For Turkish buyers · Source of funds

Buying with money from your family:
which documents do you need?

When you buy in England, your solicitor asks where the money came from and how it reached your account; if it comes from your family, the giver may be asked for documents too. These checks are a legal duty on the firms involved, not suspicion of you. Here is what is asked for and how to build the trail.

Last checked: 15 October 2026 · About 8 minutes to read
A magnifying glass over the fine line pattern of a banknote
A magnifying glass over a banknote. Photo: Brecht Corbeel, Unsplash (Unsplash License).

Short answer

If the money comes from your family, three things are usually asked for: a signed letter or gift deed confirming the money is a gift, the giver’s identity and relationship to you, and statements showing the money moving from their account to yours.

The SRA, which regulates solicitors, expects a solicitor to understand the giver’s source of funds in the same way as yours; a statement that only shows a balance is not enough. Each party runs its own check, so the same documents may be asked for more than once; preparing early prevents delay.

What the person giving the money is asked for

The SRA’s thematic review of source of funds and wealth, published on 5 November 2025, works through a case of parents gifting a deposit. It lists what the solicitor should do:

  • Verify the identity of the givers and confirm their relationship to you.
  • Confirm the money is a gift, for example with a signed letter or a gift deed.
  • Understand the givers’ underlying source of funds.

The SRA’s page for consumers says the same: if a relative is providing money for the purchase, your solicitor may also need to verify their identity and the source of their funds.

If you are borrowing, the lender also asks for proof of your deposit. MoneyHelper says that where part of the deposit is a gift, a form completed by the person who gifted it is asked for. Our guide to a UK mortgage on Turkish income covers the lender side.

The path of the money, not the balance

The SRA lists asking for a bank statement that simply shows the funds exist, without understanding how they were obtained, as poor practice. LSAG, the sector guidance solicitors use, says it is not enough to know the money came from a UK bank account.

With family support the document trail has four links:

  • Where the giver’s money came from: salary, savings, the sale of a property or business, with the documents.
  • The move from their account to yours: statements for both accounts, matching date and amount.
  • Any currency conversion, with its confirmation; the amount sent and the amount received should match.
  • The transfer from your account to your solicitor’s client account.

LSAG notes that bank statements, wills and full payslips may all be useful in showing where money came from. Our purchase cost calculator’s payment schedule shows how much has to reach your solicitor, and when.

Money from abroad is not a problem in itself; the SRA says only that funds from abroad can be high risk in some cases. That makes statements from accounts in Türkiye, translations where needed and a record of the transfer more important.

Sending documents and money safely

Joint guidance from the Law Society, the SRA and the National Crime Agency says to get the firm’s bank details in person or by phone at the start. Law firms rarely change their bank details; if an email asks you to pay somewhere new, call the firm on its published number, not the one in the email.

The Take Five campaign suggests sending a small sum first and confirming it arrived before transferring the full amount. Send your identity documents and statements only by the route your solicitor or lender gives you.

Tax on the gift is a separate question

This guide covers documents only. Whether a gift has tax consequences in the UK or in Türkiye is a separate question for a tax adviser in each country.

Who asks

You will be asked
more than once.

This is the part that feels like disorganisation and is not. Each party carries its own obligation and remains responsible even where it is permitted to rely on another firm’s checks, so the same passport and the same statements get requested several times over. Knowing that in advance turns an irritation into a photocopying job.

UsIntroductionsIntroducing buyers to developers is estate agency work under UK law, so we carry out the customer due diligence checks that the UK money laundering regulations require of us.

We verify who you are before we introduce you to a developer, and we ask about source-of-funds readiness early so it is not discovered late. We are not the ones who sign off your purchase.
The developerSellerUsually runs its own checks, often before accepting a reservation and again before exchange; when and how it checks is the developer’s own decision. Expect to be verified before a plot is held for you.
Your solicitorRegulated, acts for youCarries the heaviest obligation. Verifies identity, examines the evidence behind your funds, and cannot complete without being satisfied. For completing your purchase, this is usually the decisive check.
Your lenderIf you are borrowingRuns its own checks on you and on the deposit, including where a gift comes from. Lender questions often arrive later than everyone else’s, which is why they surprise people. UK mortgage on Turkish income →
Two different questions

Source of funds is not
source of wealth.

Buyers routinely answer one when the other was asked, then wonder why the same question keeps coming back. The distinction is worth two minutes. Other terms you will meet are in our glossary of UK property terms.

