People New to the UK Can Bring their Credit Score with Them

5th Feb 2024

In an international jobs market, it’s more common than ever for workers to spend part of their careers working outside their home countries. One of the main issues for British workers moving overseas, or overseas nationals moving to the UK is renting properties or opening a bank account. Without any financial record in the country you are moving to, it is impossible for the banks to assess whether you are a good risk or not. It takes a while for anyone to build up a credit record and build a credit score by managing finances responsibly.

Major international bank HSBC UK, working with a well-known international credit referencing agency, has introduced a new system aimed at addressing these prolonged delays faced by newcomers in the UK in accessing credit. The system allows immigrants to bring their credit history from approximately 12 countries with them to the UK, and the new system covers more than 70% of HSBC's customers. Research by HSBC discovered that immigrants often experience longer processing times and different treatment due to a lack of UK credit history.

 

Sharing of Credit Scores

The idea behind this new system is to simplify this problem for international customers by allowing the sharing of data with HSBC. However, some critics view it as a temporary solution to a broader systemic problem. The UK immigrant population is rapidly growing, with more than 10 million overseas-born individuals residing in the country, and over 800,000 people are granted long-term visas annually. Immigration contributes to 95% of the UK's net population growth. Not every country has the same approach to credit reports and credit scoring, and if workers are moving too or from a country which does not collect data in the same way, bringing credit scores to the UK might not be possible.

 

Advice for New Arrivals in the UK

If you have recently arrived in the UK for work or study and are finding it difficult to open a bank account or agree a tenancy for a rental property, then it’s important to recognise that building a credit footprint will take time. One of the most important steps is to get onto the electoral register if you are eligible to vote in UK elections, and to speak to your employer or university about any advice which they can give about basic bank accounts which you can use to start demonstrating that you can manage your spending sensibly.

In rented property, especially in house share situations, try to get your name on the utility bills for gas, electricity or broadband so that there is a link between your name and the address where you are living. This will help to start to build your credit profile. Keep checking back with the credit report agencies to see whether your actions are starting to have any effect on your credit score numbers, bearing it mind that it can take several months for any changes to be reflected in the numbers.

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