Central Credit Register

When applying for a loan, overdrafts, mortgage, or credit cards we must obtain one of the following as proof of your PPSN:

We are unable to accept:

• Public Service Card – under law we can’t use this as proof of PPSN or identity

Scanning or uploading

If you are scanning or uploading documents showing your PPSN, please make sure the images are legible.

Bank of Ireland, and all lenders must collect the relevant customer identifier (e.g PPSN, Tax ID, CRO number) in order to perform a Central Credit Register credit enquiry application, as required by the Credit Reporting Act 2013 (CRA).

For personal customers including sole traders we require an official document to verify your PPSN.

The Central Credit Register is a database which collects and stores information about loans (including overdrafts, mortgages and credit cards). It is run by the Central Bank of Ireland under the Credit Reporting Act 2013.

What does the Central Credit Register do?

• Keeps a record of your credit history and current credit performance
• Provides you with a credit report showing details of your credit agreements and current credit performance
• Allows Bank of Ireland and other lenders to carry out a credit enquiry when you apply for a business loan including an overdraft, credit card, or mortgage.

What does Bank of Ireland need to carry out a CCR credit enquiry?

In order to perform a credit enquiry, Bank of Ireland must collect your identification details. Individuals such as personal customers, sole traders and farmers must provide their Personal Public Service Number (PPSN). Non-individuals, such as companies or partnerships, must provide a Company Registration Office Number (CRO) or Tax ID in some cases. This is a legal requirement.

What information does the Central Credit Register hold?

The Credit Reporting Act requires all lenders to submit customer and credit information to the Central Credit Register on loans of €500 or more including: overdrafts, mortgages and credit cards.

Bank of Ireland Finance (BIF) and other lenders will submit details to the Central Credit Register on any Hire Purchase agreements (including Personal Contract Plans), asset finance, leases and similar lending worth €500 or more.

The Central Credit Register will show a borrower’s credit history and current credit performance to help us and other lenders with lending decisions.

For more information on the Central Credit Register, visit www.centralcreditregister.ie.

A credit enquiry is where lenders request your credit report from the Central Credit Register when you apply for a loan of €500 or more. This includes the following:

• Loans
• Overdrafts
• Mortgages
• Credit Cards
• Letter of Credit Facilities

The Central Credit Register credit report contains your credit history and current credit performance. The credit report will help us with your application.

Yes, you can request a copy of your report from the Central Credit Register on the Central Credit Register website.

Individuals (consumers, sole traders, or anyone who can provide a PPSN) have a right to request their report at any time free of charge (subject to fair usage).

Non-individuals (companies, legal entities, or any other entity that can provide a Business Registration Number/Company Registration Office number or foreign equivalent) have a right to request their report at any time and the first report each year is free. There will be a charge of €6.35 for any subsquent request within the year.

The Central Credit Register will require identification documents to complete this request. The documents needed to make a credit enquiry can be found on the Central Credit Register website.

Borrowers included on the CCR are individuals (such as personal customers, sole traders and farmers), and non-individuals (such as companies and partnerships).

Types of borrowers also include any other entities that are resident in the state at the time of making the credit application or where the credit agreement is governed by Irish Law. This includes, for example, clubs or associations.

Guarantors who provide guarantees or indemnities will also be included in the future.

The Irish Credit Bureau (ICB) is a credit reference agency which maintains an electronic database with information on the performance of credit agreements between financial institutions, such as banks and building societies, and borrowers. A second credit reference agency, the Central Credit Register (CCR), is operated by the Central Bank of Ireland under the Credit Reporting Act 2013.

The ICB have announced they will be closing their service on FRIDAY, 1 OCTOBER 2021. Bank of Ireland is updating its procedures to continue to only use the Central Credit Register (CCR) to assess lending requests received after this date.

There will be no impact to customers due to the ICB closure as Bank of Ireland will continue to use the Central Credit Register (CCR) when assessing lending applications.

No, customers are not required to request their credit report from the ICB.

Lenders across the industry are reducing their dependency on ICB data in the run up to the closure. As such, the process has been to check ICB records. This may remain in place until ICB records are no longer available to us from Friday 1st October. Any applications made after Friday 1st October, will no longer refer to the ICB and will instead continue to use the Central Credit Register (CCR) to assess lending requests.