Starting Again: How To Obtain Credit In The United Kingdom

James - you may want to correct this:

"American Express UK has many transfer partners, and I chose American Airlines AAdvantage"

While Amex UK does have many transfer partners AA isn't one of them, unfortunately.

@ Harry - I transferred UK MR points to AA last year.

Hey James:

How did register for the local electoral roll, I am a US citizen and a UK resident and it doesn't allow me. Does it have to do with commonwealth?

A direct transfer?

I would have loved the ability to transfer UK MR points to AA but they're definitely not a current partner and I've never seen the option to transfer to AA in recent years.

https://catalogue.membershiprewards.co.uk/viewpartneroverview.mtw

James, you have the right to vote in all British elections because you are Commonwealth citizen, not because you have residence. EU citizens have the right to vote only in local elections (while UK remains in the EU). All other residents don’t have any voting rights. So for example, US citizens who are resident in the UK don’t have these rights.

Amex has been doing their global program for many years (at least 15) and it's the first route (and by far the easiest) that I always use to get a credit card and establish credit when moving countries. I didn't find out about it on my first few moves and definitely felt the pain. Now it's easy! I just wish they'd make it easier for others to find.

The way you explained this was amazing.I know almost nothing about credit cards.

I guess Canada is a bit different in that most financial institutions operate on both sides of the border. I had no trouble getting capone to issue me a CD$ card based on my US history, and got a cash-back card from my local credit union after showing them print-outs of my US credit report. The lesson is that credit unions are more likely to take extra info into account, and a bank you already have a relationship with is likely to work to keep that business.

@James I really didn't think you could xfer UK MR points directly to aadvantage. I thought the only way was through spg.

James, were you able to retain and use any of your Australian cards after your move to the UK, or did they all cancel your accounts due to your relocation abroad?

Hey James,
Are you able to do a post like this on earning credit the best way in Australia? Given that the credit system there is so different I would be quite interested (in the same sort of style in this post and Ben's old post about him building credit

Hi James, do you know if the AMEX Global Card Transfer Program works also for AMEX cards given by companies to their employees? I currently hold a gold AMEX card in Germany, that is given to certain employees within the company I work for and it may be used for both business and personal expenses (hence linked to my account).

@ Daniel - wow - lots of comments on this already! Okay, as @ meta has explained Commonwealth citizens are given certain additional visa rights, as well as the right to vote as a resident.

@ khatl - I didn't know about it until I began investigating US credit history building options as I've written about previously. I applied for the first UK charge card because I was advised (by someone who works in the UK and AU credit card markets) that this would be the best chance I would have as a new resident.

@ John - I still hold an emergency Australian credit card from GE with no annual fees and a huge limit but rarely use it. Most AU card issuers won't care if you relocate provided you still service the debt properly.

James, you do realise you could’ve applied for a Platinum instantly, as I got a Platinum with no credit history.

BTW, when you do the AMEX transfer they will also happily let you keep your AU issued card. I did that 8 years ago and still have both.

So glad you brought up Monzo! Has been a life saver in terms of avoiding the nasty foreign transaction fees since I moved to London a few years ago!

@ Karlis - annual fee on the platinum is waaaay too high for me.

AA have also never been a direct transfer partner for me either, only via SPG. I'm not sure if they're a direct transfer partner if you hold the IDC AMEX and thus they were able to leverage that and offer it up as an option for you? Either way, you got lucky!

@James, given you're now a freelance consultant - run the expense through your Limited company (assuming that's how you're setup) and then you too, can own the AMEX Platinum Charge Card. Depends whether you'll get the value out of the car insurance, priority pass etc. though.

@ Ben Holz - I would call Amex Global Transfer to check with them however for their terms and conditions say you must have been the 'primary cardholder' for your previous card. You cannot apply for a new company card using the transfer program.

@ Callum - yes its on my list but I need to give it some thought as I just applied for an AU credit card after 26 years of living there, rather than going through quick steps to build credit history. Leave it with me.

James,

This is relevant for people who enter low skilled / payed / we do not give a fu*k jobs.

I guess you moved into a bedsit in Earl's Court with seven other Australians and you all worked for the same Man And a Van Company?

Companies who hire skilled workers globally usually have an agreement with their bank, whereby new recruits will have everything set-up once they join. Bank accounts, debit cards and indeed credit cards with sufficient limits.

