Alternative documentation changes the evidence method, it is not a way to avoid proving your loan is affordable. Full Doc, Alt Doc and Mid Doc are three different routes to the same underlying question: can you actually service this loan? Each has real conditions attached, not just a lighter paperwork pile.
The three pathways
| Pathway | Typical evidence | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Full Doc | Tax returns, Notices of Assessment, financial statements, sometimes current BAS/management accounts | Traditional income verification; exact years and freshness rules still differ by lender |
| Alt Doc | Accountant declaration/letter, BAS and/or business bank statements, under defined product rules | Can suit a business whose formal financials don’t line up with a lender’s timing rules, but product, LVR, pricing and credit criteria can differ from Full Doc |
| Mid Doc / BAS / bank statements | Recent BAS or several months of business trading statements | A specialist verification route, not a way to avoid demonstrating capacity to repay |
Why the trade-off is real
Moving from a standard mainstream assessment into a specialist or alternative-documentation product can change the available LVR, fees, interest rate, loan term and evidence requirements. Those commercial terms must be checked against the current product at the time of application, PolicyMatch does not publish “6 months alt-doc means a higher rate of X%” as a fixed, universal figure, because it isn’t one.
What to prepare
- Whatever formal financials you do have, even partial
- Current BAS and recent business bank statements
- An accountant declaration if pursuing an Alt Doc pathway
- A clear understanding of the trade-off in rate/fees/LVR before committing to a specific pathway
Next step: discuss your documentation position in the Scenario Lens‘s Self-employed tab, then talk with KartikKumar about which pathway suits your business’s actual paper trail.