The Morrison Government has moved to shield new home buyers from the impact of the ban on real estate auctions by extending the loan approval period for borrowers signing on to the first home loan deposit scheme.Since the scheme was launched in January around 8000 first home buyers have secured access to the program, which enables borrowers to get a bank loan with a deposit as low as 5 per cent of the value of property.The government - through the National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation(NHFIC) - guarantees up to 15 per cent of the value of the property being purchased.This enables the borrower to avoid having to pay lenders mortgage insurance.But, the recently introduced ban on on-site auctions created an obstacle for the scheme because eligible home buyers were only entitled to a 90-day loan approval period.  The auction restrictions are expected to remain in place for at least three months, which means many eligible borrowers would have lost their opportunity to buy a house through the scheme.However, the NHFIC notified the schemes 25 participating lenders on Monday that they now had an option to extend loan pre-approval period for up to 180 days."The option to extend the 90 day preapproval period gives both scheme lenders and first home buyers the flexibility and support to deal with the evolving COVID-19 situation," said NHFIC chief executive Nathan Dal Bon."Places are still available through scheme lenders and they are continuing to accept applications."The scheme is expected to extend support to another 2000 first home buyers in the current financial year. An additional 10,000 prospective borrowers will be able to access the scheme from the start of July.Banks issuing home loans through the scheme include National Australia Bank, CBA, People's Choice CU and Auswide Bank.