Hi everyone,

When I moved to the US I settled my finances back in the UK but alas overlooked one which hasnt been paid for some time. They are now going ahead with a judgement proceeding. Has anyone had any experience of this and if so, what happens and what can I do to resolve it? What will happen if I re-enter the UK again to visit?

thanks

You could make arrangements to pay it.

County Court Judgments (CCJs) are civil judgments only -- if you're worried that this is something that could prevent you from re-entering the UK, it is not the sort of information the Home Office would be privy to in order to determine your admissability. (If this were so, I would have been barred from re-entry years ago! ) It is a private action only and does not give you a criminal record.

However, it could affect your credit rating, even in the US. If you have the opportunity to settle this debt before it gets to the County Court I would recommend doing so. Try calling the creditor (or its collection agency) to see if you can get this resolved beforehand -- if it's a large sum, you can almost always sort out a payment plan. They want their money, and if they don't have to go to court they'll be more than pleased. (And so will you!)

(As an aside, although I trained as a lawyer, I am not practising currently and I am not holding myself out as a professional here -- only giving some friendly advice. Sorry, I have to say that!)

How old is the debt? I'm not sure what it's like in the UK, but in the states, if you've not paid off a debt by a certain period of time (typically, 5 - 7 years) the debt is written off.

It will not stop you visiting the UK and it does not effect your credit score here in the US...

Kez

I would have significant reservations about following the notion that unpaid debts are forgiven after 5 to 7 years.

Not forgiven -- written off.

http://www.bcsalliance.com/y_debt_sol.html <-- only for US debts, though

You should speak to an attorney or an accountant about this.

This used to be true in the past, but the credit scoring sgencies have improved communications these days. Some debts won't show up, but I wouldn't count on it. Best to pay them off and be done with them.

thanks everyone for the advice. I will speak with an attorney and also call the company concerned and see if I can make an arrangement to pay. Thanks again to all. Im just relieved that I wont be arrested at Heathrow if I go back to the UK!

I woulnd't bother calling an attorney, just call the company themselves.

I am not saying you should not pay off what you owe.... I work for a large International Bank and we use credit scores every day.... I can asure you that your credit history in any country other than Canada can not be accessed by any financial institution within the USA... that is why as immigrants we all start off with no credit history and no credit score... you can have the best credit history and score in your home country and it will be of no use to you here in the USA thus if you have a very poor credit rating in your country it does not follow you to the USA... if you have judgements against you for bad debt in your home country they can not be enforced here in the US...

Kez

Interesting! Is this the same for returning USC's as for new immigrants? I only ask as I'm a USC with a horrific UK credit history looking to return home later this year. (I have next to no US credit history as I left the US quite young.) My UK bank has told me in the past that they can pass my info on when I emigrate. Any chance this was yet another incidence of UK banks flexing their muscle when there is no muscle to begin with?? (Don't even get me started on the extortionate fees for going over your overdraft by a few pence for a day or two!)

I've said this countless times, but US credit scores are attached to your SS# (other than BoA lol)

If you've not been using your ss for any of your UK loans (why would you really?) then logistically, it won't be on there.

Yup then -- my bank flat out lied to me as I've never given them my SS#. Thanks HSBC for adding to my paranoia!!!

Well, you have to wonder how they would report it, since they don't have that number, and since there could be any amount of people with the name 'Elmcitymaven Doe' in America

Yes, in retrospect it does have the distinct whiff of an empty threat... I guess it's the mere thought that I might skip out on the £20k I still owe them for law school that has put them on the defensive!

You should make sure your bank isn't part of an international bank where the information may be available before presuming that your financial history won't follow you across international borders.

I work for a International Bank.... There is no way for any bank to get information from a foreign Credit reference agency for a customer... Data protection laws prohibit the disclosing of such information.

Kez

We've been down this road.

Nothing happens. You have a sh*t credit rating when you get back to the UK (if you go back) but other than that, nothing.

Hey Gwen, ltns....how's things?

Heya!

I'm good, probably going to be around a bit more now that we're filing again to go back to the US. Been an interesting year trying out living around the world, but the call of family and friends is strongest in the US - so that's where we're going!

Oh jeez! The process starts again for you guys!

But you can't say it hasn't been interesting

Threads dealing with this particular topic bug me. Figure out a way to pay what you owe, IMHO.

It has been interesting. The UK was great, and Ireland's been an absolute blast - I think I just feel like I'm missing out on so much back in the US with my friends and family. I'll miss a LOT of things about living out here - a job with 25 vacation days, the NHS, working (so to speak) public transportation, to name a few - but it'll be good to get home, buy a house, settle in for the duration. Our deposit money will go a LOT further on the property ladder in the US!

I'm just annoyed that the timescales have changed so much. For the K-1 visa, we went through VSC and it took one week for the initial approval. I was just checking the thread in the IR-1/CR-1 forum and there are people who have been waiting for six months for that petition to be approved. So we're in for a long wait, I think...not to mention I don't know what problems having a previously issued K-1 is going to cause. There were no overstays, we never filed for AOS, he's been in and out of the US on the VWP since so I'm fairly certain things are clear...but I'm still expecting issues - particularly now that he has dual citizenship with the UK and Ireland.

Oh well. What will be, will be. The I-130 packet's going out to my mom tomorrow, who will be sending it on to Vermont. And it all begins again from here. Bring it on.

The thing is, you don't know the situation of the OP. There are lots of reasons for having an unpaid debt, not necessarily due to frivolous spending on sex, drugs and rock n' roll. The OP has asked for help in what to do, she already posted she was going to contact the company to try to work something out. So aside from making you feel holier-than-thou and the OP feel like crap, what use was your comment?

Yea - U go Candace! I 100% agree with you!!

My brother-in-law is a lawyer in the UK. He's been trying to convince my husband that he shouldn't bother with trying to pay off his credit card balance when he leaves the UK. It's not a huge debt, and I really want him to pay it off, but I think my husband's been a little bit tempted to follow his brother's advice.

I thought his brother didn't know what he was talking about. Surely, this can't be legal, can it? What's to stop someone from taking out a loan or going on a spending spree and then fleeing the country without plans to repay the debt?

There is nothing to stop you doing exactly that... that is why we all pay higher intrest rates to borrow money wither it is on a credit card or through a loan... a % of it goes to cover the bed debt that others have and dont pay....

Kez

Please don't put words/inferences into my mouth that never came out of it.

If you look at my statement, it does NOT pass judgement on HOW the OP gained the debt, that really has nothing to do with the point of this thread. Anyways, it looked to me that she was looking for a way to deal with the problem. My response wasn't to the OP, it was a general comment against the "just forget about it, they can't do anything to you" kinds of statements. This type of thread has come up numerous times and that kind of response bugs me to no end for a number of different reasons. Perhaps I needed to be more specific and direct.

For the record, I'm currently (slowly) paying off three substantial debts I left behind in Canada. It hasn't been easy. And no, if you knew me, I do not say that to be holier-than-thou.

I would point out for the couple of comments that were a little negative, I have now made an agreement to pay with the company concerned who are very happy with the terms and I will have paid off the outstanding amount within 6 months, with reversion to the original agreement at that time. I have an excellent credit score in the UK and do want to keep this intact in case I should ever need credit there in the future.

Thanks to all for the advice. I am sure it helped others in the same position, reading this thread also.

That is it in a nutshell Kez