It forks: submit her documented foreign income if her work may legally continue in the U.S.; otherwise, use a professional guarantor only if the property accepts that service.
“I am trying to rent an apartment with my fiancée who is immigrating to the US. She has a remote job but no SSN or US credit history yet. Will landlords consider her foreign income, or can we use a professional guarantor to qualify?”
Summary
No SSN or U.S. credit file does not end your options: published criteria show both documented-income and guarantor pathways, including a professional-guarantor route for some non-U.S. applicants. The key is to pre-clear the exact route with the property before paying.
You have three realistic qualification routes, but the property must approve the route before you pay an application or guaranty charge.
Ask the property to count her salary and submit an employer letter confirming salary, currency, remote-work permission and continuation after the move, plus recent pay stubs, a tax return, bank statements, and passport. Published rental guidance lists these as common income documents, but each property sets its own financial and credit criteria and must apply them consistently (Fair Housing NYC; Columbia Renter’s Education; The Greenpoint criteria).
A can replace a personal co-signer when the provider approves you and the building accepts its guarantee. This is not universal: Insurent says its guarantee applies only in certified or accepting buildings, while TheGuarantors says not every building participates; at least one provider publishes a non-U.S.-applicant route that does not require U.S. credit history (Insurent renter criteria; TheGuarantors FAQ).
If she has credit history in her home country, ask whether the property can retrieve an international report rather than treating her as having no history. Nova Credit’s Entrata integration gives participating Entrata property managers access to international credit data, but this is a private, platform-dependent option—not a renter’s legal right (Nova Credit/Entrata announcement, 2025-04-14).
Treat her salary as continuing post-entry income only if the employer confirms the job will continue from the United States and her immigration category authorizes that work.
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Watch out for
Next steps
These steps let you establish whether her income can be used and secure a guarantor backup before spending money.
Before paying an application fee
Get the property’s criteria in writing
Send the landlord or leasing office four questions: Will you count salary paid by a foreign employer after relocation? Which documents and currency-conversion method will you accept? Can you screen an applicant with a passport but no SSN? Which professional-guarantor companies do you accept, and must the building already be enrolled? Also ask whether both of you must independently meet credit standards or whether income is combined.
Requirements
Before presenting the salary as continuing income
Confirm that the remote job can legally continue
If she enters as a lawful permanent resident, 8 CFR 274a.12(a)(1) authorizes employment; an endorsed MRIV in her passport proves permanent-resident status for one year. If she enters as a K-1, the authorization described in 8 CFR 274a.12(a)(6) lasts only for the K-1 admission period and is evidenced by an EAD; she must marry the petitioning U.S. citizen within 90 days. Because 8 CFR 274a.1(h) treats services performed in the United States as employment, do not assume a foreign employer removes the authorization requirement.
Requirements
Before submitting the rental application
Assemble the income package
Combine the documents into one clearly labeled file. Add a short cover page converting the salary to U.S. dollars using the exchange-rate date and method requested by the property; do not choose a conversion method until the property states what it accepts.
Requirements
Before paying a guaranty premium
Choose the approved qualification route
Apply directly if the property confirms that her documented income and your combined profile satisfy its criteria. If not, use only a professional guarantor the property accepts: https://www.insurent.com/renters/ states that its guarantee is limited to certified or accepting buildings, and https://www.theguarantors.com/faq-for-renters states that not every building participates. Obtain the provider’s written quote and repayment terms before paying; TheGuarantors states an approved premium is upfront and non-refundable.
Requirements
Within 60 days if a report affected the decision
Act on any screening notice
If a report contributes to denial, increased rent or deposit, or a co-signer requirement, request the adverse-action notice immediately. Use the listed reporting company to obtain the free report within 60 days and dispute inaccurate or incomplete information, as the FTC guidance permits.
Requirements
Legal sources
This answer draws on the U.S. Code, eCFR, USCIS, FTC, New York City agencies, and the published criteria of rental and guaranty providers.
Fair Housing NYC — Tenant Selection
In New York City, housing providers may set financial qualifications, but must apply them equally without protected-class discrimination.
Tenant Selection
Housing providers have a right to set financial and credit qualifications, a process that provides some assurance that the applicant will be a good tenant. Qualifications and inquiries must be applied equally to all applicants and must not be influenced by race, national origin, or other protected factors. Whatever qualifying screening criteria a landlord uses must apply equally to all applicants.
42 USC 3604(a)
Federal law bars covered landlords from denying housing because of national origin and other listed protected characteristics.
§ 3604(a)
As made applicable by section 3603 of this title and except as exempted by sections 3603(b) and 3607 of this title , it shall be unlawful- (a) To refuse to sell or rent after the making of a bona fide offer, or to refuse to negotiate for the sale or rental of, or otherwise make unavailable or deny, a dwelling to any person because of race, color, religion, sex, familial status, or national origin.
