Can you sign the Konvenju before your home loan is approved in Malta?
Dr. Michael LaferlaNotary · Notary, Notarial Council of MaltaYes. A Konvenju is normally signed subject to conditions — and one of the most common is that the purchase is conditional on you obtaining a home loan. You sign the promise of sale first, then take it to the bank to apply for your loan and request a sanction letter issued in your favour. This “subject to loan” clause is what makes the whole purchase contingent on your financing coming through, so a refusal doesn’t trap you.
You sign the Konvenju first — the loan follows
As Dr. Laferla explains, "a promise of sale is done normally subject to various conditions. One of which could be the case that it is subject to the purchasers acquiring a bank loan." So yes — you can, and normally do, sign the Konvenju before your home loan is approved. The promise of sale is the step that comes first; the financing is arranged after it.
The sanction letter comes after signing
In his words, "then with the promise of sale, the purchaser will go to the bank and request that a sanction letter is issued in his favour." The signed Konvenju is what you take to the bank to open your loan application. The bank assesses you and the property and, if satisfied, issues a sanction letter — its formal confirmation that the home loan is approved — which you need in hand before the final deed.
The subject-to-loan clause is what makes this safe
Because the loan is applied for only after signing, the Konvenju is made conditional on that loan actually coming through — the "subject to sanction of loan" clause. It makes the whole purchase contingent on your financing. Without it, a buyer who signs and is then refused a loan could be bound to a purchase they can no longer complete, and risk their deposit. With it, a refusal releases you.
What it means for your timeline
Because the bank needs time to run its checks, valuation and approval after you sign, a financed purchase needs a Konvenju term long enough to allow for it — which is why loan-backed promises of sale lean to the longer end of the usual six-to-eight-month range.
Sources
- Dr. Michael Laferla — Yitaku Asks video (promise of sale subject to a bank loan; sanction letter requested from the bank after signing)
- Civil Code of Malta, Chapter 16 — Article 1357 (conditions in the promise of sale)
- Central Bank of Malta Directive No. 16 (borrower-based measures) — the home-loan framework the sanction process sits within
- Maltese notarial practice — the “subject to sanction of loan” clause; sanction letter required before the final deed
