Getting SSN before EAD

[bpg123 12]

Hey all,

 

I arrived on my K1 in March when all the Social Security offices were closed and they didn't open until after my K1 expired. I sent in my AOS in June and with everything going on I am assuming it will be a while before I received my EAD with SSN. Are there any avenues for getting a SSN prior to the EAD while going through AOS? Really want to get my credit started.

 

Thanks!

[Boiler 46,031]

You can get a SSN once you have EAD, otherwise use ITIN.

[Crazy Cat 42,215]

7 minutes ago, bpg123 said:

Hey all,

 

I arrived on my K1 in March when all the Social Security offices were closed and they didn't open until after my K1 expired. I sent in my AOS in June and with everything going on I am assuming it will be a while before I received my EAD with SSN. Are there any avenues for getting a SSN prior to the EAD while going through AOS? Really want to get my credit started.

 

Thanks!

To be clear, your K-1 visa expired the second you entered the US.  However, your I-94 expired 90 days after entering.  You'll have to wait for your Social Security card....as @Boiler stated.  

[HRQX 4,145]

1 minute ago, Lucky Cat said:

However, your I-94 expired 90 days after entering.

And OP's initial window passed on 06/07/20, 76 days after US entry because SSA requires at least 14 days remaining of status. Thus, OP must now wait for either EAD or GC, as mentioned above.

[marianabrasil 25]

I’m exactly in the same situation. I don’t have SSN. But I started my credit by opening a joint account with my husband, and request a credit card under my name (only $300 of credit) but is was enough to create and develop my credit. 
good luck! 

[Crazy Cat 42,215]

Just now, marianabrasil said:

I’m exactly in the same situation. I don’t have SSN. But I started my credit by opening a joint account with my husband, and request a credit card under my name (only $300 of credit) but is was enough to create and develop my credit. 
good luck! 

Are you able to get a credit report with no SSN?

[marianabrasil 25]

Yes! I was able to get a credit report and credit score. I sent by post a copy of my passport and copy of a prove of my address, a letter explaining my AOS situation and a payment fee. It took 2 weeks but I received it. If you call the credit agencies they will say it is impossible without SSN, but most of the employees are not prepared for AOS pending situation and I read in VISA Journey forum (don’t remember which one) that would work. I did twice already and my credit change (for a higher score!). I wouldn’t recommend you try the “free credit report” because that one I never got any response (sent several). 

[Crazy Cat 42,215]

1 minute ago, marianabrasil said:

Yes! I was able to get a credit report and credit score. I sent by post a copy of my passport and copy of a prove of my address, a letter explaining my AOS situation and a payment fee. It took 2 weeks but I received it. If you call the credit agencies they will say it is impossible without SSN, but most of the employees are not prepared for AOS pending situation and I read in VISA Journey forum (don’t remember which one) that would work. I did twice already and my credit change (for a higher score!). I wouldn’t recommend you try the “free credit report” because that one I never got any response (sent several). 

Creditkarma is my "go-to" source for my credit information.  It's free and accurate.

[HRQX 4,145]

6 hours ago, Lucky Cat said:

Creditkarma is my "go-to" source for my credit information.  It's free and accurate.

Yup. But during sign-up process, CK needs valid SSN (i.e. providing ITIN doesn't work if I recall correctly). Thus, must contact the credit bureaus directly if individual doesn't have SSN or ITIN.

6 hours ago, Lucky Cat said:

Are you able to get a credit report with no SSN?

"you don't need an EIN, ITIN or even a Social Security number to have a credit report. A Social Security number is very helpful when compiling your credit history because it is the only identifier uniquely assigned to each U.S. consumer. And, if present in the credit report, it is required when requesting your own report from Experian to ensure that we provide you the correct report. However, if a Social Security number is not reported for you, Experian will rely on other identification elements to compile your credit history. Those identifying elements include your name, any name variations reported as belonging to you, and your current and previous addresses." https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/tax-id-numbers-do-not-replace-social-security-number/ The other 2 bureaus operate similarly.

[RCable 75]

On 9/6/2020 at 8:25 AM, Lucky Cat said:

Creditkarma is my "go-to" source for my credit information.  It's free and accurate.

It’s not accurate. You might get lucky and the scores may match your actual scores, but usually it can be off by 100 points. My credit karma scores are over 100 points lower than my actual scores! I was avoiding buying a house because of this. Then I got my scores through the actual credit agencies and learned that I was in a great position to buy a house. 
 

I ended up getting a MyFICO account, those scores are very accurate. My scores shown there were the actual scores pulled by the mortgage companies. They even break down your scores based on score check type (auto loan, credit card, etc). And when I was talking to a loan officer, they told me to not use Credit Karma at all and that they regularly have issues with users either thinking their score is too low or thinking it’s way higher than it actually is. 
 

CK likes to try to sell credit to users. So you’ll regularly see them pushing opening a credit card via their website to up your revolving balance. Or opening a loan to pay off CCs. If you go through their site, they make money off of that. So, because of that, it’s not a good company to trust for credit scores. If you search “is credit karma accurate” you’ll see tons of people saying their scores are 100 points off their real scores. Whereas MyFICO is very accurate and has lots of positive reviews. But, that’s the different between a paid account and a free one. 

 

The only thing I find Credit Karma good for is seeing what accounts are tied to your name and make sure there are no fraud issues.

[marianabrasil 25]

On 9/6/2020 at 2:31 PM, HRQX said:

Yup. But during sign-up process, CK needs valid SSN (i.e. providing ITIN doesn't work if I recall correctly). Thus, must contact the credit bureaus directly if individual doesn't have SSN or ITIN.

"you don't need an EIN, ITIN or even a Social Security number to have a credit report. A Social Security number is very helpful when compiling your credit history because it is the only identifier uniquely assigned to each U.S. consumer. And, if present in the credit report, it is required when requesting your own report from Experian to ensure that we provide you the correct report. However, if a Social Security number is not reported for you, Experian will rely on other identification elements to compile your credit history. Those identifying elements include your name, any name variations reported as belonging to you, and your current and previous addresses." https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/tax-id-numbers-do-not-replace-social-security-number/ The other 2 bureaus operate similarly.

I would like to add that I got my credit report using TransUnion, and I had to send by post prove of my identification and address, plus pay for the service. I also sent a letter explaining why I didn’t had a SSN - I don’t think that is necessary, I just did because I was really stressed with the form 944 (public charge) at the time.