Relocation services for British Columbia, Canada

Establishing credit

It is important to build up a credit history in Canada. It doesn't matter how good (or bad) your credit history was in the UK, it is your Canadian credit history which counts.

Here are our tips on establishing a credit history:

• get a credit card from your bank
  The chances are that they will need some sort of security for this. The most common practice is for you to deposit a sum equal to your credit limit. This is held by the bank as a GIC (Guaranteed Investment Certificate). You earn interest on this but cannot touch it for 6 months to a year. Negotiate on this. If you are bringing a large sum of money over from the UK (from selling your house) then you can ask for the GIC to be released when the money arrives.
• use the credit card!
  every time you apply for credit, e.g. getting a new credit card, your credit rating will go down. You must use the card and repay it so that your rating goes up. Each time you borrow and repay you are establishing your reliability. Make sure that you pay on time. Even one late payment can have a negative effect on your credit rating.
• get a credit card in each name
  The secondary cardholder does not earn a credit rating. So if you have a bank credit card with you as the principal holder, it is worth getting a second card where your spouse is the principal holder. The easiest way to do this is to get a store card, such as the HBC card (Hudson Bay Company). In our case the mere fact that we had another credit card meant they were happy to issue a Bay card. Again you must use it to establish your credit rating.
• AMEX cards
  We have been told by American Express card holders that they have been able to get a card in Canada immediately based on their pre-existing credit rating in the UK or elsewhere. While Amex is not accepted everywhere it is a help.
• car loan
  Even if you can afford to buy your car outright, consider getting a loan. Many new cars have low or even zero interest loans available.