Nova Credit: Can You Transfer Your Credit Score from Mexico to the US?

Last Updated on 4 weeks ago by Hector Reyes

Dato importante encontrado: parece que la asociación entre Nova Credit y American Express —que es el ejemplo que probablemente usa medio internet para explicar Nova Credit— habría terminado en 2025 según una fuente reciente. Esto es exactamente el tipo de detalle que hace que un artículo quede desactualizado de la noche a la mañana. Te lo señalo abajo para que lo verifiques en novacredit.com antes de publicar, pero aquí va el artículo con la info más actual que encontré:

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Nova Credit: Can You Transfer Your Credit Score from Mexico to the US?

Updated for 2026

Short answer: not exactly — but what Nova Credit actually does is close enough to matter. It doesn’t move your Mexican credit score into the U.S. system, but it lets a U.S. lender read your Mexican credit history at the moment you apply, which can get you approved for credit far faster than starting from zero.

What Nova Credit Actually Is

Nova Credit is not a credit card, a loan, or an app you use directly. It’s a data infrastructure company. Its product, Credit Passport, translates your foreign credit report into a U.S.-readable format — a local-equivalent score, tradelines, and risk data a U.S. lender can actually evaluate — at the exact moment you apply for a partner lender’s product.

What it doesn’t do: it doesn’t transfer your Mexican score to the three U.S. credit bureaus, and it doesn’t create a U.S. credit score you keep afterward. It’s a one-time translation used during a single application, not an ongoing account.

How It Actually Works

1. You apply through a lender that uses Nova Credit — you can’t sign up with Nova Credit directly. It only works inside a participating lender’s application flow.
2. You enter your Mexican credit details and give consent for Nova Credit to pull your foreign bureau file — the credit history you already built in Mexico.
3. Credit Passport translates that report into a U.S.-equivalent score and risk profile the lender’s underwriting system can read.
4. The lender uses that translation to decide whether to approve you — often letting you skip months or years of building U.S. credit from nothing.

Which Countries Are Supported

Nova Credit currently supports credit histories from roughly 20 countries, with Mexico among the strongest-covered markets, alongside Australia, Brazil, Canada, the Dominican Republic, India, Kenya, Nigeria, the Philippines, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, and the UK.

Which Lenders Actually Use It

This is the part that changes most often, so verify current partners directly on novacredit.com before applying anywhere. As of recent reporting, participating lenders have included Deserve and other specialty credit card issuers built for newcomers — though the high-profile American Express partnership that many older articles reference has reportedly ended. Don’t assume a lender still uses Nova Credit just because an older guide says so — confirm on the lender’s own application page.

Is It Worth Using?

Where it genuinely helps:

• You had a solid, established credit history in Mexico and don’t want to start completely from zero
• You want to qualify for a better product than a basic secured card right out of the gate
• The specific lender you’re applying with is a confirmed Nova Credit partner

Where it falls short:

• It doesn’t build an ongoing U.S. credit score by itself — you still need to open and use an actual U.S. account afterward
• Coverage among mainstream lenders is limited — many major banks still don’t use it
• If your Mexican credit history is thin or you don’t have one, Nova Credit has nothing to translate

What Happens After Approval

Getting approved through Nova Credit is the starting point, not the finish line. Your real U.S. credit history begins once you open and actively use that new account — pay on time, keep utilization low, and your U.S. score builds from there exactly like anyone else’s. Nova Credit just got you in the door faster.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Nova Credit transfer my actual Mexican credit score to the US bureaus?
No. It translates your Mexican credit report into a U.S.-readable format for use during a single lender application — it doesn’t move or merge scores between countries.

Can I use Nova Credit on my own, without applying for a specific product?
No. Nova Credit only works through a participating lender’s application process — there’s no standalone app or account to sign up for directly.

Is Nova Credit free to use?
Yes, for consumers. Nova Credit is paid by its lender partners, not by applicants.

What if the lender I want to apply with doesn’t use Nova Credit?
Then Nova Credit can’t help with that specific application. You’d need to build U.S. credit the traditional way — starting with a secured card or credit-builder loan.

Does having a good credit score in Mexico guarantee approval in the US through Nova Credit?
No. Nova Credit only supplies the data — final approval is still up to the individual lender’s underwriting criteria.

Written by Hector Reyes. Lender partnerships with Nova Credit change over time — always confirm current participating lenders directly at novacredit.com before applying.