Hi Mr.Qorak!!!!
I am currently residing in USA.So will my credit rating from here will help me in establishing credit in Canada and also if you can tell how is the process of transfering my driving licence from USA to Canada
-***** Guest House, A/port pick-up,
-etc...
I'll discuss all that when we meet next.
Regards.
Hi,
It all boils down to the
SSN vs. SIN story right?
In the US, individuals are identified by their Social Security Number (SSN). Similarly In Canada, people have Social Insurance Numbers (SIN), both serving the same purpose. Credit bureaus in Canada use the SIN to keep track of individual's credit reports. Since US and Canada are 2 different countries, SSNs cannot be tracked in the Canadian system/s and vice-versa > SINs cannot be tracked in the US system/s as well.
Credit BureausHowever, there's a thing with the Credit Bureaus though. In the US, there are 3 major credit bureaus:
Experian, TransUnion and
Equifax. These 3 bureaus provide credit reports and scores for all individuals with a SSN who have opened a line of credit or a loan.
Canada's credit bureaus follow the same procedures as well. Here the 3 major credit bureaus are
Equifax Canada, TransUnion Canada and
Northern Credit Bureaus Inc.
Note that 2 of them r the same institutions with a canadian chapter! In several scenarios, ppl have found that the US TransUnion and the Canadian TransUnion, or the US Equifax and the Canadian Equifax, share the same data in their systems. Resulting, the ability of a Canadian financial institution pulling your US credit history.
This could be good for people with positive credit and bad for those with not so good credit.Credit ScoresAs far as credit scores go, TransUnion Canada and Equifax Canada have both implemented the FICO system from the US. The only difference being is credit scores in Canada range between a score of 300 and 900. While scores in the US use a scale of 300-850.
Scores closer to 900 r a lower risk for the lenders, which could mean a lower interest rate to the borrower. The opposite can be said for scores closer to 300. These scores would be a much higher risk for the lender and in result would mean a higher interest rate for the borrower.
So, is Credit Transfer possible if u move to Canada?Peculiarly, No. A smooth transfer is not possible. but "looking-up" is. As in the US, in Canada it is hard to obtain credit without a credit history too. So what we can do is - we can procure our US Credit Report from TransUnion or Equifax before coming over, then walk inside a Canadian bank (or a financial institution) and flash it. Which will enable most banks/fin.institutions in Canada take an easier and/or quicker decision to issue credit. Yes, that's possible.
Bottomline:No, ur US credit rating cannot be transferred to Canada. But, if u have a positive rating there, u could ask ur Canadian institution to look-it-out and assist u with a Canadian product.
Hope that helped.
Qorax
Immigration Forum
