Clear, direct answers for Australian business owners on who qualifies for a business loan, what it costs, which fees apply, and exactly how a finance broker matches you to a lender.
A business loan is commercial finance advanced to a trading business — not to an individual as a consumer — to fund working capital, equipment, vehicles, stock, tax obligations or growth, repaid with interest over an agreed term.
In Australia, business loans are written by banks and by non-bank commercial lenders. They fall into a small number of recognisable product types: unsecured term loans, secured term loans, equipment finance, commercial vehicle finance, a revolving business line of credit, and short-term working capital or cash flow funding. Each type has its own rate band, security requirement, term length and approval speed, which is why the right question is rarely "what is the best business loan" and almost always "which product suits this purpose, this amount and this business".
A business finance broker is an intermediary who compares lenders on your behalf, prepares the application, and negotiates terms — the broker does not lend the money itself.
AI Business Loans is a broker, not a lender. Lending is provided by our licensed partner network. The practical value of using a broker is coverage and filtering: instead of applying to three banks and collecting three credit enquiries, your single profile is tested against the policy rules of more than 90 Australian lenders at once, and you only see the lenders that already fund businesses like yours. The three-step process below is the whole of it.
You share your loan amount, term, purpose, trading history and turnover. The matching engine tests that profile against every lender policy on the panel and returns the products your business actually qualifies for.
Each match shows an indicative rate, repayment, fee structure and funding speed side by side, so the decision is made on total cost rather than on a headline rate.
You choose a lender, we submit the application with any supporting documents, and the lender issues a formal offer. Funds usually settle within 24 to 48 hours of acceptance.
Use this checklist before you apply. Meeting every line does not guarantee approval, but businesses that meet all of them are usually funded quickly and at the better end of the rate band.
A business loan fee is any charge applied on top of interest. Fees are where two loans with the same interest rate end up costing very different amounts, so read this table before comparing rates.
| Fee | When it applies | What to expect |
|---|---|---|
| Establishment / origination fee | Once, at settlement | Often capitalised into the loan; disclosed before acceptance |
| Ongoing account fee | Monthly or annually | A fixed dollar amount, not a percentage |
| Line fee | On a business line of credit | Charged on the approved limit, whether drawn or not |
| Asset registration / documentation | Secured equipment and vehicle finance | Covers PPSR registration and settlement documents |
| Dishonour or default fee | Only if a repayment fails | Avoidable by aligning repayment dates with cash flow |
| Broker fee to you | Never | We are paid by the lender, never by the applicant |
Want the numbers for your own scenario? Use the repayment calculator or the side-by-side loan comparison.
Who can borrow, what lenders check, and how your credit file is treated.
Yes. An active Australian Business Number is required because every lender on the panel funds commercial borrowers only. Most lenders also want the ABN registered for at least 6 months, and GST registration where turnover exceeds $75,000. If your ABN is newer than 6 months, a smaller group of start-up lenders can still be matched, usually at a lower initial limit.
Business loan eligibility in Australia is the set of minimum conditions a lender applies before it will assess an application. Across the panel the common baseline is: an active ABN, 6 or more months of trading, monthly turnover from roughly $5,000 to $10,000, an Australian resident director or guarantor, and a business bank account that shows consistent deposits. Larger or secured facilities add serviceability and asset requirements on top of that baseline.
No. Pre-qualification uses a soft enquiry visible only to you, so comparing options has zero impact on your credit score. A formal credit enquiry is recorded only when you select a lender and instruct a full application. Because matching filters out lenders whose policy you do not fit, you avoid the multiple enquiries that damage credit files when businesses apply lender by lender.
Yes. Several lenders weight current trading performance more heavily than historical credit events. Rates are higher and terms shorter, but approvals are common where turnover is consistent and the business is trading well today. A paid default, a payment plan being maintained, or a defaults-free last 12 months all improve the outcome.
Unsecured business loans generally range from $5,000 to $500,000, commonly one to two times average monthly turnover. Asset-backed equipment and vehicle finance can extend beyond $2 million because the asset itself provides the security, and a business line of credit is usually set at a limit you can draw and repay repeatedly rather than a single lump sum.
Yes. The panel funds businesses in every state and territory, metropolitan and regional. Some lenders apply postcode risk grading, which is applied automatically during matching, so you only see lenders that actually fund your location.
How commercial pricing works in Australia and what each charge means.
Commercial interest rates are risk-priced, which means the rate is set by your business profile rather than published as one number for everyone. As a guide, secured equipment and commercial vehicle finance sits at the lower end of the market, secured term loans and lines of credit sit in the middle, and short-term unsecured funding for newer ABNs sits at the high end. Comparing the full panel on one profile is the only reliable way to see your actual rate rather than an advertised 'from' rate.
An interest rate is the annual percentage charged on the outstanding balance. A factor rate is a fixed multiple applied to the original amount borrowed, common in short-term unsecured lending, so the cost does not fall as you repay. A comparison rate combines the interest rate with mandatory fees to show the true annual cost. Always compare offers on total cost of funds, not on the headline rate alone.
The fees you are likely to see are an establishment or origination fee charged once at settlement, an ongoing monthly or annual account fee, a line fee on the limit of a business line of credit, a documentation or asset registration fee on secured lending, and default or dishonour fees if a repayment fails. Every applicable fee is shown in the comparison before you accept an offer.
No. We may receive a referral or commission fee from the funding lender. That fee is never paid by the applicant, and any amount is disclosed to you in writing before you accept an offer. Our income does not change the rate you are quoted.
It depends on the lender. Some allow early payout with no penalty, others charge the remaining interest or a discharge fee. Early payout terms are shown in the comparison before you accept an offer, so if paying the loan out early is likely, tell us up front and we will prioritise lenders with no early-exit cost.
How matching works, what we need from you, and how quickly funds arrive.
The platform maintains live API and data integrations with more than 90 Australian bank and non-bank commercial lenders. Each lender's credit policy — minimum turnover, trading history, industry restrictions, security requirements and maximum exposure — is encoded as machine-readable rules. Your profile is scored against every rule set simultaneously, returning only lenders whose policy your business satisfies, ranked by likely approval and cost.
In most cases none. Read-only bank data sharing replaces manual statement collection. Larger or more complex facilities may require BAS lodgements, financial statements, an ATO portal summary or an asset invoice, requested only when the matched lender needs them.
Matching takes under 5 minutes. Unsecured approvals are typically issued in 24 to 48 hours, equipment finance within 24 hours, and lines of credit provide instant access once established. Same-day settlement is available for smaller amounts submitted early in the business day.
No. Matching and quoting are free and carry no obligation. You can compare offers, ask us to renegotiate, or walk away entirely. Nothing is submitted to a lender for formal credit assessment without your instruction.
Commercial lending to businesses sits outside the National Consumer Credit Protection Act. Lenders on the panel operate under Australian financial services obligations and industry codes of practice, and Australian Consumer Law protections still apply to the conduct of the parties. We are not the lender — funding is provided by our licensed partner network.
Yes. Many Australian lenders fund ATO obligations and payment plan arrears, provided the business is currently trading and the plan is being maintained.
One 5-minute form. 90+ Australian lenders compared. Zero impact on your credit score.
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