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Bankrate has partnerships with issuers including, but not limited to, American Express, Bank of America, Capital One, Chase, Citi and Discover. SHARE: shapecharge/Getty Images December 10, 2021 Checkmark Bankrate logo How is this page expert verified? At Bankrate, we take the accuracy of our content seriously. "Expert verified" means that our Financial Review Board thoroughly evaluated the article for accuracy and clarity. The Review Board comprises a panel of financial experts whose objective is to ensure that our content is always objective and balanced. Their reviews hold us accountable for publishing high-quality and trustworthy content. Nicole Dieker has been a full-time freelance writer since 2012—and a personal finance enthusiast since 2004, when she graduated from college and, looking for financial guidance, found a battered copy of Your Money or Your Life at the public library. In addition to writing for Bankrate, her work has appeared on CreditCards.com, Vox, Lifehacker, Popular Science, The Penny Hoarder, The Simple Dollar and NBC News. Dieker spent five years as writer and editor for The Billfold, a personal finance blog where people had honest conversations about money. Dieker also teaches writing, freelancing and publishing classes and works one-on-one with authors as a developmental editor and copyeditor. Liz Bingler is an Associate Editor for CreditCards.com and Bankrate, where she focuses on product news and reviews. As an editor, her goal is to produce content that will help people to make informed financial decisions. Bankrate logo The Bankrate promise
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It might be possible to cancel a credit card application—but you have to act fast. In many cases, it takes credit issuers just a few minutes to complete a on your account and decide whether to approve your application. By then, it will be too late to request that your application be canceled. As soon as you realize you need to cancel your credit card application, assuming it isn’t too late, call the credit issuer’s customer service line. You will need to talk to a representative and ask them to cancel your application. If the bank or credit card company has not yet made a decision on whether to accept or decline your application—perhaps because your —the customer service representative might be able to cancel your credit card application. However, it’s very likely your credit card application will be approved or denied before you have the opportunity to cancel it. Credit issuers make application decisions very quickly—so when you apply for a new credit card, it’s important to make sure you’re applying for a card you really want. Since every new credit application comes with a hard credit inquiry that can by a few points, it’s to your advantage to make as few credit application mistakes as possible. What to do if you can t cancel a credit card application
If you can’t cancel a credit card application, you have three options. 1 Use the new credit card
It might not have the or the you might have gotten from another credit card, but if you use your new credit card responsibly, it can still help you and improve your credit score. 2 Request a credit card swap
If your new credit card charges an annual fee, for example, you could to the no-annual-fee version of the same card. You might even be able to swap a credit card that offers travel rewards for a credit card that offers cash-back rewards, as long as both cards are offered by the same issuer. All you have to do is contact your credit card company’s customer service department and ask. 3 Cancel the card
If you don’t want your credit card and you don’t want to try to switch it for a different credit card, your third option is to cancel your new credit card. Canceling an unused credit account has its pros and cons, as we’ll discuss below. Should you cancel a new credit card
You can’t after being accepted, but you can always cancel your new credit card if you don’t want the new credit account. Canceling a new credit card might be the right move if you’re worried about going into debt you can’t pay off. In other cases, canceling your brand-new credit card might not be the wisest choice. Canceling your new line of credit will reduce the , which could have a negative effect on your credit score. Since 30 percent of your FICO credit score is based on your (defined as the ratio of your available credit to your current debts), adding a new credit card could lower your credit utilization ratio and improve your credit score. If you want to cancel a new credit card, there is a simple process you can follow to cancel your credit card account. Make sure any outstanding balances on the credit card are paid off in full or . Call the number on the back of your credit card and request to cancel the account. Follow up the phone call with a certified letter confirming your request to cancel. Check your credit reports with the (Experian, Equifax and TransUnion) to confirm that your credit account is being reported as closed. to prevent credit card fraud. However, you might want to consider keeping your new credit card—even if you’re not satisfied with the APR or the rewards structure. If you use your credit card responsibly and pay off your statement balances , you won’t have to pay interest on your purchases. If you wish you had taken out a credit card with different rewards or better perks, you can still apply for that card in the future. It’s best to to increase your chance of being accepted. The bottom line
So, can you actually cancel a credit card application? Maybe—but only if you’re able to contact customer service before the bank or credit card company makes its approval decision. In many cases, credit card applications are approved or declined within minutes, making it difficult to cancel a credit card application. If you apply for a credit card, get approved and decide you no longer want the card, you can request to swap the card for another card offered by the same issuer. You can also cancel the new credit card, but that could have negative effects on your credit score. Keeping the credit card and using it responsibly might be your best option. SHARE: Nicole Dieker has been a full-time freelance writer since 2012—and a personal finance enthusiast since 2004, when she graduated from college and, looking for financial guidance, found a battered copy of Your Money or Your Life at the public library. In addition to writing for Bankrate, her work has appeared on CreditCards.com, Vox, Lifehacker, Popular Science, The Penny Hoarder, The Simple Dollar and NBC News. Dieker spent five years as writer and editor for The Billfold, a personal finance blog where people had honest conversations about money. Dieker also teaches writing, freelancing and publishing classes and works one-on-one with authors as a developmental editor and copyeditor. Liz Bingler is an Associate Editor for CreditCards.com and Bankrate, where she focuses on product news and reviews. As an editor, her goal is to produce content that will help people to make informed financial decisions. Related Articles