Credit options for us Canadians

[Angie'nMark 0]

Thanks for all your input everyone. I guess I will give the AMEX people a call. I hope they can help me. Next time I visit I will go see our bank and check if I can start with the secured credit card option. I guess I can't worry too much. I am so happy to be able to get everyone else's opinions. Some of these matters are so silly and complicated...when they really don't have to be.

[Revenesque 2]

The problem with American Express is that they have stipulations for switching over the card after you move (which I just encountered when attempted):

- You still need to match their employment bracket, which is $15k+/yr... obviously not an option as a K1, right off the bat.

- You need to have had the card for over a year.

I, too, was hoping my impeccable rating in Canada would translate over, but it didn't seem to. Luckily, hubby has a very good rating here, so relying on him isn't too bad.

That's good to know!

I currently have an AMEX card I for that purpose. Used it only once cuz there's very few merchants that will take Amex here in Vancouver.

[Udella&Wiz 325]

You can search the Cdn forum threads on some of my credit whoas getting started here last year. I was 37 when I moved here and had perfectly great credit back in Canada, but of course had to start over here.

I would be careful about what you 'think' creates a credit history for yourself when you move here. I was told that being simply added on a bank account as an account holder does not get reported to the major credit history companies. And neither does being added as an 'authorzied card user' on your spouse's existing credit card. This is different then if you can open a jointycredit card together and both be account holders.

Paying your bills on time does not create credit history per say (or so I was told). So for the 1st year I was here, I 'thought' I was building credit by doing these types of things and then I got a rude awakening when I went to apply for a Target Card in my own name and they declined me because I had no credit history. I was like #######, how could that be? I have a job that pays nicely and yet no credit history was the important factor.

Sure enough...I contacted all 3 agencies (2 of whom required additional proof of identification) just to have them tell methat I , in fact, had no credit history (well, no sh*t )

Long story short...what I ended up doing was applying for a secured credit card with a small starting limit. About 4 months later a 2nd card company sent me an application which I tried and was accepted instantly - because NOW I had a real credit history to work with.

Some folks get lucky - they seem to have it easier getting started creditwise down here, some are not