Ways to Establish Credit in the UK

O2 would have done it but I just bought my phone our right...

I also had no problem getting a current account with Lloyds as DH introduced me and I was self employed.
I need to check into the Citibank thing!
Great Post!

Hey shannon, i work for halifax so i'm going to speak of them (they are fairly big in the north as well).  There is a cardcash account you can get for a current account that requires no credit check to get. You can apply online.  Get a mobile and set up a direct debit for payment. They also have a whole flyer about knowing your credit.
It will be very hard to get credit cards, i was denied when i applied and hell, i work for them! Lol. So start small and work your way up. if you want anymore info on halifax i'll give it to you through pm. I think they are a brill bank, even though the adverts are cheesy....lol.

I was able to get an account at HSBC with no trouble (my husband has banked there for years, plus I'm in a University town, so I imagine they deal with people coming and going quite a bit).  After a few months I applied for, and got, a credit card with (in my opinion), a high limit! I think so much depends on your individual branch--my husband went in with me to open the original account, but the credit card I did in branch on my own, and it was super easy.

 

As for banking, I just need to look around a little more.  We contacted 3 or 4 different banks initially but I was immediately refused due to not having a monthly income.  I'm pretty sure they were all checking accounts...perhaps savings accounts have different requirements?  I have a bit of savings in my US account (which I will be keeping) but I could transfer some money over to get it started up.

I got a joint account with my husband last week with Santander.  I am not working either, and there was not a problem.  We even got over draft.  I was told my the bank person that without it being a joint account, the application would have to be sent off to an underwriter for approval.  Eight days later I got my pin and day later I got my new debit card.  Best of luck

Lloyds bank gave me a joint bank account with my partner the day after I arrived in the UK.

But, they wouldn't open me a sole account until either a) they saw that I managed the joint account well, or b) my savings arrived from overseas.

So, I waited a week till my money was here, and then opened a sole account without any problems.

I also recommend the book Your Money or Your Life by Alvin Hall regarding UK finances and the book The Wealthy Barber (US version) by Dave Chilton regarding US finances.



(not sure if this is the US or Canadian version)

I was studying in London and didn't even have a student visa or anything at the time-- just used my US passport to get what is called a 'passport account' at HSBC.  There is a monthly fee of I think 20GBP for the account, but I think they only charge you for the first 6 months or so (possibly 12 Months).  It's a totally normal bank account, just set up to fit needs of visitors.  This is of course used to help build credit if you are new to the country, which is why I set it up.  I believe they said that after 12 months of good standing with the account you can add a line of credit/overdraft fee protection type stuff to the account which is great to build credit.  Also, there was no sort of minimum deposit amount on the account, as long as there is enough so that they can deduct their fees every month.  I only put money in it to cover their fees, to be honest.  I am just using it for the sole purpose of getting some credit going.  Good luck!

If you have a Citibank credit card, they'll also transfer your credit to the UK. I just faxed the form in to do that yesterday.

So I take this back. After 3 months of silence, they finally sent me word saying they're not opening any new accounts in the UK right now. And yet they haven't touched the website claiming you can transfer credit from the US to the UK (or Singapore), go figure.

I applied for the AmEx transfer, and they haven't asked me for bank account proof yet - they say they want a certified copy of my passport, and that's it.

I did get an AmEx card, though. No hassle, just showed up in the mail.

"I use a prepay mobile because I get calls to the US for £0.02/minute and I haven't found any contracts that come close to competing with that...but it's good to have as a possible option to help speed things along if I need it."

Not to hijack but what carrier to use use for the 2 cents per minute phone calls. I want to use them! Thanks!

@Ellenpal: Not sure if you ever received a reply to your post, but that sounds like it could be Skype; they have a "Skype-To-Go" which allows you to call international from your landline or cell phone for a low fee.

There are actually a number of mobile VOIP services popping up.  Jahjah is one.  Rebtel is another, and there's actually a thread about it somewhere around here.  

The thing to bear in mind about any of these is that, in addition to the 1-2p/minute that you're paying to the VOIP company, you're also paying for whatever minutes you're using on the mobile.  This isn't a big deal if you're calling at a time when you have unlimited minutes, but if your plan is a pay-per-minute, then you need to figure that into your overall cost-per-minute.  Or, if your plan is like mine, where I just get x minutes per month, you need to remember you're still using those up, and be aware of overage charges if you exceed that.

