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29 March 2024

Revealed: Cost of buying your credit report in UAE

Al Etihad Credit Bureau (AECB) started issuing consumer credit reports to banks and financial institutions from September. IMAGE VIA SHUTTERSTOCK

Published
By Parag Deulgaonkar

Al Etihad Credit Bureau (AECB), a UAE federal government institution, will be charging Dh110 for issuing credit reports to individuals, Emirates 24|7 can reveal.

“We are currently issuing credit reports for individuals and the charge is Dh110,” an AECB call centre employee told this website.

Each individual will have to furnish his/her own Emirates ID card and passport copy when applying for their credit report.

“The report will be issued immediately. Currently, we are accepting individual requests at our Dubai office only,” the call centre employee said.

The AECB office is located in the Rolex Tower, 25th floor, Sheikh Zayed Road, and is open from 8am to 3pm.

The bureau, in fact, started issuing consumer credit reports to banks and financial institutions from September.

Although it had not revealed the charge for issuing of the report for individuals, Shahram Safai, Partner, Afridi & Angell, told Emirates 24|7 that AECB was likely to charge to be up to Dh100 – the amount previously charged by Emcredit, the first credit bureau established in the UAE.

“As a precedent, Emcredit was the first Credit Bureau established in the UAE, and we understand that it charges up to Dh100 per credit report, as such we expect AECB to charge a comparable price to the previous,” Safai had told this website.

In contrast, US credit companies charge around $15 (Dh55) for such a report, and UK credit companies charge about £2 (Dh12), Safai said.

Documents required to obtain credit report

For an individual to obtain his/her credit report, the following documents are required:

- Original Emirates ID card of the applicant

- Passport copy of the applicant

In case of authorisation, one must bring

* Copy of valid Emirates ID card and passport of the customer (owner of the credit report)

* Original Emirates ID card of the authorised person to receive the credit report

* Original notarised power of attorney with the authority to obtain credit facilities or a notarised authorisation letter from the bank

* Credit report consent form (individual) duly filled in and the documents as mentioned above duly attached

According to AECB, the credit report will benefit consumers in terms of lowering the cost of credit for a good borrower, limiting credit risk at a national level. It will encourage residents to develop appropriate debt management practices. It will also teach consumers that practicing good debt management can lead to receiving more favourable lending terms.

It will also make the process of gaining approval for borrowing (loans and credit cards) more transparent and accurate; and individuals will be able to avail financial services from financial institutions that they didn't have any relations before.

Also Read: Revealed: 5 ways to improve your credit report in UAE