[aayusht]

Originally Posted by jalsa777

Her CIBIL score is 729 which is good enough for CRED to accept her, but apparently not enough for a CC

.[/b]

Though I am not a banking expert, do work in the space.
Yes, building a credit score is very relevant to get a credit card (the higher the score, the higher the likelihood of getting a higher limit; higher limits come with higher tier cards). Good credit score also helps you get more attractive loan rates.

To build credit score, it takes time. I got my first credit card with a paltry limit of 20K way back in 2008. While my salary then never permitted me to even utilize the limit, I still got into the habit of using a credit card 13 years back. Recently I applied for a car loan and got special rates due to a decent credit score.

Couple of things to keep in mind:

1. Amex, Diners cards generally have more benefits than the standard Platinum, or Titanium level cards
2. The cards that you are aiming for are generally those which have an annual fee
3. As some people have pointed out, the bank with which you may have a salary account will be keen to cross sell the credit card as well, but if the family has an HNI account (or something similar to high value customer) with a bank, they should also be able to offer a premium card (which would have higher limit and more benefits)

Can discuss this in more detail offline if you wish to.

[sabyasachighosh]

It is easy to get a credit card these days from reputed banks, thanks to the few loopholes and the agents you see at malls who are desperate to meet their targets.

I, too had some difficulties obtaining a credit card since I am self-employed and don't have any salary account, but I have three credit cards in a matter of 9 months.

I primarily needed the Amazon ICICI Credit card, but I couldn't get that and it took almost 8 months to get my hands on it.

Here is what I did,

Changed the ICICI saving account correspondence address to the city I live in.

1. I had a few FDs and ICICI Bank gives instant platinum credit card (Lifetime Free) against any FD (has to be more than Rs.10000 and min 1-year tenure) without any questions asked and is dispatched the next day of applying online. It can be applied through the FD page on ICICI net banking. You will get a credit limit equal to the FD Principal amount. This is called what is known as a Secured Credit card.

2. Amazon had asked me to apply for an credit card again after 6 months of the first application being rejected. So, I had used the ICICI Platinum debit card for 2 months and then I applied for an Amazon ICICI Debit card and this time they didn't do any verification since I had a credit card with ICICI and again the application was accepted within one day of applying and received my Amazon Credit card in a day or two, the limit was 2x (enough to buy a small car ) of my initial credit card limit. This is called an unsecured credit card and the interest rate is usually a bit higher than the secured cards.

3. I realised SBI Cards gets you good discounts during the Flipkart sale and had to use one of my friends, so shortly after that I was strolling in a BigBazaar and was approached by an agent of SBI Card and I asked him the process, it was easy for me to obtain one and it needed the latest statement of the ICICI platinum debit card (only requirement is that the credit card should be 6 months old).
Another friend of mine was accompanying, he didn't have any credit card, he didn't have any SBI account and he didn't have any address proof of the place he was living in. However, even he got a credit card from SBI, the only requirement he had to fulfil was to show the last 6-month statement of the bank saving account with money credited at regular intervals and having a minimum balance of Rs 20000 at all times. He got a credit limit equal to the average balance maintained in his account during the last six months.

I hope it shouldn't be a problem for you to receive a CC with all this.

[aashishnb]

Originally Posted by jalsa777

Recently, Standard Chartered did approve a credit card for her, but with a paltry credit limit that suffices less than 20% of her monthly expenses. None of the app based/co-branded CCs (Amazon, Zomato, PayTM, Flipkart, etc.) are offered to her. Bigger banks like SBI and ICICI have also rejected applications without providing any reason.

Suggestion:
1. Take the stanchart cc & use it.
2. As soon as you reach the credit limit (20% of your required expenses), pay it off. This will reinstate the entire credit limit. This would mean you would have to pay off like 4-5 time a month initially. In any case, you are paying it directly from your now.
3. In a few months, they themselves will BOMBARD you for increase credit limit. Avail that option.
4. A further few months down the line, with the increased credit limit, apply for the preferred credit card (citi/hdfc/sbi), using the stanchart cc as base - they may ask for statement, etc. Banks prefer to give cc to someone who already has cc.

Hope this helps

[Maverick Avi]

I observed same issue with my wife not getting any credit card approved though she is a government employee with over 15 years tenure and no loan/defaults. Finally SBI issued a credit card with paltry limit as you mentioned. She used the card extensively and paid all dues timely for around 8 months and then tried Amex. Voila, it was approved in no time. Thereafter no issues in getting any credit card.

I guess you already made a headstart with SC approving a card. Just keep using it and gates would open for all other banks too.

[MadRasTan4986]

Quite surprised to read the travails of your partner. Credit Cards get offered left right and center these days.

I'd suggest checking out Slice and Uni. They are good and will help in building the credit score at least.

I have been using Slice for 3 months now, works well and only caveat is that you can't CRED app to pay the bills. You have to use the Slice Card app. Good amount of benefits and offers are there with Slice cards.

Easy to apply and get as well. Good system of paying the credit in 3 installments interest free.

