How to Freeze Your Credit for Free Under Federal Law

To freeze your credit for free, contact each of the three nationwide credit bureaus — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion — and ask them to place a security freeze on your file. The Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act, signed in 2018, eliminated all fees for placing, lifting, and removing a freeze under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.¹ A freeze locks your credit file so most third parties can’t pull it, which means someone who has your Social Security number still can’t open a credit card or take out a loan in your name. It stays in place indefinitely until you decide to lift it.²

Contact Each Bureau Separately

Freezing your file at one bureau does nothing at the other two, and a thief only needs one unfrozen report to open an account.³ Each bureau accepts freeze requests online, by phone, or by mail.

Equifax: equifax.com/personal/credit-report-services/credit-freeze, or 800-685-1111.
Experian: experian.com/freeze, or 888-397-3742.
TransUnion: transunion.com/credit-freeze, or 800-916-8800.

Each bureau will ask you to verify your identity before placing the freeze. Have your full name, date of birth, Social Security number, and current and previous addresses ready. Once the freeze is in place, the bureau will give you a PIN, password, or account login. Keep that credential somewhere safe. You’ll need it whenever you want to temporarily lift or permanently remove the freeze later.

How Fast the Freeze Takes Effect

The law sets strict deadlines. Online and phone requests must be processed within one business day. Mail requests get a three-business-day window after the bureau receives your letter.⁴

Lifting is faster. Online or phone requests to lift a freeze must be processed within one hour. Mail requests get the same three-business-day window.⁵ In practice, online lifts often go through in minutes.

What a Freeze Blocks and What It Doesn’t

A freeze does not affect your credit score in any way.⁵ Your existing accounts keep reporting normally, your score keeps updating, and your current creditors can still review your file. The freeze stops new inquiries from companies you don’t already have a relationship with.

While a freeze is active, a limited set of people and entities can still access your report: your existing creditors and collection agencies working on their behalf, certain government agencies such as child support enforcement, any credit monitoring service you’ve signed up for, and you.

You’ll need to lift the freeze temporarily before applying for a mortgage, auto loan, new credit card, apartment lease, or insurance policy. Some employers also run credit checks for positions involving money or sensitive financial data, so you may need to lift the freeze during a job application if a credit-based background check is requested.² A freeze is not all-or-nothing. You thaw it for a specific purpose and it refreezes on its own.

Lifting or Removing the Freeze Later

When a creditor or other company needs access to your report, you have two options: a temporary lift for a specific window, or permanent removal.

Most people use a temporary lift. You can either specify exact dates the file should be unfrozen or name the specific creditor that needs access. Once the dates expire or the named creditor pulls the report, the freeze snaps back into place automatically. Submit the request through the same bureau portal, phone number, or mailing address you used to place the freeze.⁵

Permanent removal lifts the freeze for good, which makes sense if you’re actively shopping for credit or refinancing and need your file open for a while. You can always place a new freeze later at no cost. The process is the same as a temporary lift: use your PIN or account credentials and submit online, by phone, or by mail.

If You Lose Your PIN or Password

All three bureaus have moved toward account-based systems where you log in with a username and password rather than entering a standalone PIN. If you’ve lost your original credential, each bureau offers recovery options.

Equifax: log into your myEquifax account online, or call 888-298-0045. A representative will verify your identity through security questions or a one-time code sent to your phone.
Experian: use the Experian Freeze Center online, or call 888-397-3742, and verify your identity to regain access.
TransUnion: log into the TransUnion Service Center or use the myTransUnion app. You can also call 800-916-8800 and verify with a representative.

If digital recovery fails, each bureau also accepts mail requests. Include a copy of a government-issued ID and proof of address such as a utility bill. It’s slower but works as a fallback.

Freezing a Child’s Credit

The 2018 law extended free freeze protections to children under 16 and other protected consumers, including people with legal guardians.¹ A child’s Social Security number can be misused for years before anyone notices, since the child isn’t applying for credit or checking their report.

Freezing a minor’s credit is more involved than freezing your own. You generally can’t do it online or by phone. Each bureau requires a written request by mail, along with documents proving both your identity and your relationship to the child. Expect to provide a copy of the child’s birth certificate, the child’s Social Security card, your government-issued ID, and proof of your address. Legal guardians who aren’t parents also need a court order or power of attorney establishing their authority.

If the child doesn’t already have a credit file, which is the case for most children, the bureau will create one solely to freeze it. That frozen file then blocks anyone from opening accounts using the child’s information.

Freeze vs. Credit Lock

Every major bureau also sells a “credit lock” product, sometimes bundled with identity monitoring that can cost $25 or more per month. The pitch is convenience: locks toggle on and off through a mobile app. The underlying effect on your file is similar, but the legal standing is not.

A freeze is your right under federal law. The bureaus are required to offer it, required to process it within specific timeframes, and required to charge nothing. A credit lock is a commercial product governed by whatever terms of service the bureau writes. If a lock fails and an inquiry gets through, your remedies depend on the contract, not federal statute.⁵ The CFPB has said credit locks are no more effective than security freezes, which are free and which you have a right to by law.

Freeze vs. Fraud Alert

A fraud alert is a different tool. Instead of blocking access to your credit file, it flags the file so creditors are supposed to take extra steps to verify your identity before opening a new account.² Creditors can still see your report, and the extra-steps requirement depends on the creditor actually following through.

A few practical differences matter:

You only need to contact one bureau to place a fraud alert. That bureau is required to notify the other two, so the alert appears on all three files automatically. A freeze requires separate requests to each bureau.⁶
A standard fraud alert expires after one year and has to be renewed. A freeze lasts until you remove it.²
A freeze blocks access entirely. A fraud alert only asks creditors to verify identity.

If you’ve already been a victim of identity theft and have filed an identity theft report, you can place an extended fraud alert that lasts seven years.⁶ For most people who haven’t yet experienced identity theft but want to prevent it, a freeze is the stronger choice. You can also use both at the same time.

1
Federal Trade Commission. Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act
2
Federal Trade Commission. Credit Freezes and Fraud Alerts
3
USAGov. How to Place or Lift a Security Freeze on Your Credit Report
4
Federal Trade Commission. Starting Today, New Federal Law Allows Consumers to Place Free Credit Freezes And Yearlong Fraud Alerts
5
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. What Is a Credit Freeze or Security Freeze on My Credit Report
6
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 US Code 1681c-1 – Identity Theft Prevention; Fraud Alerts and Active Duty Alerts