NYC Human Rights Law housing guidance
New York City expressly protects renters from housing discrimination based on immigration or citizenship status.
page 1
In New York City, you cannot be discriminated against because of your actual or perceived immigration or citizenship status or your national origin in housing. You have rights regardless of your immigration or citizenship status.
Columbia University Renter’s Education
This university renter guide identifies the documents commonly used to prove rental income and identity.
You may need the following documentation: Letter of employment and salary verification Pay stubs Tax returns Bank statements Name, address, phone number of previous landlords Names, addresses and phone numbers of personal and business references Photo identification (driver's license, passport)
The Greenpoint Rental Criteria
One property’s published criteria illustrate that documented income and a guarantor can be alternative qualification routes.
INCOME; QUALIFYING STANDARDS
The applicants must collectively provide verifiable gross annual income equal to at least 40 times the monthly rent. Acceptable income verification required: signed letter of employment on company letterhead, 2 most recent pay stubs, most recent tax return and most recent bank statement. Applicants with insufficient credit or rental history of less than 2 years have the option to provide a qualified guarantor.
Insurent Lease Guaranty Program
This provider accepts some non-U.S. applicants without U.S. credit, but only for buildings that accept its guarantee.
The Insurent® Lease Guaranty will only apply to apartments located in Insurent certified buildings or buildings that will accept the Insurent® Lease Guaranty. If non-US, a minimum annual income of 27.5x the monthly rent OR cash liquid assets/publicly held securities of a minimum of 50x the monthly rent, and no US credit history required.
TheGuarantors Renter FAQ
A professional guarantee is property-dependent and may require an upfront non-refundable payment.
Does every building accept TheGuarantors? No, not every building—but many do, and we're adding more every day. If you apply for a building that's not currently in our database, we'll reach out to your landlord and aim to get them onboarded quickly. If approved, your policy is paid for as an upfront, non-refundable premium.
TheGuarantors Lease Guarantee
The guarantee pays the landlord but does not forgive the renter’s underlying obligation.
If you fail to pay your monthly rent, the policy will reimburse the landlord, and you will still be liable to TheGuarantors for those payments.
Fair Credit Reporting Act landlord guidance
A landlord must give notice when a consumer report contributes to a denial or less favorable rental terms.
Adverse Actions
If you reject an applicant, increase the rent or deposit, require a co-signer, or take any other adverse action based partly or completely on information in a consumer report, you must give the applicant or tenant a notice of that fact in writing, electronically, or orally. An adverse action notice tells people about their rights to see information being reported about them and to dispute inaccurate information. The notice must include: the name, address, and phone number of the CRA that supplied the report; a statement that the CRA that supplied the report did not make the decision to take the unfavorable action and can't give specific reasons for it; and a notice of the person’s right to dispute the accuracy or completeness of any information the CRA furnished, and to get a free report from the CRA if the person asks for it within 60 days.
8 CFR 274a.1(h)
Work performed while physically in the United States is employment under the immigration employment rules.
(h)
The term employment means any service or labor performed by an employee for an employer within the United States, including service or labor performed on a vessel or aircraft that has arrived in the United States and has been inspected, or otherwise included within the provisions of the Anti-Reflagging Act codified at 46 U.S.C. 8704, but not including duties performed by nonimmigrant crewmen defined in sections 101 (a)(10) and (a)(15)(D) of the Act.
8 CFR 274a.12(a)(1), (a)(6)
Permanent residents are work-authorized, while K-1 employment authorization is limited to the K-1 admission period and evidenced by an EAD.
(a)(1), (a)(6)
( 1 ) An alien who is a lawful permanent resident (with or without conditions pursuant to section 216 of the Act), as evidenced by Form I-551 issued by the Service. ( 6 ) An alien admitted to the United States as a nonimmigrant fiancé or fiancée pursuant to section 101(a)(15)(K)(i) of the Act, or an alien admitted as a child of such alien, for the period of admission in that status, as evidenced by an employment authorization document issued by the Service;
USCIS I-9 Central — Temporary I-551 and MRIV
An endorsed immigrant visa can temporarily prove a new permanent resident’s status before the physical green card arrives.
The employee’s foreign passport with the MRIV is evidence the employee has permanent residence status for 1 year from the date of admission.
USCIS — Green Card for Fiancé(e) of U.S. Citizen
A K-1 entrant must marry the petitioning U.S. citizen within 90 days after admission.
Within 90 days after being admitted as a K-1 nonimmigrant, the alien must enter into a bona fide marriage with the U.S. citizen who filed the Form I-129F, Petition for Alien Fiancé (e), on his or her behalf.
Nova Credit–Entrata announcement
Some participating properties can evaluate an applicant’s home-country credit history instead of relying only on a U.S. file.
This collaboration will provide property managers using the Entrata platform with seamless access to international credit data for rental applicants.
These are the official rules and published private criteria available on the cited dates; laws, property standards, and provider terms can change.
This is general information about official processes, not legal advice, and SettleKit is not a law firm.
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