[Sri Vathsa]

Originally Posted by jalsa777

Her CIBIL score is 729 which is good enough for CRED to accept her, but apparently not enough for a CC

You get these Free credit reports in Policy Bazaar, cred and even in paytm. You get complete history of all loans, credit cards and any outstanding balances if not paid etc.

Check these reports and see if there is any adverse comments saying if there is some old outstanding loan which is not cleared (sometimes these guys add stuff which is not even true) - You will have to get this removed by raising a ticket.

[s.jain1990]

Someone in my family had a same issue. So, the approach we took was slightly different. We started by taking a credit card on a fixed deposit. This helped the person get the benefits of the credit card. The person used the credit card regularly to pay mobile & electricity bills and he ensured that the payment on time.

6 months later, he applied for a Credit Card with Citi Bank and this time, it was approved.

You can try the same thing and it should help you in building a credit profile.

The cibil is not just about the score but the banks look at various things like the age of oldest account, types of credit and the utilization.

[sukhbirST]

Am using for more than 2 decades and would just say that nothing better than approaching the bank where salary or primary account is there. Kindly ask her to insist on due date payment which is available in HDFC, CITI etc if issued. Else someone can refer and get benefits also like in CITI etc.

[anjan_c2007]

As many have suggested, please approach the bank where her salary is credited. And credit card for FD is also a good idea that should work. Please try with HDFC bank as I have been using their CC without any hassles for the last 18 years. I have only this one CC now and have discontinued the credit cards of other banks. And they always pester me to raise the credit limit due to the track record, but I stick to my pre-decided amount and no more.

By the way, have you changed her maiden surname with the new one post marriage ? If not, please do so for all official records. Please make a notarised affidavit stating both the maiden name and surname and the name and new surname, daughter of/ wife of with age and residential address stating that both these individuals are one and the same and that post marriage the new surname with her name shall be used for all official records.

The new surname could help in eclipsing old memories.

[Bipin]

Originally Posted by jalsa777

Any inputs and suggestions are welcome. If any banking experts here can chime in, that would be great.

Best option is to go for a credit card with FD. You can get credit line up-to 90% of the FD amount (minimum being 10,000 rupees for a year). ICICI offers instant credit card with FD and the entire process can be done online, there should be other players too.

Once you have the first credit card it's matter of few months to improve credit worthiness by following the best practices like using 30-30% of credit, paying off the bill on time and in full etc.

[FHW]

May please get a copy of your CIBIL report and check it for the reasons of the arrived score and also the delinquency, if any.

Also you have mentioned, "The catch-22 is that to improve your credit worthiness, first you need credit, for which you need to be creditworthy."

If you have not taken any credit then the CIBIL report will not return a score.

You have also mentioned, " Her CIBIL score is 729 which is good enough for CRED to accept her, but apparently not enough for a CC"

The CIBIL report has alot of other information which might have been a reason to reject the application.

Furthermore, banks don't simply reject your credit card application without citing any reason. Kindly check with the bank branch where you have applied and ask for reasons of rejecting the application.

Also don't apply at too many places, all the enquires get recorded in your credit information report.

[dragonfire]

When I first landed in the USA and went to open an account for my salary, in the application form was a checkbox asking whether I wanted a credit card too. Although I knew getting one without a credit history was difficult, I simply checked it. To my surprise they issued me one with a $25 credit limit. I would go around buying stuff within the $25 and would come back home and pay it off the very same day. Slowly but they steadily increased the limit and it was about $2000 when I quit my job and came back.

Having an existing financial relationship with a bank helps. Better start building with a savings or fixed deposit account with the bank rather than directly asking for credit. You give and take, not the other way around.

[Lazy Driver]

Originally Posted by BeantownThinker

2 points to consider:

More importantly, login to CIBIL, get your credit report and check why the score is so low at 729. Such low scores usually do not get any unsecured loans like personal loans and credit cards. Such a low score is NOT because of NO credit history but BAD credit history. Check and rectify this.

Beg to differ here! 729 is by no means a "very low" score. 750+ is a great CIBIL score and 720+ can be considered a decent score. My Cibil has been in the same range (725-740) past few years & I have had no problems in either getting the premium most cards available in India (barring Amex Centurion of-course, which is invite-only) or having approvals for a few personal loans.

[IamNikhil]

If she's employed and receiving regular salary, the best option would be applying for a CC from the bank which holds her salary account. I'm surprised even they haven't offered it as part of the account opening package, which has now become standard practice since the past few years.

Alternatively, she can open a basic account with a Co-operative Bank and get a CC from them as well. A lot of these mid-level Co-op banks (Saraswat Bank, for instance) even issue cards without the need of having an account with the bank. The benefits definitely wouldn't match those of top-tier cards, but atleast will serve to be an in-road into the CC space. Use it regularly for a year to achieve a decent credit history and then see how her phone will be spammed with offers from competing banks.

[vrprabhu]

Suggestions / advice galore, but response from OP is missing?!

Hope his wife managed to get the card and problem is resolved.....