NAB Financial Hardship: How to Apply for Home Loan Help (2026)

Jump to: NAB hardship at a glance · What it costs · How to apply · What they can offer · What’s different about NAB · How long it takes · Your credit report · If they say no · Banks compared · FAQs

Part of our Mortgage Stress Report, which tracks where households are falling behind on their home loans, suburb by suburb.

To apply for NAB financial hardship on a home loan, use NAB’s online hardship form (also in internet banking and the app) or ring 1300 661 114 for a short-term problem or 1800 701 599 if it’s ongoing. You don’t need documents to start, and NAB will call you back.

Here is what NAB offers, what each option costs, and what to do if the answer is no.

NAB hardship at a glance

What you need	Detail
How to apply	Online through NAB’s financial hardship assistance form, internet banking or the NAB app. The team follows up by phone.
Phone	1300 661 114 for short-term help, 1800 701 599 for ongoing hardship (+61 3 8641 9142 from overseas)
Hours	8am to 8pm Monday to Friday, 9am to 1pm Saturday (Melbourne time)
Documents to start	Nothing to start. NAB may ask about your income and expenses and request payslips or a medical certificate.
Reply time	NAB doesn’t publish a turnaround on its hardship page
Official page	nab.com.au, financial hardship: home loans

Source: nab.com.au, financial hardship: home loans (checked 27 September 2026).

What each option costs in dollars

Every hardship option changes the loan, and most of them cost you more in the end. We ran a typical loan through the four most common types of help.

Option	Repayment during help	Repayment after help	Extra interest over the loan
No change	$3,939	$3,939	Nil
3-month pause (interest added to the loan)	$0	$4,018	About $11,400
3 months at half repayments	$1,970	$3,979	About $5,700
6 months interest-only	$3,100	$3,973	About $4,900
Term extended from 25 to 30 years	$3,675	$3,675	About $141,000

OurTop10 calculation, 27 September 2026. Assumes a $600,000 principal and interest loan with 25 years left at 6.20%, a rate held for the life of the loan, and the missed interest added to the balance. Your bank’s figures will differ.

Two things stand out. A short pause costs less than people fear, about $11,400 spread over 25 years. A term extension is the reverse: it’s the gentlest on the monthly budget and by far the dearest overall. If you take one, plan to make extra repayments once things settle, and use our loan repayment calculator to see what that does.

How to apply for NAB financial hardship

An application goes faster if you have the numbers in front of you before you start.

1. Write down what changed and when: job loss, reduced hours, illness, separation, a new baby.
2. Work out what you can afford to pay each month right now. A real number beats “as little as possible”.
3. Say how long you expect the problem to last, even roughly.
4. Apply online or ring 1300 661 114. Keep the reference number.
5. Answer any follow-up questions quickly. The 21-day clock restarts when the bank asks for more information.
6. Read the offer letter before you accept it, especially what your repayment will be when the help ends.

What NAB can offer

These are the home loan options NAB lists on its hardship page, in its own terms:

• Using money in your offset or redraw
• A flexible payment arrangement: smaller repayments for a limited time
• Interest-only repayments on eligible loans
• A payment break of up to three months
• If NAB declines, it says it may offer an alternative payment plan

Which one you get depends on whether the problem is short-term or permanent. A bank will usually offer a pause or reduced repayments for a short hit, and a lasting change, such as a longer term, when the income isn’t coming back.

What’s different about NAB

NAB puts a number on the payment break: up to three months. That’s useful, because you can plan around it. If your problem won’t be sorted in three months, say so on the first call and ask about interest-only or a flexible payment arrangement instead of stacking one pause on another.

NAB lists your offset and redraw first. If you have money sitting there, the bank will expect you to use it before it changes the loan. That can be the cheapest fix, since it doesn’t add a cent to the balance. Just keep enough aside for three months of basics.

NAB says that if it can’t approve what you asked for, it may offer another payment plan. Don’t take the first no as final.

