 TITLE: Why Don’t I Have a Credit Score? CONTENT: Reasons You May Not Have a Credit Score\n---------------------------------------\nThere are a number of reasons you may not have enough credit history to generate a credit score, which can include:\n1.  **You have never used traditional credit accounts.** Your credit history will begin only when a creditor—such as a credit card issuer or lender—reports a record of you opening an account to one or more of the three major credit bureaus (Experian, TransUnion and Equifax). Without at least some record of credit in your name, a credit score cannot be populated as there is no past behavior on which to assess your creditworthiness. If you tend to use cash or debit and don't rely on any credit, you could have nothing in your credit history and lack a credit score as a result.\n2.  **You have not used credit in more than 24 months.** Once you've opened an account it's important to use it—at least occasionally—so lenders and scoring algorithms can see how you are handling your credit. If you have credit but don't use it for more than 24 months, your credit file may lack the data necessary to populate a credit score. Remember, payment history is one of the most important aspects of calculating your credit score, so the more on-time payment activity you have, the better your score will be.\n3.  **You're a recent immigrant.** Immigrants often don't have a credit score because they have never before applied for or used credit in the United States. Even if you have an established credit score from another country, none of those records will count toward your U.S. credit score. If you're an immigrant, consider opening a line of credit as soon as possible to establish your credit history and begin building your score.\n4.  **You're young and have no experience with credit.** Many young people don't have credit and may have no idea where to start. Since your credit history begins only when a creditor reports a new account to the credit bureaus, starting early is key to having a top score later in life. To establish credit as a young consumer, consider applying for a credit card and using it for essential purchases. Remember to pay all your bills on time, as payment history is the most important aspect of having a good score.\n5.  **You've only recently applied for credit for the first time.** If you're new to credit and just applied for a new account, it may take some time before you see a credit score. Since credit scores are based on your past experience managing debt, in many cases you'll need to make several payments or have your new account open for a period of time before a scoring algorithm will have enough data to establish your credit score. END