Open US credit cards

Key points

• The Amex transfer is open to primary cardholders in eligible countries whose card has been open for at least three months. The “Member since” date carries over, and the points stay on the existing account.
• Chase and Capital One accept the ITIN in place of the SSN. The IRS only issues it for a tax purpose, though, and a card application is not one.
• In observed practice, business cards from other banks do not count toward Chase's 5/24 rule.
• Each bank has its own application rules. Applied for in the wrong order, some cards stay closed to you for months, at Chase for up to two years.
• US cards earn more points than cards issued in the EU, because the interchange fee on credit cards is capped in the EU and not in the US.

Which route to a US credit card fits whom

The three routes in detail

Amex Global Card Relationship. An existing Amex from Germany, Austria or another country on the program's list is continued in the US. You must be the primary cardholder, the card must have been open for at least three months, and the account must be in good standing. The home card stays open, and the “Member since” date carries over to the US card. At application this route works without an ITIN; you will need one later to build a score. The process is described in Global Card transfer to the US.

Application with an ITIN. Chase and Capital One accept the ITIN in place of the SSN. That opens cards that report to the credit bureaus and so build a score. The IRS only issues the ITIN together with a US tax return or a recognized exception. What that means for card applications is covered in ITIN or SSN for credit cards.

Secured card. The limit is backed by a deposit, $49, $99 or $200 for the Capital One Platinum Secured. The card reports to the credit bureaus and suits anyone without an Amex history. It too is applied for with an SSN or ITIN. The issuer returns the deposit under its own terms, in our experience usually when the account moves to a regular card.

The three routes compared

What you need before the first application

Debit cards and the cards of many finance apps do not report a credit line to the credit bureaus. They do not build a US score, even if they bill in dollars.

• A physical US address. Chase writes that one is generally required and that post office boxes may not be accepted.
• A US phone number where you can be reached for queries and security codes.
• An SSN or ITIN. Chase and Capital One ask for one of the two. Without either, only the Amex transfer remains.
• A dollar account for the bill. Paid from another currency, every statement costs a conversion. The route there is described in Open a US bank account.
• Income details, which the bank uses to set the limit.

Application rules per bank

These rules determine the sequence. The banks publish only some of them, the rest is practice observed over years. The 5/24 rule has its own article. The “Application rules” tool in the software suite lists all of them with a review date.

Step-by-step process

1. Groundwork. Address, phone number, ITIN if needed. The US bank account in parallel.
2. First card. Amex transfer, secured card or ITIN application, depending on your starting position.
3. Six months of discipline. Pay on time, keep utilization below ten percent, no further applications. In this time the first score appears, as explained in how US credit reports work.
4. Second and third card according to the application rules: Chase before Amex, because 5/24 counts all personal cards. Get the secured card deposit back.
5. Business cards for the US company once the personal history carries weight. In our experience the owner remains personally liable, more on that in business vs personal credit.
6. Portfolio maintenance. New cards according to the bonus situation, ongoing monitoring via application rules, bonus history and benefits tracker.

Costs and timeline

Common mistakes

• Too many applications in a short time. Each one triggers a hard inquiry (hard pull vs soft pull), and at Chase the 5/24 block follows.
• Expecting a score from the Amex transfer. Without an ITIN, according to available reports, the card does not report to the credit bureaus.
• Expecting Schufa in Germany, KSV in Austria or any other home-country bureau to count in the US. The US file starts at zero.
• Applying for an ITIN just for a card application. The IRS issues it for a tax purpose, and wanting a card is not one.
• Redeeming points as a statement credit instead of transferring them. That costs a multiple of their value.
• Keeping a card that, after credits, delivers less than its annual fee costs. How to run that calculation is shown in annual fee math.

When a US credit card is not worth it

• You have no Amex from an eligible country and no tax reason in the US. An ITIN is then hard to get, and without an ITIN or an Amex there is no starting point.
• You are planning a single trip to the US. A card from home without a foreign transaction fee is enough. A US card pays off only with ongoing dollar spending over several years.
• You have no dollar account. The bill comes in dollars, and paying it from another currency loses money on the exchange rate every month.
• Your Amex is from Switzerland. The transfer is not provided for there, so the start runs through an ITIN or a secured card and takes longer.
• You will move or give up the US business within a few months. The sequence needs time, and half a history helps nobody.
• Your goal is a US score, but only the Amex transfer is planned. The transfer opens access, it does not replace building a score.

Notes before you apply

• Switzerland is not on any country list of the Global Card Relationship. American Express also explicitly excludes cards not issued by an American Express bank. Check the program's country list with your issuer before every step.
• Information on address and residence must be accurate. False information given to a bank puts the card and the account at risk.
• Rewards from business spending must be assessed for tax purposes. Your tax advisor handles this.