Hello, it's Hiro.
Today, America is a cashless society, and it is no exaggeration to say that we can no longer live without a credit card.
I have rarely seen cash payments during my three-year stay in the United States.
※At least I have never seen it in restaurant accounting for 3 years.
So, let's make a credit card as soon as you decide to go to the United States.
※It is not a solicitation for a credit card, and in the United States, a credit card is a lifeline.
Can't make a credit card
OMG！！！
When a foreigner immigrates or is stationed in the United States, the credit score starts from zero, so Japanese cannot make a credit card.
Have you ever been denied a contract because you don't have a credit history?
※I have once been refused an apartment contract in the United States.
The credit score is linked to your SSN and it is considered that there is no credit score = no social credit.
A quick way to earn credit scores before you go to the United States
Issue JAL USA CARD or ANA USA CARD when you arrive in the United States.
Although there is a review, there are advantages that you can apply before you go to the United States and that you can issue it even if you do not have a credit history in the United States.
However, there are restrictions such as that the destination of the card is limited to the United States and that you can only apply 90 days before you arrive in the United States.
At my company, ANA USA CARD was forcibly created, sent to the company, and received from personnel affairs after moving to the United States.
In addition, there are restaurants in the United States where AMEX cannot be used, and JAL and ANA can be created with VISA or Mastercard.
I think there is no loss just in case.
Here is a link for ANA USA CARD
Here is a link for JAL USA CARD
Use the credit history of AMERICAN EXPRESS already used in Japan
Amex card holders can also use Japanese credit history in the United States.
I will take over this information and carry out the procedure for taking over after coming to the United States.
Since the company recommends Delta, I signed up for DELTA SKYMILES GOLD before moving to the United States and brought it with me.
The annual membership fee is 28,600 yen, which is relatively high, but it is recommended because it has the advantage of being able to qualify for the Gold Medallion as soon as you join.
Click here for a link to the Delta SkyMiles American Express Gold Card
What is credit history? What you can't do without credit history
Credit history is a record of information such as credit card usage history and loan repayment history.
As I mentioned earlier, it is linked to SSN, and in the United States, it is evaluated as credit score = individual credit rating, so
- Issuance of credit card
- Loan review
- Apartment contract examination
※ In addition to credit history, there is also an individual income screening. I was hit by this for the first time,
There is a past where I couldn't sign a contract for my favorite apartment.
- Utility bill (electricity, gas, water) contract
As mentioned above, all of them are essential to life, so I don't have a credit score = we can't make a credit card = we can't survive.
How to increase your credit score?
This is easy. Use the credit card every month to repay at least the minimum amount by the due date.
Please note that if the repayment is delayed even once, the evaluation will be affected.
I have forgotten to pay somehow, and my late payment and score have dropped.
When I'm in Japan, I don't have many opportunities to use my credit card, so I just forget to pay my credit card.
In particular, in my case, the company's payroll account was Union Bank, so I had to make payments to the credit card company every month.
Somehow my score went down and I felt a pain.
In the United States, there is a limit to raising the credit score in the first year of expatriate, so anyway, pay properly with the credit card decided every month.
It is necessary to accumulate credit history and make efforts to raise the credit score on a daily basis.
How to check your credit score
There are many things like Chase and Bank of America, but let's register the simplest Credit Karma
１nce you register, you can check the current score at the same time you log in from the next time, which is very convenient.
My score as of June 2021
Regards,
hiro
