People go for a new credit file because they want to leave behind the past of bad credit and get on with their finances on a fresh footing. These are people that know how important it is to maintain good credit.

The Process

Get in touch with the nearest IRS center and request a nine-digit Employer Identification Number (EIN). This EIN may have the same number of digits as your Social Security number. You will be able to open your new credit file with an EIN.

If you are opening a credit file for your business, be ready to furnish documents like copies of tax returns, copy of articles of incorporation, balance sheet or recent copies of profit and loss statement. The EIN should be specified on the application.

Make sure on the new credit application you do not write the same address, contact details, and employer information that you had in the previous credit file. The credit applications in which you put your EIN will be dispatched to credit reporting agencies. If the credit rating agency comes to know that you are trying to open another credit file, they will merge the file and you will have to continue to bear the brunt of a bad credit rating.

Get a secure credit card; you will be issued a credit card with some percentage of the available credit in an account held by the bank that issues the card.

Ask someone with a good credit rating to help open a secondary credit card with that person being the guarantor. You can also sign as a co-applicant for a credit card with someone who has good credit.

Tip

It is imperative to make a purchase and pay it back promptly to show that you are using the credit card. This way you will not hurt the new credit profile with a bad credit rating.

Warning

A lot of people disclose their Social Security Number to open a credit card profile, while the truth is that you should show the number only to the Social Security Administration and the IRS. The SSN is your ticket to retirement and you should not use it to open a credit profile. The EIN is the right information for doing such things.