How Apple Card and Apple Card Family is credit reported
Learn how Apple Card reports your credit based on your particular role on the account.
Your credit report contains a detailed record of your credit history that is maintained by the credit bureaus. Information within your credit report can be used by lenders for evaluating your credit applications. If an account is reported to the credit bureaus, a lender must provide accurate information about your performance on the account. This includes whether you are paying your bills on time, how much of your available credit on the account is being utilized, and age of the account.
If you have an Apple Card account, this information is reported by Goldman Sachs Bank to each of the three major credit bureaus — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion1 — on at least a monthly basis. Your Apple Card will appear as a separate trade line on your credit report labeled APPLE CARD - GS BANK USA or GS BANK USA. It may take up to 45 days from the time of activity for that information to appear on your credit report. Some personal credit monitoring services may take longer to refresh your information after the credit bureaus have published it.
If you choose to share your Apple Card account with members of your Family Sharing Group, it's important for everyone to understand how they are uniquely reported based on their role on the account.
How credit is reported if you're an individual Apple Card account owner
Your Apple Card account information, such as payment history and credit utilization, will be reported to credit bureaus and shown in credit reports as your individual Apple Card account.
If you choose to add a participant to your Apple Card account
There is no direct negative impact to the account owner’s credit report when adding or removing a participant.
Participants are reported as Authorized Users to the bureaus, which means they are not liable for making payments on that account.
Adding one or more participants to your Apple Card account may lead to higher credit utilization, because multiple people can now spend on the same account. Higher credit utilization may negatively impact your credit score.
If you want to close your Apple Card account
Account owners can close the account at any time, which may negatively impact their credit score.2
Closing your Apple Card account will remove any participants from the account, and it will show up as closed on both the owner and participant’s credit reports.3
How credit is reported for Apple Card account co-owners
Each co-owner will be reported to credit bureaus as an account owner, so each person is reported in their own name. The shared Apple Card will be reflected on each account owner’s credit report as a jointly owned account.4 Credit reporting for each co-owner may include both positive and negative payment history on their shared Apple Card, as well as the credit line amount and credit utilization. Each individual's personal credit history includes information that's unique to them, so Apple Card usage and payment history can impact each person's credit score differently.
If you combine your account with an existing Apple Card account owner
You can only co-own an account with a member of your Family Sharing Group.
The credit limit for each person will be combined. Both co-owners will see the combined credit limit for the shared account on their credit reports.
Each co-owner will maintain their pre-merge Apple Card payment history on their individual credit profile.
Each co-owner will maintain their Apple Card account origination date on their individual credit profile, which can be helpful to maintain the age of their credit history.
After the accounts have merged, the credit profile for both account owners will include their shared payment and credit activity for Apple Card going forward.
If you want to co-own an Apple Card account with someone who doesn’t have an existing Apple Card
The person you invite must apply for Apple Card, be approved, and accept the invitation to become a co-owner with you. They also must be a member of your Family Sharing Group.
The existing Apple Card owner will maintain their pre-existing Apple Card credit history.
The new co-owner will start to see the shared Apple Card credit history on their credit report after they accept the Apple Card offer.5
After the shared account has been established, the credit profile for both account owners will include their shared payment and credit activity for Apple Card going forward.
If you want to close a co-owned Apple Card account
Either co-owner can close the shared Apple Card account at any time.
Closing the shared account may have a negative impact on both account owners’ credit scores.2
How credit is reported for Apple Card account participants
Participants 18 years or older can opt in to be credit reported and build credit history.6 Participants will be reported to the credit bureaus as Authorized Users, which means they can spend on the account but are not required to make payments.
If you're added as an Apple Card participant
If a participant opts in to be credit reported, the Apple Card account will appear on their credit report.
Participants inherit all positive and negative credit reporting from the account owner’s Apple Card account.
The account owner’s payment history and account age is reported on the participant’s credit report.
If you’re removed as a participant from an Apple Card Family account
Account owners, the participant themselves, or Goldman Sachs can remove a participant at any time.
Upon removal, Goldman Sachs will stop reporting the participant on that account to the credit bureaus.
The participant’s credit history with Apple Card remains on their credit report unless the account is closed for a specific reason, such as an account owner filing for bankruptcy.
If you’re a participant and want to open your own Apple Card account
You can only have one active Apple Card account at a time.
If approved for an individual Apple Card account, a new trade line will be reported to the credit bureaus after you accept your offer7 and you will be removed as a participant from the shared account.
The previous account history will still appear on your credit report.
You will no longer be actively reported as an Authorized User on that shared account, and will instead be reported to the credit bureaus as an owner on your new Apple Card account.
Things to consider when sharing an Apple Card account
Sharing an Apple Card account can have either a positive or negative impact on your credit score. Generally, accounts that have been established for a while, show consistent on-time payments, and have balances below 30% of the total credit limit may result in a positive credit impact. Similarly, sharing an Apple Card with a less reliable cardholder can negatively impact a co-owner’s or participant's credit. If the owner misses a payment, or has a very high utilization on their card, credit scores could be negatively affected.
Apple Card is issued by Goldman Sachs Bank USA, Salt Lake City Branch.
Closing your Apple Card account may negatively impact your credit score. Closing your account can impact the average age of your collective credit accounts, as well as the different types of active credit on your report, and reduce your overall access to credit.
When an account is closed, account co-owners and participants can't make new transactions. Account owners and co-owners must continue to pay their Apple Card until the total outstanding balance of the account is paid in full, including any amounts which post after the account's closure.
Addition of a new co-owner is subject to credit approval and general eligibility requirements.
It may take up to 45 days for your credit report to reflect activity from your co-owned Apple Card account.
Any participant age 18 or older can choose to be reported to the credit bureaus. Any participant who is or becomes married to an account owner is required to be reported to the credit bureaus by law.
All applicants are subject to credit approval.
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