The Difference Between US and Canadian Credit Reports
In Canada, credit histories and reports are secured by many personal details, including your name and address, past addresses, birth date and social insurance number. Social insurance numbers are the key to credit histories, since each number is only given to one person and is never duplicated. They are widely used for purposes of identification, and they differentiate between persons with the same name.
Social security numbers function the same way and serve the same purpose on credit reports in the United States, identifying the person concerned. Canadian credit reports show the same judgments and liens, bankruptcy filings, debts and accounts that US credit reports will show.
Non-Interchangeable
United States and Canadian credit reports are generally not interchangeable. If a person were to move from Canada to the United States, or vice-versa, their credit report normally would not follow them.
However, many companies check with TransUnion to get a credit report from the country of origin. TransUnion alone has reciprocity rights in Canada and the United States, and holds both American and Canadian credit reports; both social security and social insurance numbers can be used on their credit reports.
US & Canadian Laws
In the United States, a person simply has to give written or oral permission for someone to access their credit report for the purposes of work, credit applications or renting or buying a home. There are online websites that allow people to run a credit check on anyone as long as they have the person’s address, social security number, and name.
In Canada, you must give express written permission in order to get a credit report on anyone. This written permission must be submitted in order to get the credit report, or no report will be given. The privacy laws are more stringent in Canada than they are in the United States, which makes identity theft less common.
Both Canadian and American credit reports give lenders and employers an idea of how reliably a person pays their debts and manages their finances. If you have questions about your credit report, you should contact the reporting agency directly to dispute transactions or have them explained.
