Is It Possible to Switch to PAY MONTHLY before 3 years of UK residency

[seymseym]

I am on Pay As You Go atm, and I have been residing in the UK for about 2.5 years. 

I want to switch to the Pay Monthly subscription, but I don't want to start an un unnecessary credit check if they just reject anyone below 3 years residency.

In Pay Monthly switch page, it doesn't ask about this. After I enter my first address, it just ask about the previous address, but it doesn't ask for how long I resided in that previous address, so I can proceed with the application. 

For example,

I lived in my current address for 1 year,

and in the previous one for 1.5 years. (But it doesn't ask the duration of this previous address, and allows me to proceed anyway.)

But I read somewhere about this 3y rule so I want to be sure before proceeding any further. 

[Northerner]

Hi @seymseym 

They don't need to ask as they check the credit register. Please read below:

https://ee.co.uk/help/billing-payments/financial-support/credit-files-explained

Thanks 

[seymseym]

Sorry, I haven't understood this answer, and that help page is not giving any info about this issue either.

Do you mean, they don't need to ask but they do check the 3 years residency?

My main question is, is it possible to switch before 3 years of residency?

[Matt_124]

I have never seen evidence of such a 3 year residence rule with EE or any other main network, apart from it being constantly perpetuated online in reference to all providers, and have seen people who have been in the UK for shorter periods than this pass a credit check for a Pay Monthly contract. I believe this may have stemmed from a certain large third party mobile store in previous years expressly stating you needed to live in the UK for 3 year to buy from them.

At the end of the day it is all based on the strength of the credit file, with those maintaining residence and a stable address history over longer periods typically being looked at more favourably by the criteria.

Typically 3 years is a good amount of time to build up your credit file, with anything less than this meaning that there may not be enough information to go off in order to make a positive assessment and possibly resulting in a failed check.

Less than 3 years does not automatically trigger a fail.