amad1985

Is there a way of transferring my current credit score/history from the UK to USA?

I did a fair amount of research before asking here. I have not found anyway of doing this anywhere. I do have an UK Amex credit card that did offer to transfer my card from a Amex UK to an Amex USA account. However they did warn that I must have a good score in the USA. I do have a good credit score and history in the UK.

My Background:
I am a British citizen on a Green Card. I have moved to Michigan in the last 7 months and I've been employed for 4 months now. I am renting my own house and paying my own utility bills. I do not have any credit cards here but I have established a checking account with PNC.

If there is no way, then how would I go about building a good credit score/history in the shortest amount of time?

Much appreciated

lansbury

Tis all here written by Fatbrit

Fatbrit's Guide to Credit and Finance : British Expat Wiki

tom169

Long story short is no. If you had an Amex you may be able to get one in the US based on UK history.

See http://britishexpats.com/wiki/Fatbrit's_Guide_to_Credit_and_Finance

amad1985

@lansbury and @tom169 thank you very much. That link is very helpful one.

Bob

There isn't any real short cuts to it, just a matter of a couple of years.

The AmEx thing will certainly help as it gets you a just start on history.

Store cards, secured cards and car loans are easy enough to get, which would be a start.

Utilities, won't really do anything. They don't tend to improve your score, only ding it if you're late.

Anyway, welcome to BE!

fbf2006

I'd try the Amex US card. Maybe it'll help. Also maybe a secured card from your bank?

We did it when we moved to the UK from the US and were able to get a really decent Amex UK card.

civilservant

Started with a Capital One Secured Card ($500), after 6 months I started to get offers and moved to a $2k Amex. A year later I opened a $16k Chase Freedom account and the Amex was tripled (twice) to $18k.

It's not hard to get credit here, so long as you use it responsibly and are patient.

Jellyfish

I had a UK Amex and while I could not "transfer" that account to the US, it's existence allowed me to open a US Amex with no credit history. The bonus is that when my credit information was reported to the credit scoring companies, US Amex considered my account opening date as the date I opened my UK Amex. This helped me to build a great credit score much faster, as how long you have been managing credit is a key component of your credit score.

bartholemues

Personally I had no problem getting a credit card a few weeks after getting here but I appear to be the exception rather than the rule. I do have a chunk of cash in the bank so that probably helped, though my credit limit is still tiny.

My process:
I opened a chequeing and savings account with BoA a few days after landing and transferred in a lump sum. A few weeks later after I received my social security number I went back into the branch and they got me approved for a credit card on the spot.

Both times I dealt with a Merrill Lynch financial adviser who clearly knew his stuff but I don't believe he did anything out of the ordinary for my credit card application in the end. I did bring in my offer letter showing my yearly salary but he didn't even scan that in the end as my company was no longer on their preferred list.

HairyJim

Best way (I found) was to open a bank account, once you have your SS number. Then transfer some money into it. They ask for a prepay credit card (I got a $2500 one). Then only use 20% max of it at any one time and ensure you pay it off every month (the balance). Within 12 months my score was in the low 700s. There's not much you can do about history or amount of credit, but this is the simplest and most straightforward way. Remember though, that each time you check your credit (get a car loan or mortgage or regular credit card) it 'hits' your score... you can safely get a couple of checks a year (but I'd advise no more that four) one check drops every 12 months, so it resets slowly. Remember to pay back every month. Over time this will show you are trustworthy and your score will go up... drop by drop...

MidAtlantic

If you check your score through something like credit Karma or Sesame it does not hit your score at all. Many accounts give you a FICO score - I get a monthly one with my Wells Fargo account and my Chase credit card. Again these do not hit your score.

Pulaski

As far as I can tell, Credit Karma gives you an estimate of your credit score based on data that it can access, but in my experience I find that Credit Karma gives an estimate compare to my FICO score, that is anything from 10 to 30 points too low.

MidAtlantic

As you know there are many different scores, not just one.

Credit Karma calculates the Vantage Score 3.0. Yes it is different from FICO but still gives a useful guide to where someone's credit score is and the factors affecting it.