Every time you apply for a credit card, personal loan, car finance, phone plan or Buy Now Pay Later account, the lender typically checks your credit file. That check is recorded as a credit enquiry — and it can influence how future lenders see you. Understanding what a credit enquiry is, how long it stays on your file, and when one might be worth challenging can help you make sense of your credit report and take informed next steps.
Australian Specialist
Credit Clean Australia
Find What Is Hurting Your Credit Score
Understand what's affecting your credit score and what options you may have to fix it by booking a credit file assessment below.
Your Assessment Includes:
- Both Equifax & Experian credit files audited
- Potentially incorrect or disputable listings identified
- Understand what’s affecting your credit score
- Clear options and next steps
ASSESSMENT
EXPERIAN
GUIDANCE
Book Your Credit File Assessment
Book Your Credit File Assessment
1. Select a Date & Time
Checking live Calendly availability…
Enter Your Details
Calendly could not load here. Open the selected time in a new tab to continue.
Open selected time in a new tabWhat You Get in Your Assessment
Next Steps
Next Steps After Your Assessment
Investigation
We investigate the circumstances behind each listing on your credit file, identifying potential breaches of the Privacy Act or non-compliance with the Credit Reporting Code. This is completed with you over the phone through 40+ simple yes, no, or unsure questions, along with your personal circumstances at the time.
Approved or Denied
If our investigation identifies multiple potential breaches, you may be approved for our credit restoration services. If not, your application will be declined, and your consultant will explain why, providing complete clarity.
Note: Approval does not guarantee the removal of any listing.
Disputes & Result
Formal removal requests are lodged with Equifax, Experian, and relevant credit providers, with escalation to AFCA, the OAIC, courts, or other bodies where required.
If a breach is confirmed, listings may be removed, in most cases boosting your credit score and helping future finance applications.
What is a credit enquiry?
A credit enquiry (sometimes called a credit check or credit application) is a record created on your credit file each time a business you’ve applied to for credit accesses your file to assess your application. This applies to formal credit accounts such as home loans, car loans, credit cards and some telco or utility contracts with a credit component.
Each of Australia’s three credit reporting bodies — Equifax, Experian and illion — holds its own version of your credit file, and enquiries are typically recorded with whichever bureau(s) the lender uses. This is one reason a full credit health check reviews all three bureaus rather than just one; an enquiry pattern that looks fine on one file can look different on another.
Hard enquiries vs soft checks
Not every look at your credit file is treated the same way.
- Hard enquiries happen when you formally apply for credit and a lender pulls your file to assess the application. These are visible to other lenders and can influence your credit score.
- Soft checks happen when you check your own credit score, or when an existing lender reviews your file for account management purposes. These generally don’t affect your score and aren’t visible to other lenders in the same way.
Some pre-qualification tools also use soft checks, which is why comparing rates through a “check your eligibility” style tool doesn’t usually leave a mark — but the actual application that follows generally does.
How long do credit enquiries stay on your file?
In Australia, credit enquiries stay on your credit file for five years from the date they’re recorded, regardless of whether the application was approved, declined, or you decided not to proceed. This is separate to how long other listings remain on file. If you’re looking into how those work, our guide on how long defaults stay on your credit file covers that in more detail.
Because enquiries sit on your file for five years, a cluster of applications from several years ago can still be visible to a lender assessing you today, even though the individual applications are long since resolved.
How too many enquiries can affect your score
A single enquiry from a genuine, well-considered application usually has a modest impact on your score. The bigger risk is volume: making several credit applications within a short period can lower your score and signal to lenders that you may be under financial pressure or “credit seeking” — even if each individual application was reasonable on its own.
This matters because lenders use enquiry activity as one input, among several, when assessing risk. A thin file with one or two enquiries a year reads very differently to a file with a dozen enquiries in a few months. If you’re planning a major application, such as a home loan, it’s generally worth being selective about other credit applications in the lead-up.
Think a listing on your file could be challenged?
Book a $39.95 credit file assessment — we audit both your Equifax and Experian files and tell you straight what can and can’t be disputed. If we can’t help, we tell you that too.
When a credit enquiry may be challenged
Enquiries you genuinely applied for and were properly assessed for generally cannot be removed just because you’d prefer they weren’t there, or because the application wasn’t approved. That’s a normal part of how credit reporting works.
However, there are circumstances where an enquiry may be able to be challenged, including where it is:
- Unauthorised — you did not apply for the credit and did not consent to the check.
- Fraudulent — the application was made by someone else using your identity.
- Duplicated — the same application has been recorded more than once.
- Recorded in error — for example, listed against the wrong person, wrong date, or wrong details.
In these situations, an enquiry that is unauthorised, fraudulent or listed in error may be able to be challenged and removed, generally by raising a dispute with the credit provider and the relevant credit reporting body. Because each case depends on its own facts and documentation, it’s worth having your file properly reviewed before deciding whether a dispute is appropriate. You can read more about how this process works on our credit enquiry removal page.
Where to start
The first step is understanding exactly what’s on your file and why. Every engagement with Credit Clean Australia starts with a $39.95 credit file assessment, reviewing your file across all three bureaus — Equifax, Experian and illion — so you can see your enquiry history, and any other listings, in one place before deciding what, if anything, is worth challenging. For more on how credit reporting works more broadly, our guides hub has further reading on defaults, repayment history and related topics.
Frequently asked questions
Does checking my own credit score count as an enquiry?
Generally no. Checking your own credit file or score is treated as a soft check and typically doesn’t affect your score or appear as a hard enquiry to other lenders.
Can I get a legitimate enquiry removed if it wasn’t approved?
Generally not just because the application was declined or you changed your mind. Enquiries linked to genuine applications you authorised are a standard part of your credit history. Removal is generally only considered where an enquiry is unauthorised, fraudulent, duplicated or recorded in error.
How many enquiries is “too many”?
There’s no fixed number, and the impact depends on your overall file, the type of credit involved and the time period. As a general principle, several enquiries in a short window can look riskier to lenders than the same number spread over a longer period.
What should I do if I don’t recognise an enquiry on my file?
Start by getting a full copy of your credit file to see the details recorded against the enquiry, such as the date and the credit provider. If you don’t recognise it or didn’t authorise it, it may be worth raising a dispute — a credit file assessment is a practical first step to identify exactly what you’re dealing with.
If you’re unsure what your enquiry history means for your credit file, book your $39.95 credit file assessment and get a clear, three-bureau view of where you stand. This article is general information only and is not legal or financial advice.
Start with the facts about your own file
A $39.95 credit file assessment shows you every default, judgement and enquiry on your Equifax and Experian files — and which ones may be open to challenge.
Book My Credit File Assessment →
✓ Secure ✓ Confidential ✓ Doesn’t affect your score ✓ 1300 739 860