Source of funds

Where this specific money, for this specific purchase, came from and how it reached the account it is sitting in now.

Answered with documents: a completion statement, a sale contract, transfer records, statements showing the money arriving.

Source of wealth

How your overall wealth was built in the first place. A broader question about your financial history rather than this transaction.

Answered with a narrative that the documents support: what you do, over what period it accumulated, and evidence consistent with that.

Getting ahead of it

What to assemble
before anyone asks.

Firms differ in exactly what they want, so treat this as what is commonly asked rather than a definitive list; your solicitor’s list is the one that governs. But almost nothing here is wasted, and having it ready removes a delay that is within your control.

IdentityPassport and a recent proof of address. Overseas addresses are normal; what causes friction is a document in a language or format the firm cannot read, so ask early whether a certified translation is wanted.
The money’s path, not just its balanceA bank statement showing the money sitting there answers nothing on its own. What is being asked is how it got there. Keep the statements that show it arriving.
Sale of an assetCompletion statement or contract of sale, plus the statement showing the proceeds landing in your account. Property, shares, a business, investments: the document that proves the sale is the point.
A giftThe giver is usually asked for a signed letter, their own identity documents and evidence of where their money came from. That means collecting someone else’s paperwork, so start on day one.
Salary, dividends or business incomePayslips, tax returns or audited accounts covering enough time to explain the accumulation. For company income, the relationship between you and the company usually has to be documented too.
Funds held outside the UKNothing about this is a problem in itself. It does mean more paperwork and more time: statements from the foreign institution, often translated, and a clear record of the transfer into the UK.
Buying through a companyAdd the corporate layer: incorporation documents, ownership structure, and identity evidence for the people who ultimately own and control it.
Currency conversionIf the money changes currency on the way, the conversion becomes part of the story. Keep the exchange confirmations so the amount arriving can be tied to the amount that left.
What actually causes delay

Start before the clock does.
Late evidence is avoidable delay.

We do not have figures on how often checks fail, and an unacceptable answer can stop a purchase outright. What is within your control is timing: evidence assembled after the clock has started is an avoidable cause of delay.

Leaving it until a solicitor is instructed. The evidence takes as long as it takes; only the start date is under your control.
A gift with no paperwork behind the giver. This can make an otherwise ready purchase miss an exchange deadline.
Money assembled from several accounts, with no record of how each part arrived. Each strand is normally traced separately.
Documents in another language with no translation, sent one at a time as they are asked for rather than as a pack.
Assuming that because one party accepted your evidence, the others will. They are separate obligations, and they can reach different conclusions.

To be clear about our own role: introducing buyers to developers is estate agency work, so the money laundering rules cover us too, and we carry out the checks they require of us before making any introduction. We help you prepare, but we are not your solicitor and the decision on your purchase is not ours.

Each firm in the chain that is covered by the money laundering rules carries its own duty to check and decides for itself what it needs; for completing your purchase, the list your solicitor gives you is the one to follow.

Nothing on this page is legal advice, and none of it replaces what your solicitor asks you for.

Frequently asked questions

Short questions,
short answers.

Is a bank balance enough on its own?

No. The SRA lists a statement that only shows the funds exist as poor practice. Your solicitor wants to understand how the money was obtained and how it reached your account.

Will the family member giving the money be asked for documents?

They may be. The SRA says that if a relative is providing money for the purchase, your solicitor may also need to verify their identity and the source of their funds.

What should a gift letter say?

In the SRA’s example, the letter is there to confirm the money is a gift; the giver’s identity and relationship to you are verified separately. Ask your solicitor, and your lender if you have one, for the exact wording and who signs; either may have its own form.

The money comes from Türkiye; do I need extra documents?

Money from abroad is not a problem in itself, but the SRA says it can be high risk in some cases. Statements from the accounts in Türkiye, translations where needed and a record of the transfer may be asked for.

How do I send documents and money safely?

Send documents by the route your solicitor gives you. Confirm bank details by calling the firm on a known number rather than trusting an email; the Law Society says law firms rarely change their bank details.

Sources

What this guide
is based on.

Last checked: 15 October 2026. This page is general information, not legal advice. The list that governs is the one your solicitor gives you.

Take it further
Who does what, and who is regulated → The full buying process → Reservation vs exchange → Checking the title register → Disclosure and compliance →
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