# Moving from UK to Dubai with poor credit rating



## chicken1631

Hi, Could anyone give advice on moving to Dubai with a poor credit rating? 

I am about to come out of a IVA which was cleared nearly 6 years ago but as a result my credit rating is quite poor. 

Thanks in advance!


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## teuchter

chicken1631 said:


> Hi, Could anyone give advice on moving to Dubai with a poor credit rating?
> 
> I am about to come out of a IVA which was cleared nearly 6 years ago but as a result my credit rating is quite poor.
> 
> Thanks in advance!


No-one here checks. So long as you have a job/visa, you'll find it remarkably easy to get loans/credit cards etc here.

teuchter


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## Laowei

Dont worry about it all, when i moved back to the Uk in 2009 after 4 years in China i had huge issues due to selling my house and paying off mortgage, paid off credit cards and cleared debts before leaving the Uk. As i was outside the UK more than 3 years not having a UK address had a huge negative impact on me, credit agencies will base your credit score on the last 3 years only, as such i had no credit history which is just as a bad credit history.

Had no issues here as banks dont use credit agencies yet and also dont cross link over to your UK history. Just be careful as if anything its easy to get credit here if you have a decent salary and a salery certificate and as a consequence end up in serious trouble.


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## rsinner

There is no concept of a credit rating here. People just take post dated cheques here (bouncing of cheques is illegal), and see the salary proof and that's about it.
So the guy off the boat = guy who has been here for years.


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## teuchter

Laowei said:


> Dont worry about it all, when i moved back to the Uk in 2009 after 4 years in China i had huge issues due to selling my house and paying off mortgage, paid off credit cards and cleared debts before leaving the Uk. As i was outside the UK more than 3 years not having a UK address had a huge negative impact on me, credit agencies will base your credit score on the last 3 years only, as such i had no credit history which is just as a bad credit history.


...which is an issue I recently realised I'll be facing when we move back to the UK later this year, as I haven't lived in the UK since 1985  Any advice/tips you'd like to share?

teuchter


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## Laowei

teuchter said:


> ...which is an issue I recently realised I'll be facing when we move back to the UK later this year, as I haven't lived in the UK since 1985  Any advice/tips you'd like to share?
> 
> teuchter


Never found away round it in the short term,really was a nightmare everything needs a credit check in the UK and if you havent got any credit rating your screwed. Of course the worst thing to do is to apply for credit and be declined as that just adds to further worsen your credit rating.

What pee'd me off more than anything was my bank, lloyds TSB. When i left i paid off my credit card and my mortgage with them. I kept my bank account and had a % salary still paid into my bank and then would use my UK Debit card to draw cash out if needed in China. They sent statements to my house and gave me an overdraft and kept upgrading my account. The minute i came back to the UK and approached them for a mortgage (again!) and C/cards i would have had better response if i would of asked for a date with the managers wife. 

For a longer term though i did look at it and a couple of tips.

Get an address and get on the electral role, maybe parents or relative, this is a biggie. If you have an address and are on the electoral role you will have more chance of the next step.do this sooner rather than later even if you still in Dubai.

To get a higher credit rating you have to have a good payment history, if you can obtain a c/card but make sure that you pay the balance in full each month and on time this will again help as c/card payments are a big marker in assesing credit history. There are ecompanies that specializing in giving c/cards to people with low credit such as Vanguis or capital one. These cards tend to have 30% + interest with low limits, but if you pay off full each month then the interest isnt an issue.

Keep this going for at least 6 months and upwards and your credit rating will improve. Its a long trek and will drive you round the bend but when i went back to the UK it was right in the middle of the financial crisis and banks were not lending unless you had a high credit score, think things may have eased slighty over the last year or so.


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## teuchter

Laowei said:


> Never found away round it in the short term,really was a nightmare everything needs a credit check in the UK and if you havent got any credit rating your screwed. Of course the worst thing to do is to apply for credit and be declined as that just adds to further worsen your credit rating.
> 
> What pee'd me off more than anything was my bank, lloyds TSB. When i left i paid off my credit card and my mortgage with them. I kept my bank account and had a % salary still paid into my bank and then would use my UK Debit card to draw cash out if needed in China. They sent statements to my house and gave me an overdraft and kept upgrading my account. The minute i came back to the UK and approached them for a mortgage (again!) and C/cards i would have had better response if i would of asked for a date with the managers wife.
> 
> For a longer term though i did look at it and a couple of tips.
> 
> Get an address and get on the electral role, maybe parents or relative, this is a biggie. If you have an address and are on the electoral role you will have more chance of the next step.do this sooner rather than later even if you still in Dubai.
> 
> To get a higher credit rating you have to have a good payment history, if you can obtain a c/card but make sure that you pay the balance in full each month and on time this will again help as c/card payments are a big marker in assesing credit history. There are ecompanies that specializing in giving c/cards to people with low credit such as Vanguis or capital one. These cards tend to have 30% + interest with low limits, but if you pay off full each month then the interest isnt an issue.
> 
> Keep this going for at least 6 months and upwards and your credit rating will improve. Its a long trek and will drive you round the bend but when i went back to the UK it was right in the middle of the financial crisis and banks were not lending unless you had a high credit score, think things may have eased slighty over the last year or so.


Cheers - really appreciate the advice. The more I learn* about returning home to 'my' country, the more tempting it is to continue living overseas as an expat!

_(*eg: I recently learned that I can expect prohibitive car insurance premiums, even though I have an unblemished driving record for the past 27 years, in 6 different countries. Counts for nothing in the UK, apparently...)_

teuchter


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## Canuck_Sens

chicken1631 said:


> Hi, Could anyone give advice on moving to Dubai with a poor credit rating?


 You can come no problem, but the tendency in the market is to move towards a score system in the future. 




chicken1631 said:


> I am about to come out of a IVA which was cleared nearly 6 years ago but as a result my credit rating is quite poor.


Credit score is transferable. I was able to transfer my credit score to US and I believe I could do the same if I were to move to UK (not happening!)

By that I mean you could re-start rebuilding your credit history there. Get a prepaid credit card if you do not have a normal one. It is important to restore your credit if you plan to go back one day.

Since I left Canada, I made sure I had some payments going onto my credit card just to build more positive history. I slashed debt which boosted even more my ratings (sold my property) so no mortgage.


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