Medical and Dental Practice Loans Australia

Business loans for medical and dental practices in Australia fund the specialist rooms, equipment and ownership changes that health businesses go through: a GP clinic adding consulting rooms, a dentist buying a cone-beam scanner, a physiotherapist opening a second site, or an associate buying into the practice where they’ve worked for years. Medical finance is one of the more lender-friendly corners of business lending, but practices still need to present their numbers clearly.

How does cash flow work in a health practice?

A health practice earns income every working day, through a mix of patient payments at the counter, health-fund rebates claimed on the spot, Medicare benefits and, for some, workers’ compensation, NDIS or third-party insurer accounts that take longer to settle. Costs are mostly fixed: rent, reception and nursing wages, software, consumables, insurance and lab fees in dentistry.

What sets health practices apart is how revenue relates to people. Income depends heavily on the practitioners themselves, so lenders look at who generates the billings and whether they’ll stay. Many practices operate a service-entity model, where independent practitioners pay a percentage of their billings to the practice for rooms and support. That structure affects what counts as practice income, and lenders will want to see it explained.

Health is also one of the least seasonal industries. Christmas, Easter and school holidays bring short dips as practitioners take leave, and flu season lifts GP demand, but the pattern is gentle compared with retail or hospitality. The RBA’s October 2025 Bulletin notes that business lending growth has been strongest in services sectors, which include health care.

What do medical and dental practices finance?

Purpose	Typical finance	Security
Dental chairs, autoclaves, handpieces	Equipment finance	The equipment
X-ray, OPG, cone-beam CT, ultrasound	Equipment finance or lease	The equipment
Practice fit-out with plumbing and infection-control	Fit-out finance or term loan	Guarantee, practice assets or property
Buying a practice or a share of one	Goodwill loan or business purchase finance	Practice assets, guarantee, sometimes property
Buying out a retiring partner	Partner buyout loan	Practice assets or property
Buying the consulting rooms	Commercial property loan	The premises
Practice software, IT and phones	Small equipment loan or cash flow	Guarantee

Smaller items such as sterilisers, patient monitors or computers may be fully deductible in the year they’re installed. Since 1 July 2026 the ATO’s $20,000 instant asset write-off has been a permanent measure, available where aggregated turnover is below $10 million. Your accountant can confirm whether a particular purchase qualifies and how it interacts with the finance you choose.

Which lenders suit health professionals?

Banks, several of which run dedicated health-professional teams, suit established practitioners buying practices, premises or major equipment.
Equipment financiers, including those linked to dental and medical suppliers, fund chairs and imaging, often with the supplier arranging paperwork.
Non-bank lenders help practices that sit a little outside bank policy — a recent restructure, a new partner, or a fit-out that ran over budget.
Online lenders cover short working-capital needs for trading practices; in our network, unsecured and cash-flow facilities are generally in the $5,000 to $500,000 range and sized from the practice’s turnover.
Property-backed lenders fund larger acquisitions, partner buyouts or consolidations, lending $20,000 to $5,000,000 secured on a home or commercial premises.

Planning to buy in, buy out or kit out a new surgery? Talk to a specialist about the right structure — it doesn’t affect your credit score.

What documents will a lender want from a practice?

Practice financial statements and tax returns for the last two years.
Billings or production reports by practitioner from your practice management software.
Business bank statements for the last six months.
The lease for the rooms, with the remaining term and any options.
AHPRA registration details for the borrowing practitioners.
Supplier quotes for equipment or the builder’s fit-out quote.
For a purchase, the sale contract, the vendor’s financials and details of the handover period.

Associates buying in should also have their own income history ready, since lenders will assess how the new arrangement affects their personal earnings.

What should practitioners watch out for?

Paying too much for goodwill. A practice price built on one high-billing principal who is leaving is risky. Lenders discount it, and so should you.
Fit-outs on short leases. Specialist plumbing and cabinetry are lost if the lease ends early. Match the loan term to the lease and options.
Under-estimating fit-out costs. Clinical builds regularly exceed early estimates; build a contingency into the budget and the loan.
Service-entity confusion. If lenders can’t tell which entity earns what, they’ll be conservative. A one-page structure chart helps.
Equipment bought ahead of demand. New imaging should be justified by referrals or existing patient demand, not just the tax deduction.

How does buying into a practice work financially?

A buy-in usually involves an associate purchasing a share of the goodwill, equipment and sometimes the premises entity. The price is often expressed as a multiple of the practice’s maintainable profit. Lenders look at whether the associate’s share of profit, after paying their own wages and the loan, leaves a comfortable buffer. The cleanest buy-ins have a written agreement covering how profits are split, what happens if a partner leaves, and how future buy-outs are valued. Lenders also like to see a sensible handover: the outgoing principal introducing the incoming owner to patients and referrers over several months, rather than a sudden change. Where the selling principal will keep working for a period, the agreement should set out their days, their share of billings and when they step back. That detail protects the goodwill you’re paying for and gives the lender confidence the income will hold.

An illustrative example

Treat this as an illustration only: the figures are rounded and the practice is invented. An associate dentist has worked in a regional practice for five years. The principal is selling a half share for $600,000 including equipment. The associate contributes $100,000, borrows $400,000 against practice assets with a personal guarantee, and funds $100,000 for a new chair and digital scanner through equipment finance secured by the equipment. The lender assesses the practice’s two-year profit record and the associate’s billings, and sets the loan term to sit comfortably inside the lease and renewal option.

Ready to plan your practice finance?

Tell us about your practice, what you’re buying or building, and roughly what it earns. Asking us doesn’t trigger a credit check, your details won’t be shopped around, and someone who has worked with health businesses picks up your file personally. Give us accurate billings and debt figures so the first lender we approach is the right fit. Find out if your practice qualifies, or see how lenders view other industries.

Frequently asked questions

Can I get a loan to buy into a medical or dental practice?

Yes. Lenders regularly fund practitioners buying goodwill, either a whole practice or a share of one. They assess the practice's profit history, your billings or expected billings, the purchase price relative to earnings, the lease, and your own deposit and credit. Property security can increase the amount and extend the term.

How do I finance a dental chair or imaging equipment?

Most practices use equipment finance such as a chattel mortgage, lease or hire purchase, with the equipment as security. Lenders want a supplier quote, your registration details, practice bank statements and existing commitments. Larger imaging purchases may also need financial statements and a short explanation of the expected referral or billing volume.

Is a new practice easier to fund than other new businesses?

Often, yes. A registered practitioner with a track record of billings elsewhere is a known quantity, so some lenders will fund a greenfield practice's equipment and fit-out with a realistic business plan. Expect to show your previous income, a fit-out quote, a lease, and a forecast for patient numbers.

Can a practice borrow to buy its premises?

Yes. Many practices buy their rooms through a related entity, such as a family trust or self-managed super fund, and lease them back. A commercial property loan or a loan secured by other property can fund the purchase. Structure and tax questions belong with your accountant first.

What do lenders look at for a medical practice loan?

Billings by practitioner, patient numbers, profit after practitioner payments, the lease and remaining term, existing debt, the owners' credit history and registration status. For practice purchases they'll also review the sale contract, the transition plan for patients and staff, and whether key practitioners will stay.