Credit History Check: where And How?

How to check your credit history and personal credit score

Customers can check their credit history and personal credit scores through the following agencies:

• Nation Credit Information Center under the State Bank (CIC)
• ​VietnamCredit

Both of the above-mentioned units provide credit history and personal credit score upon request.

Normally, Vietnamese banks accept to share credit information of customers so that the bank itself and other banks can use it for the purpose of safe and effective lending. This will also create better products to support the appraisal and risk management of banks and credit institutions. Credit scores are also reviewed and rated by credit centers based on the transaction history of each individual collected and processed by the system through banks and credit institutions.

To access information related to personal credit, CIC requires data requesters to come directly to the bank transaction headquarters, because the identity check process is extremely strict. Particularly for customers who are banks that need to access the data of bank customers, they are required to be a member of the system, or in other words, he/she must be a banker.

Besides, the data access completely depends on the identity card number of the customer. This means that if you provide your or your partner’s identity card number, the system will be able to export the credit information of that customer. This is very beneficial for foreign investors who want to find out more information about their individual partners. With years of experience and relationships in the industry, VietnamCredit is one of the very few entities in Vietnam that can provide this kind of information to investors looking to do business in Vietnam, helping them make well-informed business decisions.

What is the purpose of accessing to credit history information and credit scores?

The access to credit history information and credit scores comes from many different reasons.

• For banks and similar financial institutions: they need to check credit history and personal credit scores for appraisal as well as to identify risks of customers who intend to take credit loans at the bank.
• For individual customers themselves: Knowing the credit history information as well as personal credit scores helps customers to have better orientation and control of personal credit. Some customers do not know whether or not they are having bad debt and their current credit scores, whether or not they can borrow from banks. Therefore, with credit information provided by the system, they can assess themselves and manage their spending better.
• For foreign investors: acquiring partner credit information is a very useful thing for businesses, especially foreign businesses that are intending to cooperate with Vietnamese enterprises.

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When to check your personal credit history?

There is no need to wait until you have a need for a loan to check your credit score and credit history. This should also be done periodically so you can have a better view and orientation of financial use.

In addition, the way your credit card is used will affect your credit score directly. You should not spend more than the credit limit you have been granted nor forget to pay your monthly credit card debt. This is also considered an effective way to accumulate credit points for cardholders. Therefore, if you use a credit card, then try to regularly monitor your credit situation to have improvement plans when needed.

Read more -> What Is Credit Score And What Should You Know About It?

Henry Tran - VietnamCredit