Married couples don't share credit scores, and your individual score won't change simply because you've become legally wed. That said, getting married can still have an effect on your credit score, especially if you and your spouse begin opening shared credit accounts like a joint credit card or a mortgage.
Removing a Joint Account Holder
Generally, either party can unilaterally close the account by contacting the card issuer over the phone or in writing. Once closed, the cards of both joint account holders and any authorized cardholders will be deactivated, and any future attempt to make purchases will be declined.
Married Couples Have Separate Credit Reports
Each individual's credit history contains only the information that is reported in their name, including payment history for accounts for which they've cosigned.
Do You Inherit Debt When You Get Married? No. Even in community property states, debts incurred before the marriage remain the sole responsibility of the individual. So if your spouse is still paying off student loans, for instance, you shouldn't worry that you'll become liable for their debt after you get married.
If your spouse has a bad credit score, it will not affect your credit score. However, when you apply for loans together, like mortgages, lenders will look at both your scores. If one of you has a poor credit score, it counts against you both.
You can split them in half with the other borrower or divide them in a different way. Call your credit card issuer. Once you pay off the balance and redeem rewards, call your credit card issuer to let them know you're closing your joint card account and make sure you're meeting all prerequisite terms.
You can typically get points back over time by building your credit score with your own credit accounts. If you're the primary account holder, removing an authorized user won't affect your credit score.
Does my spouse's file have to be frozen, too? Yes. Both spouses have to freeze their separate credit files, via separate letters requesting the freeze, in order to get the benefit.
Mortgage lenders look for stable, reliable income that's likely to continue. In order to count your joint income toward qualifying, each spouse will need to be legally and financially obliged on the loan. Lenders will look at both of your credit scores and histories.
Adding your spouse as an authorized user to your credit card won't hurt your credit score, but it could help your spouse's.
While some couples may keep their finances separate for the duration of their marriage, others may combine finances when they start a family. This is even more of a crucial conversation if one parent plans to stay home with the child while the other works.
You're generally able to remove yourself as an authorized user by calling the credit card issuer and requesting the change. You may also be able to ask to remove yourself from the account online, depending on the company.
According to a 2018 study done by Credit Sesame, people who had a fair credit score saw their credit score improve nearly 11% just three months after becoming an authorized user on someone's credit card.
Call the issuer and ask to have your name removed as an authorized user. It should take only a few days, and the issuer will cease making reports under your name to credit bureaus. At some point, that account should vanish from your report entirely.
If you are the cardholder
To remove an authorized user, call the number on the back of your credit card to reach the card issuer's customer service number and request the authorized user to be removed from the account.
If there is “joint and several liability” for a debt, all the people included are each responsible for the whole amount of the debt. This applies even if you have an agreement with the other person that you will each pay half.
As the primary cardholder, you have the right to remove an authorized user at any time. Simply call your credit card issuer and have them removed.
Since California is a community property state, the law applies that the community estate shared between both individuals is liable for a debt incurred by either spouse during the marriage. All community property shared equally between husband and wife can be held liable for repaying the debts of one spouse.
You and your spouse each have your own separate credit files. Only accounts that are in both your names will show on both of your credit files. This would include any joint accounts you have, as well as accounts for which either of you are a co-signer or an authorized user.
The bottom line. You are generally not responsible for your spouse's credit card debt unless you are a co-signor for the card or it is a joint account. However, state laws vary and divorce or the death of your spouse could also impact your liability for this debt.
A legal separation is a way of separating without getting a divorce or dissolution - it's also known as a 'judicial separation. It lets you and your partner make formal decisions about things like your finances and living arrangements, but you'll still be married or in a civil partnership.
Can You Empty Your Bank Account Before Divorce? However, doing so just before or during a divorce is going to have consequences because the contents of that account will almost certainly be considered marital property. That means it will be an equitable division in the divorce settlement.