source:
  type: guide
  id: fnma-sel-b3-3.2-02
  authority: Fannie Mae Selling Guide B3-3.2-02 — Standards for Employment-Related
    Income
  description: Fannie Mae Selling Guide B3-3.2-02 — Standards for Employment-Related
    Income.
  coverage_tier: operative
obligations:
- id: fnma-sel-b3-3.2-02-full
  canonical_id: fnma-sel-b3-3.2-02-full
  section: Fannie Mae Selling Guide B3-3.2-02 — Standards for Employment-Related Income
  type: do
  tags:
  - regulator-direct
  - fnma
  - selling-guide
  - corpus-expansion
  - tier-operative
  primary_source:
    tier: 1
    authority: Fannie Mae Selling Guide B3-3.2-02 — Standards for Employment-Related
      Income
    source_class: fnma-guide
    source_url: https://singlefamily.fanniemae.com/media/document/pdf/selling-guide
    snapshot_id: 5f7b8b79da595d76
    fetched_at: '2026-05-25T14:09:57Z'
    content_hash: sha256:98cf85a02861bbe84914a0e339b327c8fc131869a8a573882007bbeea60c5701
    paragraph_quote: 'B3-3.2-02, Standards for Employment-Related Income (03/04/2026)
      The following table provides requirements for using employment-related income
      for qualifying. Criteria Requirements Employment Lenders must evaluate the borrower’s
      work history to determine whether it reﬂects a reliable pattern of employment
      over the most recent two years. A shorter employment history may be considered
      eligible for qualifying purposes if the borrower’s employment proﬁle includes
      positive factors that reasonably oﬀset the shorter employment history. Published
      May 6, 2026 313 Criteria Requirements Multiple Jobs Borrowers who are qualifying
      with income from multiple employment sources at the same time, including self-employment,
      must meet the requirements for each speciﬁc income type, as well as the following
      requirements: • A two-year history for each income source is recommended; however,
      income that has been received for a shorter period of time (but, no less than
      12 months) may be considered as acceptable income, as long as there are positive
      factors to reasonably oﬀset the shorter income history. • When the borrower’s
      employment history includes diﬀerent employers, in no instance may the borrower
      have any gap in employment greater than one month in the most recent 12-month
      period, unless the employment is considered seasonal income (subject to the
      requirements in B3-3.3-08, Seasonal Income). Note: When one of the income sources
      is from self-employment (borrowers with a 25% or greater ownership interest
      in the business), self-employed documentation and eligibility requirements apply.
      See B3-3.5-01, Underwriting Factors and Documentation for a Self-Employed Borrower
      for requirements. Employment Gaps Borrowers with employment gaps during the
      most recent 12 months may appear to have unstable employment. Lenders must carefully
      analyze the borrower’s current employment to ensure that it is likely to continue.
      Job Changes Borrowers who change jobs frequently, but who are nevertheless able
      to earn consistent and predictable income, are considered to have a reliable
      ﬂow of income for qualifying purposes. Pay Raises Future increases in pay from
      the borrower''s current employer may be included as qualifying income when the
      following requirements are met: • The income is ﬁxed base only. • The transaction
      is a purchase money or limited cash-out reﬁnance transaction. • The increase
      must take eﬀect no later than 60 days after the note date. • The increase is
      fully veriﬁed with the employer using Form 1005, Request for Veriﬁcation of
      Employment or other documentation directly from the employer that provides the
      terms of the future pay increase. • Borrower must not be employed by a family
      member or interested party. Note: Borrowers who are qualifying using income
      from a future employer must meet the requirements in B3-3.3-03, Employment Oﬀers
      or Contracts. Published May 6, 2026 314 Criteria Requirements Employment by
      Family or Interested Party Borrowers who are employed by a family member or
      interested party must meet the requirements for the speciﬁc income type(s) outlined
      in the respective sections throughout Chapter B3–3, Income Assessment, and the
      following: • Borrower must have been employed by the business for at least the
      12 months prior to the application date. • The lender must obtain copies of
      the most recent year’s signed federal income tax returns that reﬂect borrower
      has less than 25% ownership in the business owned by the family member or interested
      party. If the borrower has 25% or more ownership, the borrower must be qualiﬁed
      as self-employed. • The borrower’s qualifying income must be consistent with
      the most recent year’s earnings, which must be documented with a W-2 or tax
      returns. If a borrower’s income is validated by the DU validation service, lenders
      are not required to determine if the borrower is employed by a family member
      or interested party to the property sale or purchase. Foreign Income Foreign
      income is earned by a borrower who is employed by a foreign corporation or a
      foreign government and is paid in foreign currency. Borrowers using foreign
      income to qualify must meet the following requirements: • Copies of signed federal
      income tax returns for the most recent two years that include foreign employment-related
      income. • The lender must satisfy requirements based on the source and type
      of income as outlined in Chapter B3–3, Income Assessment. • All documents of
      a foreign origin must be completed in English, or the lender must provide a
      translation, attached to each document, and ensure the translation is complete
      and accurate. • All income must be translated to U.S. dollars. Note: If the
      borrower is not a U.S. citizens, refer to B2-2-02, Non–U.S. Citizen Borrower
      Eligibility Requirements, for additional information. Recent Related Announcements
      The table below provides reference to recently issued Announcements related
      to this topic. Announcements Issue Date Announcement SEL-2026-02 March 04, 2026
      Published May 6, 2026 315 Section B3-3.3, Sources of Employment-Related Income'
  judgment: false
