honest bit: this is not accounting advice
More income on paper means more tax. Whether an amendment is right for you is a question for your accountant, and they'll only support it if the original return was genuinely wrong.
Talk to them before you do anything. Then bring me the result, and I'll show you which lenders read your income best as it stands.
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Next question
I haven't done last year's tax return. Can I still get a home loan?Generally yes. Lenders are generous about which year counts as your latest.
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