Again, I am not saying that your information is wrong. But there are a lot of (proper) professionals who'd have a very different story to tell.

@ PatFromNCL - I'm an 8 year qualified Finance Lawyer/Attorney who lives in Zone 1, and takes 3 plus months a year of holidays to travel.

I wouldn't expect my employer to find me a credit card, unless they were expecting me to spend the rest of my career there, working 80 hours a week. I'd much rather be travelling than working.

I've never worked for a removal company or lived with 7 people ; )

Hi James,

I remember chatting about such an article when we met in London, at the readers' meet and greet. Very glad you found the time and went ahead with the post.

Really helpful, and it gives me some research of my own to do! Thanks a lot!

Utlimately, would you recommend being faithful to BA and racking up the avios or go with Virgin when you have gone through your Velocity points?

@ Baptiste - I remember you as well! Hello again.

I would stick with BA mainly because they have better partners with their oneworld membership than Virgin Atlantic do (I don't really rate Delta). I start planning redemptions on Qatar these days, and then work down to other airlines if Qatar is not available.

While this subject has no interest to me personally (I don't mean that in the (read the following in a mocking tone) "I don't like it so I'm going to stop reading this blog!" sort of way), as I will never be needing to establish a credit history in the UK.

That said, James, you continue to contribute well-written, engaging content that is much broader in scope than we're used to. Thrilled that you joined this blog. I tend to read everything that you and Tiffany and Steph write irrespective of whether or not it personally benefits me, as y'all write your blog pieces in ways that are fun to read. Keep it up, please.

@PatFromNCL - rather an ignorant comment, right from the start -- low paid jobs etc.? Would be good to give The Sun, Daily Mail and such bit of a break.

When using the Amex program, do they cancel the cards in your original country?

@ anonn - no you can hold cards in two countries at the same time.

@James very timely post for me. I am a U.K. Lawyer and I am about to be relocated to the US. One of my main worries has been getting credit in the US because it seems to us Brits that the US revolves on credit a lot more than the UK (e.g.: no real pay as you go phones in the US so you need credit to get a phone, getting a car revolves around having a credit history and so on).

This AMEX service may save us. We have been using both the uk Gold card and BAEC PRemium card so hopefully we will be able to get credit via the Amex route.

As an aside, you think your Capital One card was bad! My brother who had an excellent credit history in the UK, house etc moved to NYC. Only card he could get was a capital one card which required him to provide a $300 deposit and then they gave him a $400 credit limit! In effect his limit was only $100!

Hello James,

We met at the reader's meet though since I came at the end couldn't discuss much. Nice article though American Airlines has never been a direct transfer partner for UK Amex since at least the 5 years I have had the card. Maybe you transferred it to SPG and then to Amex?

Perhaps you could have also mentioned the IHG credit card for non-Amex spend (unless your focus was exclusively airline miles earning cards). Gold status with free card and Platinum with premium ( GBP 99 annual fee) which also gives a free night voucher after 10K spend. You get 20K bonus in the first year so definitely worth it in1 year if one can earn the free night voucher. The free IHG card will keep any IHG points from expiring if an infrequent traveller due to Gold status.

A benefit with Amex in the UK is that you can pay the balance from an international bank account using IBAN/SWIFT. I don't think this is possible if you get Visa or MC or Amex issued by a bank.

Thing to be aware of that in time the sort of starter cards you refer to that can help to build your credit profile can eventually work against you. Cards such as Aqua etc. are designed for people with poor credit have high APRs and can suggest financial distress.

On the point of Monzo it is no longer a prepaid debit card you have but a current account. They closed all remaining accounts down and converted them a few months ago.

James have you any advice for getting a cc with decent points offering for someone living in the Republic of Ireland? We have no access to BA credit card for example and no similar EI scheme. M

James, did you consider simply keeping and using your Australian credit cards in the UK? If the rewards are notably better, it sounds like you may have been better off sticking with the Australian cards and sending money back to Australia monthly to pay off the bill. Assuming you have an Australian card that has no foreign transaction fees and you use a service like Revolut or Transferwise to convert the GBP to AUD, you're paying at most 0.5%, which I guess would be offset by the better rewards.

1) Just to clarify, the author of this article would be permitted to vote in UK elections due to his being a Commonwealth Citizen (Australian in this case) and resident in the UK.

