How much does the credit check matter?

[mhoggard2]

Question is as the title says. Is it extremely important to have good credit or "decent credit". I recently lost my job and my savings were drained and well it took me 5 months to find decent steady employment so my credit took a huge hit.

 

[DankVectorz]

You’ll probably have to have a security interview and explain what happened. Just be honest with all your answers and if you have any collections get on some sort of payment plan NOW. They want to see you’re being responsible and taking steps to pay it back.

 

[ATCHopeful]

Credit is one of the biggest reasons people get denied a security clearance in the government, as there is worry one with poor finances/credit could become susceptible to blackmail from a foreign government/organization. This is a bigger deal in the IC than the FAA I would imagine though.

It's impossible for anyone here to say whether you will get a clearance or not with this issue. Just be completely upfront about it, show what you are doing to fix it, and the rest is then out of your hands. Good luck.

 

[AlmostEligible]

My secret clearance expired and I had to redo the whole thing a few months ago before I could get my firm offer letter. My credit isn't horrible, but it's not that great. I'm also on a payment program for owning back taxes. Thought I'd have to be interviewed but nope. Never heard anything and got my firm offer letter a week after I did it

 

[32andBelow]

It’s mainly just having a repayment plan and not defaulted with no plan.