How long NAB has to answer

NAB doesn’t publish a turnaround on its hardship page, so the legal deadline applies: a written answer within 21 days of your request. Under the National Credit Code, once you give a lender a hardship notice it must tell you in writing within 21 days whether it agrees. If it needs more information it has to ask within those 21 days, then decide within 21 days of getting it.

Put the request in writing or keep the reference number from the call, and note the date. That date starts the clock.

What it does to your credit report

NAB says a Financial Hardship Indicator appears on your credit report for 12 months and doesn’t affect your credit score. Since 1 July 2022, lenders report hardship arrangements as financial hardship information. It is not a default, the reason isn’t recorded, and credit reporting bodies can’t use it to calculate your score. Another lender will still see it for that year, so it can make a refinance harder while it’s there.

If NAB says no

1. Ask NAB for the reason in writing. It has to give you one.
2. Lodge a complaint with NAB’s internal complaints team and ask them to review it.
3. If that doesn’t fix it, complain to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) on 1800 931 678 or at afca.org.au. It’s free, and while AFCA is looking at a hardship complaint the lender generally can’t take legal action to repossess.
4. Talk to a free financial counsellor through the National Debt Helpline on 1800 007 007 or ndh.org.au. They can also deal with the bank for you.

How the big banks compare

Hardship help looks similar across the big banks. The phone hours and reply times don’t.

Bank	Hardship phone	Hours	Stated reply time
CommBank	13 30 95 for short-term help	8am to 9pm Monday to Friday, 9am to 2pm Saturday	Not published (21-day legal limit)
ANZ	1800 351 548	9am to 7pm Monday to Friday	5 to 10 days (first assessment)
NAB	1300 661 114 for short-term help	8am to 8pm Monday to Friday, 9am to 1pm Saturday	Not published (21-day legal limit)
Westpac	1800 067 497	8:30am to 8pm Monday to Friday, 9:30am to 6pm Saturday	Within a week
St.George	1800 629 795	8:30am to 8pm Monday to Friday, 9:30am to 6pm Saturday	Within a week

Sources: each bank’s own hardship page, checked 27 September 2026. Where a bank gives two numbers, the short-term line is shown.

What to do next

If the problem is short, apply to NAB now, before a payment is missed. If it looks permanent, it’s worth a second opinion on whether the loan itself should change: a different structure, or a lender that suits your new income once any hardship listing has cleared. Our ranked lists of the best mortgage brokers in Sydney, best mortgage brokers in Melbourne and Brisbane are a place to start, and the loan repayment calculator will show what a longer term or a lower rate does to your repayment.

FAQs

How long can NAB pause my home loan repayments?

NAB says a payment break can run for up to three months. For longer problems it offers other arrangements, such as reduced or interest-only repayments.

Does NAB hardship affect my credit score?

NAB says a Financial Hardship Indicator shows on your credit report for 12 months and doesn’t affect your score. It isn’t a default.

What number do I call for NAB hardship?

1300 661 114 for short-term help or 1800 701 599 for ongoing hardship, 8am to 8pm weekdays and 9am to 1pm Saturday.

Do I need documents to apply to NAB?

Not to start. NAB may later ask for payslips, details of your income and expenses, or a medical certificate.

This page is general information, not financial or credit advice. It doesn’t take your circumstances into account. If you’re struggling, the National Debt Helpline (1800 007 007) is free and confidential.

Sources

1. NAB, financial hardship: nab.com.au, financial hardship: home loans (checked 27 September 2026)
2. National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009, Schedule 1 (National Credit Code), section 72: legislation.gov.au
3. ASIC, dealing with consumers and credit (hardship notice timeframes): asic.gov.au
4. Moneysmart, problems paying your mortgage: moneysmart.gov.au
5. OAIC, what is financial hardship information: oaic.gov.au
6. Australian Banking Association, Banking Code of Practice: ausbanking.org.au
7. National Debt Helpline: ndh.org.au; AFCA: afca.org.au
8. OurTop10, Mortgage Stress Report, June quarter 2026 (Digital Finance Analytics survey data): ourtop10.com.au/reports/mortgage-stress-q2-2026