Update: Barclaycard pre-approved checker is currently down. You can view other offers here.
I’m not sure how I missed this when I was doing research on pre-qualified/pre-approved credit card offers but Barclaycard also has their own pre-qualified link which can be viewed if you head to: https://www.barclaycardus.com/apply/ProactivePrescreenLanding.action
You’ll need to enter your basic information as normal (address, full name, social security number, how you rate your credit, what type of benefits you value most), once you’ve done this you’ll either see a page that has “Recommended offers” or “Congratulations you’re pre-qualified for this Barclaycard offer”.
If you apply for a card then a hard credit pull will be done on your credit report. In our experience Barclay’s almost only pulls from your TransUnion credit report.
Recommended Offers
If you see this screen it means that Barclaycard has not pre-approved for any of their cards, if you apply for any of the recommended offers you will be effectively cold applying and have the same chances of being approved as you normally would. It does not mean that you’ll be denied if you apply for any Barclay cards. If you receive this screen you’ll also have the option of adding your e-mail to receive a notification of when you are pre-approved for a Barclay’s card.
Congratulations/Pre-Qualified Offers
If you see this screen it means that Barclay’s has pre-approved you for some of their credit cards. This doesn’t necessarily mean that you will be 100% approved for the card, but your chances will be extremely high (as long as your credit hasn’t changed significantly recently). You’ll also notice that the green apply now button changes to accept now.
[Read: What Does It Mean When You’re Pre-Qualified For A Card?]
Did you use the Barclay pre-qualification tool? What cards were you approved for? Let us know in the comments section.
Update: Barclay has removed their pre-qualified checker. We asked them why this was done and whether we could expect them to add it again and if so when and they declined to comment. They also declined to comment on whether they would offer a business pre-approval checker in the future. You can view other card issuers that do allow you to check for approved offers by going here. December 2014
Update 2: Barclaycard has brought this back. November 2014
Looks like the Barclay’s Pre-Qual Tool has been taken down for the time being.
Was your pull from TU?
I got two cards recommended to me, and I clicked on one; applied and approved pretty much immediately.
I got a hard pull… I couldn’t believe it, it showed up immediately in Credit Karma.
http://i982.photobucket.com/albums/ae306/farsighted99/Screen%20Shot%202016-01-05%20at%202.50.26%20PM_zps2cepdefk.png
so keep that in mind. In my case, it’s not that big of a deal, but I have 5 inquiries now.
You will always get a hard pull for a CC application, doesn’t matter if you’re pre-approved or not.
Barclay’s does not like me at all. I have applied twice and both times denied my application. I have 11 months AAofA, Trans union score (which they pulled) of 721, never ever been late on any payments to any creditor, no public records, no collections, and 6% utilization.
Yet, Capital One Platinum & Quicksilver, Chase Freedom & Slate, Discover It, Citi Double Cash Back, & Amex Blue Cash Everyday love me and have CLI from all. Yes, I carry all those cards.
Yet, declined by Barclays twice. I can’t imagine how the CEO allows the lose of all the monies I create for the companies that seem a bit more intelligent. I will never again apply for a Barclay Card. Ever!
There are a variety of reasons why they declined you.
A Credit score is not a reason for being declined. It is what is used by a lender to even entertain any level of consideration for credit. It is merely the 1st thing that is looked at, then they decide to consider you or not.
A Credit Score has nothing to do with your actual income.
Being considered is like a resume or job application, if you’re resume (score) looks good and meets their prerequisite (range), then they want to hear more about you. Or in the credit world, they will want to get more information about you, like income, employment & residence status.
You can have an 800 score all day, however reasons for still getting denied can be:
1. Your debt-to-income ratio is high (over extended). Basically, more money going out than coming in.
2. Too much credit, which can also tie in with #1 as well. However, even if your D-T-I-R is low, and/or your utilization is low like below 15%, a yearly income of only $16k and having a total of $80k in available credit could be viewed as a high risk.
3. Too many inquires in a short period of time. Although inquires impact roughly 10-15% of your score, too many of them is a huge red flag. And is definitely a reason to turn someone down. It could indicate being desperate and money problems. But the fact that inquires only impact a small percentage of your overall score is misleading and can set the stage for an otherwise ideal borrower, being turned down on a regular basis. And there isn’t anything you can do about it, other than waiting it out.
4. Employment Status
If your employed, great! For a lot of lenders this, is good enough, until you get into some of the higher echelon cards like amex, chase and a few other ones that will actually ask you the industry your employed with, because certain industries tend to be more “seasonal” lIke sales or farming.
If your unemployed, a lender WILL more than likely turn you down, unless you have another form of steady income to substantiate the risk, like social security retirement, lottery winnings that have a guaranteed mostly payout until you die.
These are primary examples.
Just because your score and cbr can make you “appear” to be a good borrower (risk), dsnt mean your the one paying the bill.
So score doesn’t mean S@%T, unless you have something to back it up.
Then again at the end of the day, you could just as easily lie on the application and get approved as well.
Hope this helps.
Also, I would stay away from Barclays. They wouldn’t be my 1st Choice.
I just noticed that you mentioned your AAOA is 11 months. This may be one of the primary drivers for the denial. 11 months is not enough time to get a more accurate measure of risk. For Barclay’s, your AAOA may need to be at least 18 – 24 Months along with your current score to be further considered. Seeing that it’s been a month since you originally posted your denial, I would say it’s fair to say you more than likely received your denial letter in the mail by now. Would you care to share the denial reasons they mentioned in their letter? This may help a few of us better understand some of the do’s and don’ts of applying for Barclays, as each monitor is different with they’re requisites.
It looks like the pre-qualification is back for Barclays as of 10/1/15. And it works! I just tested it out.
https://www.barclaycardus.com/apply/ProactivePrescreenLanding.action
The link just goes to the home page now.
Have they disabled this option??? I can’t use it.
cant see it either, used it 2-3 months ago though
Well I took a shot and applied to see if at least I was pre-approved and I got the congratulations page and I clicked accept now. So I entered all my info and got the request pending and my application needed review. I was like well I tried. My Transunion score seems to be my highest score, around 680 but I do have some baddies on my report and a BK on 2008 that of course still shows ups. I woke up this morning and was reading my emails and saw that my application had been approved and I should receive my card in 7-10 days. I’m expecting a low limit but it’s a start. I have slowly been rebuilding my credit since two years ago I was in the low 500’s and the only credit card I had was a First Premier card, yeah I know it sucks and planning to get rid of it, and I had applied for some other cards with no luck till now.
Congratulations!