GovWire

Our Buyer Credit Facility provides a guarantee to a bank making a loan to an overseas buyer, so that capital goods, service and/or intangibles can be purchased.

This facility enables the exporter to receive payment up-front as though it was a cash contract, while the buyer can access extended repayment terms.

The loan is typically repaid over a period of 2 years or longer by the borrower, while the exporter receives payment via the credit facility as amounts fall due under the export contract.

Loans can be made in the main trading currencies, as well as more than 60 local currencies.

UKEF can consider support for corporate (private), sovereign and public buyers. Our flexible support can be used for a range of structures including:

• limited recourse project finance
• Islamic finance (sukuk)
• Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs)
• capital markets refinancing

Benefits

The benefits of our Buyer Credit Facility include:

• the exporter is paid as though it has a cash contract
• the buyer or borrower has time to pay over a number of years and can borrow at fixed or floating rates
• the lending bank is protected against non-payment, for whatever reasons, of the instalments of principal and interest due under the guaranteed loan.

Eligibility criteria

The transaction must satisfy UKEFs eligibility criteria, which includes the requirements that:

• the exporter must be carrying on business in the UK
• the export contract must have a value of at least 5 million or the equivalent in foreign currency
• the bank making the loan must be acceptable to us
• the period for repayment of the loan must be at least 2 years

All transactions supported by UKEF must satisfy:

• our foreign content policy
• our anti-bribery and corruption and environmental, social and human rights due diligence processes

The transaction may not be supported if there are sanctions imposed on the country of the overseas buyer.

The maximum amount that can be made available under the loan is 85% of the contract value. A minimum of 15% of the contract value must be paid directly to the exporter by the buyer before the loan starts to be repaid.

Check our country cover indicators to find out what cover is available for the country you want to do business in.

Buyer Credit Facility: additional features

How to apply

Our application forms are also available if youre ready to make an application.

Application forms

Make an application. Depending on our country cover position, you may also need to submit a sustainable lending form.

• Buyer Credit application form (PDF, 316 KB)
• schedule to the Buyer Credit application form (PDF, 320 KB, 9 pages)
• sustainable lending form
• Export Refinancing Facility application form (PDF, 132 KB, 8 pages)

More information

• Read our guide for applicants on business processes and factors, to find out how we make decisions on applications
• Read our position on Financial Crime Compliance

Additional note

In accordance with the OECD Arrangement on Officially Supported Export Credits, the maximum amount that can be made available under the facility is normally 85% of the export contract value. However, for a temporary period this has been increased to 95% of the contract value for some transactions for sovereign and public borrowers with a Ministry of Finance or Central Bank guarantee.

A minimum of 5% of the contract value must be paid directly to the supplier by the buyer before the facility starts to be repaid. Transactions may benefit from the temporary changes provided that applications are received between 5 November 2021 and 4 November 2023, and the date of the final commitment is within 18 months of the end of the validity period, ie by 4 May 2025.

The temporary change is applicable for exports to all countries except High Income OECD countries. It does not apply to transactions following the Aircraft Sector Understanding (ASU) or Ship Sector Understanding (SSU).