FairShot
Free · United States & United Kingdom

Your credit score is not the price of getting help.

43 grants, benefits and loans across the US and UK that you can claim without a good credit score — each with the exact documents you need, the step-by-step process, and a route for filing even when you have no paperwork at all.

Find what I can claim Browse all programmes

What you will never be asked for here

  • No credit scoreNone of these programmes use it as an eligibility test.
  • No hard searchApplying will not leave a mark on your credit file.
  • No complete paperworkMost accept alternatives, and most let you file first.
  • No fee to applyEvery official route listed here is free.
43
Programmes tracked
43
With zero credit check
12
Step-by-step guides
23 US / 20 UK
Across two countries
Where
Kind
What for
Quick wins
43 of 43 programmes match
How this works

Three steps between you and a filed application.

Nothing here asks for a credit score, and nothing here costs anything. The hard part is paperwork — so that is what the site is built around.

Find what fits

Answer eight questions about where you live, what you need and what you have to hand. You get a ranked list, not a lecture.

Assemble the documents

Every programme lists exactly what to gather, and what to substitute when you do not have it. Build the pack once and reuse it.

File and follow up

Step-by-step instructions, official links only, and what to do if the first answer comes back as a no.

Why credit is not involved

Most help is not lending. It never was.

Grants and benefits are payments you keep. They are assessed on your circumstances — income, age, disability, caring, where you live — and your credit history simply does not appear anywhere in the rules.

Where you do need to borrow, there are options built for exactly this situation: capped interest, interest-free, or no credit score requirement at all. What matters is choosing one of those rather than a lender that prices your situation into triple-digit interest.

Benefits vs grants vs loans Borrowing safely
Never
checked
A typical application
  • Proof of who you are — passport, licence, or a combination of other papers
  • Proof of where you live — lease, bill, or a letter from whoever you stay with
  • Proof of income — payslips, employer letter, or a benefits award letter
  • Your National Insurance or Social Security number
  • Bank statements for the last three to six months
What is not on that list A credit report. A credit score. A rating from a bureau. None of these programmes request one, and none of them will run a hard search against your file.
The hard case

“I do not have any of my documents.”

You can still file today. Almost nothing requires the original paper before you apply, and your start date is usually fixed by the day you file rather than the day your paperwork arrives.

  • No photo ID — a bank card plus an official letter, or a GP, shelter or school letter
  • No payslips — a signed letter from your employer, or your benefit award letter
  • No tenancy — a letter from whoever you live with, with their address and a contact number
  • No fixed address — a shelter, hostel, outreach worker or GP can confirm where you are
Read the full guide
Why people get refused

Almost never because they do not qualify.

Applications stall on missing paperwork, missed appointments and vague answers. All three are fixable, and none of them is about your credit.

Build the master document pack Twelve things that get approvals How to challenge a refusal
Filing guides

Read five minutes. Save yourself five weeks.

All guides