International credit decisioning FAQs

International credit history is your credit information from a credit bureau in a country or region other than the UK. HSBC partners with Nova Credit, a company that provides credit providers with instant access to international credit history in a uniform format. 

If you choose to use your international credit history in support of your HSBC UK credit card application, we’ll work with Nova Credit and/or its affiliates to access a translated version of your credit history. You will be asked to give your consent for this information to be shared with us, for the sole purpose of your credit card application.

You will be able to use your international credit history from select countries. You will be notified if you qualify as you apply for a credit card digitally. 

Nova Credit is an official partner of HSBC. Nova Credit and their affiliates can securely access your credit history from a foreign country/region and share it with us to support your application. Nova Credit provides instant access to high quality global credit data in an easy, uniform format. 

Currently, you can choose to share your credit history from any of the following countries:

We are continuously working with Nova Credit to add more countries. 

Yes. It's free to use this service to support your HSBC UK credit card application. 

It depends on the country. If you are using credit history from Australia, India, Spain, or Switzerland, the enquiry is a 'soft enquiry' and will not affect your credit score. If you are using credit history from Brazil, Mexico, Nigeria, Philippines, or the United States, your credit history in your country of origin could be affected, as the enquiry is recorded as a 'hard enquiry'. 

Yes. Nova Credit and its subsidiaries are regularly and independently audited against international standards on information security, confidentiality, and privacy controls.

Nova Credit UK is authorised and regulated by the FCA in the UK.

No. All you need to do is provide your consent during the online application, and we can access your international credit history. We'll use this information solely to support your HSBC UK credit card application. 

Yes, you'll still need to provide supporting documents to supplement your credit card application, where requested by HSBC UK. 

You are eligible to use your international credit history if you have a previous address outside of the UK, and you have credit history in any of the following countries:

Providing your international credit history is optional, and you may submit your credit card application without providing it. However, if you choose not to share your credit history, it may affect the outcome of your application, especially when you are new to the UK and have no UK credit bureau information. 

While the exact information differs by bureau, you will often need to do a few things:

1.Provide basic personal information, such as your first and last name, date of birth, email address, previous addresses, and home country ID number.

2.You may be asked to answer a few verification questions based on your credit report or use your home country phone number to provide a one-time password.

3.Specifically for Indian bureaus, you’ll need to provide additional identifying information:

To find your credit history and verify your identity with the bureau, you must enter your most recent address in the country where you have credit history. 

No, there is no option to save and resume later. You can choose whether to submit your application with or without your international credit history.

No credit decision is carried out until you submit your application. Therefore, if you exit before submitting your application you can restart a new one later without any impact to your credit report.

The method for confirming your identity will vary depending on which home country you are from. For most countries, you will not need access to the email address held by your home country’s credit bureau. In India, the bureau will ask for the email address they hold for you to access your international credit history. Don't worry if that email is no longer in use. You'll still be able to continue by accessing the secure code on your email or by answering a few security questions. 

The method for confirming your identity will vary depending on which home country you are from. For most countries, you will not need access to the phone number held by your home country’s credit bureau. In India, the bureau will ask for the phone number they hold for you to access your international credit history. Don't worry if that phone number is no longer in use. You'll still be able to continue by accessing the secure code on your email or by answering a few security questions. 

If you're eligible, you'll automatically be asked within the application if you'd like to share your international credit history. 

In some rare cases, there could be a technical error or one of the bureau’s systems are not online at the time of your application, which would affect your ability to search for your international credit report. The overseas bureau systems are unfortunately outside of HSBC’s control. You may choose to continue your application without your international credit report, or return later once the error is resolved and start a fresh application.

Lending decisions are based on several factors. Whilst the use of international credit data can support your application and the decisions around offering credit, it doesn’t guarantee that a product will be offered.

After you have completed and submitted your application, we’ll begin to process it. We'll get in touch with you if we require more information.

We are only able to access your international credit report at the time you give consent. If your international credit report has changed since you completed your HSBC credit card application, we will not be able to access the updated version. If you would like the updated international credit report to be considered, you will need to submit a new application.

This is your overseas credit report translated by Nova Credit into a standard format that we can use to process your application.

You'll receive a copy of your Nova Passport from alerts@novacredit.com to the email address that you've used in your credit card application. The email will have instructions on how to download the report for your own records. Please ensure you download the report within 72 hours of receiving the email. If you miss the 72-hour window, you can use the link provided in your email to ask for an updated link.

A copy of your Nova Passport will be sent to your email address that you've used in the credit card application. Be sure to check your inbox, and the spam folder. You should look for a message from alerts@novacredit.com. Alternatively, you may contact Nova Credit UK.

If you have questions about any details listed within your Nova Credit report, you can contact Nova Credit UK. If you notice any inaccurate credit details in your report, we recommend you contact Nova Credit UK to dispute and investigate these details quickly, since inaccurate information may negatively affect your credit information and/or indicate fraudulent activity.

Credit bureaus frequently update their information, which means that your credit score and other attributes of your credit history may differ from one day to the next. Nova Credit’s international bureau partners also may have a variety of types of credit reports they provide. The exact product that Nova Credit offers may be slightly different to the report that the bureau shares with you directly. Finally, Nova Credit works with multiple bureaus in the same country, and each bureau may have a different score for you.