Credit freeze guide: how to freeze or ban your credit file in your country
Credit monitoring. Updated 2026-09-13. About 5 minutes to read.
Freeze your file at every bureau in your country, not just one, because lenders choose which bureau to check.
A credit freeze stops lenders from reading your credit file, so a criminal cannot open new credit in your name even with your details. In the US it has been free at all three bureaus since September 2018 under federal law. It does not affect your credit score, and you can lift it in minutes when you apply for credit yourself.
The process has a different name and different rules outside the US. Australia has a ban on your credit report, the UK has no freeze but offers Cifas Protective Registration, and Canada offers freezes in some provinces and fraud alerts everywhere. This guide covers all four.
Freeze vs fraud alert vs lock
Credit freeze: blocks most access to your credit file until you lift it. In the US it is free, set by federal law and lasts until you remove it.
Fraud alert: tells lenders to take extra steps to verify your identity, but does not block access. In the US an initial alert lasts one year and is free. You place it at one bureau, which must tell the other two. An extended alert lasts seven years for identity theft victims.
Credit lock: a product offered by bureaus or monitoring services, such as Equifax Lock and Alert. It works like a freeze but is governed by the company's terms, not federal freeze law.
A credit freeze does not affect your credit score. Your existing cards and loans keep working, and you can still check your own reports.
United States: freeze all three bureaus
By law, a freeze requested online or by phone must be in place within one business day, and a lift requested online or by phone must happen within one hour. Requests by mail take up to three business days.
Equifax: go to equifax.com/personal/credit-report-services/credit-freeze and create a myEquifax account, or call (888) 298-0045.
Experian: go to experian.com/freeze/center.html and create a free account, or call 1-888-397-3742.
TransUnion: go to transunion.com/credit-freeze and use the TransUnion Service Center, or call 800-916-8800.
Save each account login in your password manager. You need them to lift the freeze later.
Optional but useful: also freeze Innovis, ChexSystems for bank accounts, and NCTUE for phone and utility accounts. Each is free.
Lifting a freeze when you apply for credit
Ask the lender, landlord or phone company which bureau it will check.
Sign in to that bureau and choose a temporary lift with an end date, or lift all three if the lender does not know.
Wait a few minutes, then let the lender run the check.
Let the temporary lift expire, or refreeze straight away once the application is approved.
Freezing a child's or a dependent adult's credit
Children rarely have a credit file, which is exactly why their identities are attractive to criminals. Parents and guardians can place a freeze for a minor, and a legal representative can do it for an incapacitated adult. Equifax takes requests for children under 16 through its minor freeze request form. TransUnion calls it a protected consumer freeze and asks for proof of the child's identity and your authority. Contact Experian separately. Expect to send copies of a birth certificate, identity documents and proof of guardianship.
Australia: request a ban on your credit report
Under the Privacy Act, a ban lasts 21 days from your request and is free. You can ask one credit reporting body to pass your request to the others. The bureau must tell you at least 5 business days before the ban expires, and there is no limit on how many times it can be extended. Experian lists its extension period as 12 months. While a ban is active, you cannot get new credit either.
Equifax: use the ban form at equifax.com.au/personal/ban-my-equifax-credit-report, or call 13 8332.
Experian: use the ban form at experian.com.au/consumer/request-a-ban. illion is now part of Experian, and its ban page redirects there.
Keep the reference number for each request.
Before the ban ends, ask for an extension if you have been, or are likely to be, a victim of fraud.
United Kingdom: no freeze, so use these instead
Check your statutory credit report, free by law, at all three bureaus: Experian, Equifax and TransUnion. Challenge any search or account you do not recognise.
Cifas Protective Registration costs 30 pounds for two years and is applied for online only. It flags your identity so member organisations run extra checks when your details are used.
Cifas says it does not cover card transactions and not every application is checked, so keep watching your reports.
Report identity fraud to Report Fraud, which replaced Action Fraud in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, at reportfraud.police.uk or 0300 123 2040. In Scotland, call Police Scotland on 101.
Canada: freezes in Quebec and Ontario, fraud alerts everywhere
Quebec residents have been able to place a free freeze with Equifax Canada and TransUnion Canada since 2023.
Ontario residents gained the same right on 1 July 2026. Equifax Canada calls its version Credit Lock and offers it through your myEquifax account, by phone or by mail.
TransUnion Canada freezes are managed through its online consumer portal or by calling 1-800-663-9980.
In other provinces, place a free fraud alert with both Equifax Canada and TransUnion Canada so lenders verify your identity first.
Each bureau is a separate request. Locking one file does not lock the other.
Frequently asked questions
Is a credit freeze free?
In the US, yes, at Equifax, Experian and TransUnion, for placing, lifting and removing it. Australian credit bans and extensions are free. Freezes are free in Quebec and Ontario. The UK has no freeze, and Cifas Protective Registration costs 30 pounds for two years.
Does a credit freeze hurt my credit score?
No. A freeze only controls who can read your file. It does not change your score, close accounts or stop you using existing cards and loans.
How long does it take to unfreeze my credit?
In the US, a lift requested online or by phone must happen within one hour by law. TransUnion says it is often almost immediate. Mail requests take up to three business days.
Can I still use my credit cards with a freeze in place?
Yes. Existing accounts are not affected. The freeze only blocks new credit applications that need a check of your file.
Do I still need a freeze if I pay for LifeLock or use Credit Karma?
Yes. Monitoring tells you after someone applies for credit. A freeze stops the application. They work together, and the freeze costs nothing.