2) Registering on the electoral roll is not optional but mandatory. It is compulsory to fill in the annual voting registration form which is sent to every home each autumn. Not everyone chooses to vote but there is no choice in your name being registered on the electoral roll.

AAdvantage transfers from UK Membership Rewards have never been possible!

On a more serious note has OMAAT or James registered with the UK Financial Conduct Authority to act as a credit broker? The laws in the UK are very different in regards to promoting financial products.

By recommending credit cards on this site and posting your referral links you are acting as a credit broker for which you need to be registered and authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a credit broker.

Great article James. I'm returning to the UK after many years in South Africa. Reward cards here are both poor and expensive but I've been surprised that they're not much better in the UK.

Good article, James. Amex transfers been about for many years - potentially can be good if the exchange rate works in your favour and you undertake an MR points transfer too!

When moving to Oz unfortunately the one route I couldn't use was Amex-issed cards as they didn't like the visa type I was on (mainly only wanted 457). Thankfully NAB, CommBank, ANZ, etc. were all quite happy to do so!

Plat card is still worth a look - although high fee remember you can cancel at any time and receive pro-rata fee refund and retain some status benefits. Also the referral bonus with Plat is far higher and can pay for the annual fee. Need to give 6/12 between closing PRG and opening Plat though to be eligible.

Are you going via SPG to obtain AA miles? Not a direct transfer partner in the UK.

PS agree with John - UK rules far stricter re blogs, you need to be FCA licensed, quote APRs, etc. - you can't just do a referral link - esp without making it clear that it's a referral link!!

@John, I am an Australian living in the US, and not only do I still have my Australian credit card account, but in fact I still do all my banking through my Australian savings/transaction accounts. I have my US address registered with the banks and they have no problem at all. I have found zero value in opening up any accounts in the US because for me, the products are inferior.

You cannot vote in the UK by virtue of being a Commonwealth citizen: you must be a qualifying Commonwealth citizen which means fulfilling the residency rules as detailed here:
http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/faq/voting-and-registration/who-is-eligible-to-vote-at-a-uk-general-election
and
https://www.gov.uk/elections-in-the-uk

This has been an interesting article which has provided useful ideas for some readers but also raised some debate for many. I think the moral of the story is this - when you are writing an article, whether to go in print or in digital format - research the themes diligently and exhaustively. Then, and only then, publish.

Ah, the stereotyping - all London Antipodeans live in Earls (aka Kangaroo) Court, throw shrimps on the barbie, drink Fosters, etc. Slightly true (of a very few) 31 years ago during my first stint in U.K. but that old Earls Court is long gone, demolished and replaced by expensive new apartment buildings and other gentrification.

And the Antipodeans in the low paid sh*t jobs have also long gone, replaced largely by ‘free movement’ Eastern Europeans.

A trail of verifiable addresses is handy. After two years in the U.K., I returned down under for seven - keeping previously opened bank and credit car accounts active - and eventually returned to take up a job offer. After 21 months back here, setting up a new house, I had enough credit history to get a mortgage but was knocked back buying a TV on no deposit, six months interest-free credit as my ‘history’ wasn’t long enough. Luckily, I could remember two former addresses from 7-9 years before. Into the computer they went and the loan was approved. Bizarre.

Very interesting article, thanks for the info! I relocated from the US to the UK over a year ago and have found myself in a similar situation. I was able to open a bank account with HSBC UK and was approved for one of their credit cards, but it does not offer any rewards and has foreign transaction fees, so I really only use it solely for the sake of establishing credit in the UK. I've been using Clear Score to monitor my credit and am keen to open a more lucrative British card. My main problem, like you mentioned, is the lack of three years of residential history here (although I'm tempted to try lying about that one). I'm not crazy about Amex here, as I've encountered a lot of places that don't accept it--I think even Costa Coffee (last time I tried), didn't take it!

For now, I've actually been mainly using my US cards that don't charge foreign transaction fees. I use my parents' address as the billing address. So I'm still able to earn points and take advantage of the generous US based sign up bonuses.

I'm not sure if things have changed. I just rang Amex to try to get myself a credit card (just moved to the UK last month) and mentioned I held a Singapore Amex. They said I could get an Amex here but I'd lose my Singapore Amex - basically it's a transfer of credit cards? Was that what you meant in your article? Thanks.