Credit bureaus in Canada: understanding your file
By NovaCash · Updated September 22, 2026
Learn what Equifax and TransUnion credit files contain, how to access them and how NovaCash’s bank-verification process differs.
In Canada, two main agencies hold consumer credit histories: Equifax and TransUnion. The FCAC explains that a report summarises cards, loans, balances and whether you pay on time. A score, often from 300 to 900, is a number built from that file. Many lenders use it to decide whether to lend and at what rate. It is not the only model.
NovaCash states that review is without a credit-bureau enquiry. Review uses instant bank verification with Flinks: a consented look at the account to judge repayment capacity. That is not "no review". It is account review instead of a bureau pull. An active bankruptcy remains an exclusion.
What Equifax and TransUnion files contain
According to FCAC, a report may include identity, addresses, employers, credit accounts, NSF items, bankruptcy or judgments, collections, and lender inquiries from the last 3 years. Bureaus update at least monthly. They collect Canadian credit activity, unless a lender asks you for a foreign report.
Who can see the file? Banks, card issuers, insurers, phone companies, landlords, employers, governments, in the cases the rules allow. In most provinces you must consent. Checking your own report does not lower the score.
Inquiries, scores and rates
A credit application can leave an inquiry. Several close together can hurt a score. That is one reason people search for a loan without a credit-bureau enquiry. At NovaCash, that means no bureau pull, not no look at the account. See also how scores affect interest rates at lenders that use them.
NovaCash does not list a personalised rate based on Equifax or TransUnion. Product nominal and effective rates are those in the FAQ, confirmed in the offer. A high score does not raise the amount past $2,000. A low score does not waive citizenship, employment, direct-deposit or bankruptcy rules.
Check your own file
FCAC explains how to get your report from Equifax and TransUnion. Fix errors. A clean file is not a NovaCash acceptance promise, because NovaCash says it does not use the bureau for review.
A NovaCash loan is not presented as a score-rebuild product. For rebuilding, read life after a debt settlement and products that actually report payments.
Frequently asked questions
Does NovaCash check Equifax or TransUnion?
The site says no: no credit-bureau enquiry, review by IBV. An active bankruptcy remains excluded.
Does checking my own report lower my score?
No. FCAC says checking your own report does not affect the score.
Two bureaus, two files?
Yes. Contents and retention periods can differ. Check both if you are correcting an error.