E.T.A.:  Link to previous thread on mobile VOIP   http://talk.uk-yankee.com/index.php?topic=58607.msg831230#msg831230

My husband and I 'shopped' around for banks. Lloyds was the most helpful. We opened a joint account and then I got a sole account. They wouldn't let me get a credit card until I had my ILR though. I spoke with the bank manager a few times at our local branch and he was really helpful.

Do UK banks offer 'secured' credit cards like US banks do? I can see that really being useful to establishing credit.

I noticed a comment earlier on here that had me puzzled. In the UK, I cannot get a joint credit card with my husband, it can only be in one name or the other? I just wanted to confirm that I understood that correctly as it doesn't make sense to me.

Can anyone point me to a definitive source (or tell us who to call) that will clarify how our US bankruptcy will effect our UK credit? From what I've read on here, it seems to 50/50 as to whether it will effect us or not. The bankruptcy is currently in progress, and should be discharged well before we plan on moving. Will the US bankruptcy even prevent us from opening a checking account there? We do plan on buying a car right away, and my FIL has said he's willing to cosign on that loan. We don't plan on buying a home right away as we want to wait 2-3 years to make sure we feel settled there (and definitely want to stay) and give ample time to save up a substantial deposit. Ideally we need to find out, without a doubt, how it could effect us. If anyone can point us to some websites, or to an agency or whatever that would be great.

Do UK banks offer 'secured' credit cards like US banks do?  

I am not aware of this over here, so I don't think so.  If anyone else knows different, then that's a new one on me.  

I noticed a comment earlier on here that had me puzzled. In the UK, I cannot get a joint credit card with my husband, it can only be in one name or the other? I just wanted to confirm that I understood that correctly as it doesn't make sense to me.  

The credit agreement for a credit card here in the UK will only be for a sole person, not a joint tenant account (for credit cards).  As compared to in the US, when you can get either single or joint tenant accounts.  However, a husband (or wife, or partner) could have their sole credit card account, but get an additional card with their spouse/partner's name on it for the spouse/partner to use.  But that is not the same thing as having a joint tenant account, rather it's just an extra authorised card on the original person's sole account.  It's just having a card to use, versus being legally responsible for seeing that the debt gets repaid - which is what relates to a credit report.  And just having a card to use on another person's credit card account won't do anything for your credit rating, because the 'ownership' of the account (so to speak) isn't yours.  Hope that makes sense.

On the other hand, overdrafts (for current bank accounts) and personal loans may be taken out in joint names over here - both parties equally & severally liable for ensuring the debt gets repaid.

Can anyone point me to a definitive source (or tell us who to call) that will clarify how our US bankruptcy will effect our UK credit? From what I've read on here, it seems to 50/50 as to whether it will effect us or not. The bankruptcy is currently in progress, and should be discharged well before we plan on moving.

If there is a 'definitive' source, then I'd surely be interested to learn of it - lol!  What you have to consider is that you are talking about debt law and credit bureaus in two completely different countries - they don't consult with each other as to how it all ought to be in one or the other's jurisdictions.  Also, with the US, there will be some variance in debt law even from one state to another!

Generally speaking, your credit history in one country doesn't follow you into the other country.  Neither system is set up to do that.  Rather the difficulty in credit when moving over here is that you're starting fresh - with no credit history in the UK.

Could a UK company look into your US credit history if they wanted to?  I suppose they could if they wanted to go to the trouble of contacting & paying a US credit bureau for the information.  In routine practice, does this tend to happen?  No.  And I am speaking of personal credit here - no idea how it works for something like business credit.  (And I am not speaking to what effect, if any, a US bankruptcy may or may not have on the visas & citizenship process over here.  This information is only about obtaining credit in the UK - not about visas & citizenship, and not about any sort of specialised background checks for employment here.)

On a side note - we have a platinum account with Lloyds and for fun I applied for the Duo Air miles Credit Card in my name and I got it with a stupid credit limit.
I also have a clothing credit card I have used 2 times since moving here, I got this 3 months after being here.

I am dead set on building some type of credit.