If you tried applying for credit cards and always get rejected, then this article is perfect for you.
Credit card application is similar to applying for jobs. There are certain qualifications that an applicant should meet to be eligible to apply. Banks impose certain qualifications on age, income, and employment or business status.
With these qualifications, a lot of applications get rejected especially for someone like me who is a freelancer and don’t have a fixed monthly income.
Now, here is what I did to be able to get my very first credit card.
I applied for a secured credit card.
Secured credit card? What is that?
Well, a secured credit card is a type of credit card that uses a savings account or a time deposit as collateral or security deposit, which is not available for encashment while your credit card is still active and/or if you have an outstanding credit balance.
Since there’s collateral involved, applicants can expect 100% approval from the bank. Moreover, the application is quick and easy because secured credit cards don’t require the candidate to submit documents such as Income Tax Return (ITR).
Related: 5 Best Secured Credit Cards in the Philippines
Yes, you read that right. You can expect 100% approval on your credit card application when you apply for a secured credit card.
Now back to the process of getting my first credit card…
After I learned about secured credit cards, I did research on which banks in the Philippines offer secured credit. And well, there’s a LOT. I actually consolidated those banks in this article “5 Best Secured Credit Cards in the Philippines”.
Now, I decided to apply for a Security Bank credit card. Well, there are a lot of reasons why I chose Security Bank but I’ll just say, it’s the bank that was closest to my apartment. Haha
So, I went to the bank and then talk to the bank representative that I want to apply for a secured credit card. Since I didn’t have a savings account with them, I had to open one.
There are a lot of savings account types to choose from but I preferred opening an AllAccess account because of the free life insurance that comes with it.
Here are some things I did in the bank:
- filled in some forms name (name, age, etc)
- answered some questions (the bank representative asked some questions about my job)
After that, I just gave my initial deposit, which will determine my credit card limit.
Tip: If you want to have a higher credit limit, increase your initial deposit.
Within a few minutes, I was given a passbook and an ATM card, and the bank representative informed me that my credit card will be delivered in 2 weeks.
Note: My application date was March 11, 2022, and the credit card was delivered last April 8. So, it was more than 2 weeks.
So yeah, that was how I got my first credit card.
- I chose a bank
- I went to the nearest branch of that bank
- I opened an AllAccess savings account
- Filled in some forms, answered some questions, and gave my initial deposit
- I waited for a few weeks for my credit card to be delivered to my apartment
Here are some of the things that I brought when I applied for a Security Bank secured credit card:
- Valid ID (I brought my passport)
- Initial Deposit (25K is the maintaining balance for an AllAccess account)
- Ballpen (I just prefer Pilot ballpen whenever I write :D)
Overall, the application process is not really tedious. If you have questions, make sure to raise them with the bank representative (they’re really friendly).
