Last Updated on 5 days ago by CreditForImmigrants Editorial Team

One of the biggest financial challenges
immigrants face when arriving in the
United States is starting their credit
history from zero — even if they had
excellent credit in their home country.
Nova Credit is trying to change that.

What is Nova Credit?

Nova Credit is a fintech company that
translates international credit histories
into a format that U.S. lenders can
understand. It creates a Credit Passport
— a standardized report that U.S. lenders
can evaluate instead of a U.S. credit report.

How Nova Credit Works

You authorize Nova Credit to access your
foreign credit history. Nova Credit
retrieves and translates your report into
a Credit Passport. The lender uses your
Credit Passport to make a credit decision.
If approved you get the product and start
building your U.S. credit history.

Which Countries Does Nova Credit Support?

Nova Credit currently supports credit
histories from Mexico, India, Australia,
Canada, United Kingdom, Brazil, Dominican
Republic, Kenya, Nigeria, and Philippines.

Which U.S. Lenders Accept Nova Credit?

Nova Credit has partnerships with American
Express credit cards, MPOWER Financing for
student loans, Yardi for apartment rental
applications, and several other lenders
across credit cards and personal loans.

How to Use Nova Credit from Mexico

Step 1: Go to novacredit.com and select
Mexico as your home country.

Step 2: Authorize Nova Credit to access
your Mexican credit bureau report.

Step 3: Nova Credit creates your
Credit Passport from your Mexican
credit history.

Step 4: Apply for a credit product
with a Nova Credit partner lender.

Step 5: If approved you receive the
product and begin building your U.S.
credit history.

Is Nova Credit Free?

For individual consumers Nova Credit
is completely free. The lender pays
Nova Credit for the service.

Limitations of Nova Credit

Nova Credit only works with partner
lenders. The number of partners is
growing but still limited. Your foreign
credit history must be positive and
verifiable. A poor credit history in
Mexico will not help your application.

Nova Credit vs Building Credit from Scratch

If you have a strong credit history in
Mexico or another supported country Nova
Credit can give you a significant head
start — potentially qualifying you for
unsecured cards immediately. If you do
not have strong foreign credit you will
need to build from scratch using a
secured card and ITIN.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Nova Credit work for all immigrants?
No. It only works for immigrants from
supported countries with verifiable
credit histories.

Is my credit data safe with Nova Credit?
Nova Credit uses bank-level encryption
and only accesses your data with your
explicit authorization.

Can I use Nova Credit without an SSN?
Yes. Nova Credit is specifically designed
for immigrants who do not yet have an SSN.

Does using Nova Credit affect my
credit score?
Using Nova Credit itself does not create
a hard inquiry on your U.S. credit report.

How long does it take?
The Nova Credit process typically takes
a few minutes. The lender decision
timeline varies by institution.