What is SCHUFA? Simply explained

What SCHUFA actually is

SCHUFA (Schutzgemeinschaft für allgemeine Kreditsicherung) is Germany's largest credit bureau. It collects information about consumers' payment behaviour and provides it to banks, retailers and other companies.

When applying for a credit card, the bank usually checks your SCHUFA score to estimate how likely you are to pay your bills on time.

What data is stored?

SCHUFA stores a range of information about you:

• Current accounts, credit cards and outstanding loans
• Installment payments and leasing contracts
• Mobile phone contracts
• Payment defaults or dunning procedures

The SCHUFA score

The score is a percentage between 0 and 100. The higher the value, the better your creditworthiness. A value above 95% is considered very good.

Once a year you can request a free data copy under Art. 15 GDPR and review your stored data.

How to improve your score

A few simple steps can positively influence your credit rating:

• Always pay bills and installments on time
• Cancel unused accounts and cards
• Avoid too many credit inquiries in a short time
• Have incorrect entries corrected