Overview
Halifax is available through SmartrConnect. You can submit a Decision in Principle (DIP) and get a result without visiting the Halifax portal, then progress the DIP to a Mortgage Illustration and Full Mortgage Application (FMA) from Smartr365.
Supported Case Types
The Halifax form in Smartr365 lists the supported application types:
First Time Buyer, Purchase, Existing Property Owner, Remortgage, and Mortgage Schemes
Employment types: all PAYE
Self-employment: Sole Trader, Limited Company and Limited Liability Partnership
Retired and unemployed applicants
Special schemes: Right to Buy, Shared Ownership, Shared Equity, Second Home Loan and 95% Government Scheme. For First Homes and Resale Price Covenant schemes, enter the purchase price or estimated value after the discount is applied
Repayment types: Capital Repayment, Interest Only, and Part & Part
Lending into retirement
Name changes: up to one surname change
Buy-to-let cases and Raise Funds cases cannot be submitted to Halifax through SmartrConnect. Read the message at the top of the Halifax form before you submit: it tells you if any case types should be progressed to a Full Mortgage Application in the Halifax for Intermediaries portal instead.
Halifax services are available Monday to Friday 6am to 10pm, and Saturday 8am to 6pm.
Mandatory Case Data
Before submitting to Halifax, ensure the following data is complete on your case:
General Requirements
FCA Number — Your firm's FCA number must be configured
Halifax credentials — Your Halifax username and password must be saved in Settings > My Credentials > Halifax. If you are actioning a case on behalf of another adviser, their credentials must be saved too. If they are missing, the Halifax page asks you to synchronise them and the Mortgage Application button is disabled
Adviser on the case — A manager who is not marked as the adviser on the case cannot submit it
Buyer Type — Required. Cases must be Residential
Mortgage Term — Required, in whole years
Repayment Method — Required. For Interest Only or Part & Part, a monthly repayment vehicle amount is needed, and for Part & Part an interest only amount
Per-Applicant Data
Field | Required | Notes |
Personal details | Yes | Title, first name, surname, gender, date of birth (applicant over 18), nationality, telephone and anticipated retirement age. Previous first name and surname if the applicant has changed name |
Credit History | Yes | For each applicant |
Address history | Yes | At least 3 years. Each address needs a street number, building name or flat number |
Employment | Yes | For each applicant |
Marital Status and Verification Method | Asked on the Halifax form | Also Occupation for employed and self-employed applicants, Source of Retirement for retired applicants, and Employment Contract for agency workers |
Has the income been verified? | Asked on the Halifax form | Tick Verified against each income that has been verified. For self-employed income the tick is required |
Property and Mortgage Details
Purchase price and mortgage amount for purchases; mortgage amount outstanding, mortgage amount and additional borrowing for remortgages
Whether the applicant is using the mortgage to consolidate debt
On the Halifax form: total value of cash incentives, whether the applicant is buying a flat, whether a five-year (or longer) fixed rate is intended, and the Shared Ownership Company for shared ownership cases. The Payment Route and, for purchases, the property's EPC details can also be given but are optional
Submitting a DIP
Complete all mandatory case data fields
Open the case and click SmartrConnect in the toolbar at the top of the case, then click the Halifax logo
Select DIP Direct in the Mortgage Application Type field
Set DIP Submission Type to New DIP Application
Complete the additional Halifax questions that appear on the page, tick the confirmation that your client has received the Customer Confirmation Document, and tick the acknowledgement that Smartr365 will prepopulate the Halifax application
Click Submit Application. Smartr365 checks that all fields Halifax needs from your Fact Find have been completed. If any are missing, they are listed for you to complete before the submission can go ahead
The decision is returned and displayed in SmartrConnect with the Lender Reference
Getting Your DIP Certificate
Once your DIP is accepted, click Result History, then click Get DIP Certificate. The certificate is sent to the case Document Store, and the result shows DIP certificate has been sent to Document Store.
Submitting an FMA
An FMA is started from a DIP result:
Make sure your Halifax credentials are saved in Settings > My Credentials > Halifax
On the DIP result, click Mortgage Application. This button is shown for DIPs with a lender reference and a status of Accepted, Due To Expire, Declined, Policy Decline, Action Required, Alternative Lending, Decision Pending or Redecision Required, but the full mortgage application can only be progressed when the DIP status is Accepted, Due To Expire or Declined
Halifax requires a Mortgage Illustration before a Full Mortgage Application can be submitted. Select the Product, complete the remaining illustration fields, and click Produce Mortgage Illustration. You can open the illustration from the Document Store, or with Download or Preview
When the illustration is ready, the Mortgage Application form opens. Complete the fields required for the full application. You can click Save Draft to come back to it later
Click Submit Mortgage Application. The lender reference is shown on the result
After submitting, the result shows the Lender Application Status and Full Mortgage Application Status. You can click Export Mortgage Application to PDF, and use Get Application Status Update to refresh the application status. Where there is still work to do, the result lists next steps in the Halifax Intermediary Portal: process the payment for the application, upload any relevant documentation, or make changes and resubmit the application.
Re-DIP
If you need to resubmit a DIP after making changes to the fact-find:
Update the relevant case data
Go back to SmartrConnect and click the Halifax logo
Select DIP Direct in the Mortgage Application Type field
Set DIP Submission Type to Resubmit New DIP Application and select the original DIP in Previous DIPs. Smartr365 includes the original lender reference
Click Resubmit Application
A DIP cannot be resubmitted if personal details or addresses have changed. In that case, set DIP Submission Type to New DIP Application to create a fresh Halifax application.
Self-Employment Cases
Sole Trader, Limited Company and Limited Liability Partnership self-employment can be submitted. For self-employed applicants:
The self-employed income is shown on the Halifax form
Under Has the income been verified?, you must tick Verified for the self-employed income
Common Validation Errors
"Raise funds mortgages are not supported" — Raise Funds cases cannot be submitted to Halifax through SmartrConnect
"BTL mortgage cases are not supported by Halifax" — Only residential cases can be submitted
"Only Right to Buy, Shared Equity, Shared Ownership, 95% Gov Scheme, First Homes and Resale Price Covenant cases are supported." — Check the scheme recorded on the mortgage case
"Halifax only accept a mortgage term in years" — Remove any months from the mortgage term
"Please enter your 'Halifax Intermediary Id and Password' on the User Settings page" — Save your Halifax username and password in Settings > My Credentials > Halifax
"You are not marked as the Adviser on this case" — Check who is marked as the adviser on the case Summary screen
"Company FCA Number has not been configured" — Your firm's FCA number needs to be set up. Contact our support team