Q1: How to check your business credit score?
A: The JCIC started providing business credit scores in May 2010. "J20 JCIC Corporate Score—Without Owner's Information" and "J21 JCIC Corporate Score—With Owner's Information" will be shown on the business credit report if you applied for it. The owner or his/her agent can apply for a credit report at the JCIC counter, or by mail.
Q2: Does the JCIC Corporate Score include all kinds of businesses? What kind of situation leads to "no credit score"?
A: A business is not included in the JCIC Corporate Score if it:
1. Is not incorporated as a company.
2. Has no company incorporation registration.
3. Is a Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) listed or Gretai Securities Market (GTSM) company.
4. Is government-owned.
5. Is indeterminate as to its business nature.
6. Is a financial/insurance company.
7. Is a member institution of the Joint Credit Information Center.
8. Is an investment company.
9. Has a bad credit history (as disclosed) with no performing loan currently.
10. Has too short a credit history.
11. Has a note indicating it is involved in a dispute or lawsuit.
For "J21 JCIC Corporate Score—With Owner's Information", if the owner's identification number is incorrect, or the owner of the firm has a note indicating interdiction, dispute or lawsuit, the business will not be given a score either.
Q3: What kind of situation leads to "fixed score"?
A: If the company already has a default but still has other normal credit behavior, it will be given a fixed score of 1200. This is not an actual credit score, but a specific score given to this kind of situation.As defined by the JCIC, "default" means that a company has any of the following credit records within the data disclosure period:
- Being classified as overdue loan, debt collection or bad debts.
- Being denied service by the check clearing house.
- Ruled by a court for reorganization.
- Declared bankruptcy by a court.
Q4: How much does it cost to review my JCIC Corporate Score?
A: A business credit report along with a JCIC Corporate Score in Chinese costs $400, a report in English costs $500, and one for each kind costs $800. But if you get "No credit score" or "fixed score", the costs will be reduced to $300 in Chinese and $400 in English. $100 for an extra copy in either Chinese or English.
Q5: How often is the JCIC Corporate Score updated? Can I inquire about my JCIC Corporate Score of a specific time in the past?
A:The JCIC Corporate Score reflects the latest information in the JCIC database. It is not possible to provide the JCIC Corporate Score of a specific time in the past.
Q6:When will the reasons be shown about my JCIC Corporate Score?
A:
- If you get "no credit score" or "fixed score", there will be a reason shown on your report.
- If you get a score indicating poor credit (below the 30th percentile), some primary reasons will be given.
Q7:What does it mean by "lack of credit information", and why does it lead to "no credit score"?
A: If the company has "Zero loan balance within the last 12 months", it means the company doesn't have any loan behavior in the past 12 months, and it will be considered insufficient in credit information. As a result, the credit scoring system won't be able to generate a credit score as there isn't enough past behavior to assess the company's credit worthiness.
Q8:Does "no credit score" means having high credit risk?
A: "No credit score" doesn't mean a zero credit score or having bad credit. It just means that it is not appropriate to give a credit score, and the primary reasons will be explained. Besides "having bad credit history (as disclosed)", "lack of credit information" is the most common reason. "Belong to specific industry group (a TWSE listed or GTSM company, government-owned, a Financial/Insurance company, etc.)" is also one reason leading to "no credit score".。
Q9:The reason of poor credit shows "High frequency of inquiries resulting from applications for new credit by financial institution in the last 12 months". How is it calculated? Why does it lead to low credit score?
A: Inquiries made by financial institutions when applying for new loans will be taken into account by the credit scoring system. If the company has multiple inquiries for new loans, it usually indicates an urgent or abnormal need of funds. The reasons could be that this company cannot get enough money from old loans, or there are some risky factors that cause this company to need new loans constantly. These kinds of situations can lead to bad credit, so the risk level will be reflected in the credit score. On the other hand, considering that rate-shopping might also lead to multiple inquires, the JCIC Credit Scoring Model counts inquiries made within a 90-day time period as one inquiry.
Q10: What is the highest JCIC Corporate Score? What score do most business get?
A: There is no full score in the JCIC Corporate Score. The JCIC Corporate Score is calculated by adding the score weight the company get of multiple variables. According to the JCIC database, the highest JCIC Corporate Score is about 2000, and about 98% of the companies are between 1200 and 1800.
Q11: Is my JCIC Corporate Score revealed in public?
A: No, the JCIC Corporate Score is not revealed in public. Only the owner or his/her agent can apply for it. The financial institutions will need to get recognizing consent by the data subject to make an inquiry to the JCIC, and the result is for internal use only.
Q12: How long will my low credit score last?
A: The JCIC Corporate Score is calculated at the moment of inquiry on the basis of the credit information within the disclosure period in the JCIC database. So if the data has expired or there are some changes in your credit records, your JCIC Corporate Score will change accordingly. In other words, if your credit records have improved, your credit score will improve accordingly.
Q13:Besides loan information, what components make up a JCIC Corporate Score?
A: The components of the JCIC Corporate Score include company background (company scale, years of establishment, etc.), loan information (payment history, amounts owed, length of credit history, etc.), credit applications data (credit inquiries to JCIC for new credit), financial reports (liquidity, profitability, etc.) and the owner information. The JCIC also collects derivatives transactions, labor pension reserve funds information, major pollution penalty information, SME financing service platform information, negative credit information provided by TWSE, etc., but the information is provided as a reference for members only, and is not taken into account by the JCIC Corporate Score.