Company category for personal loans: what CAT A, CAT B, CAT C and "not listed" mean

If a lender has told you your company "isn't listed", it almost certainly wasn't talking about the stock market. It meant your employer isn't on that lender's own list of companies it has graded. That grade is your company category for a personal loan: labels like CAT A, CAT B and CAT C that a lender gives employers, and that change the rate, the amount and the repayment period it offers you.

Nobody tells you your category, and two lenders can grade the same company differently. Here's what that means for you and what to do about it.

"Listed" means two different things

On the stock market, a listed company is one whose shares trade on the BSE or NSE. Some loan guides tell you to look your employer up there to see whether it's "listed" for a personal loan. That answers a different question.

A lender's employer list is its own internal record. It decides which companies go on it and what grade each one gets. A private company that has never traded a share can be on a lender's list, and a company that trades on the exchange can be missing from one. When a lender says your company is unlisted or "non-categorised", it means it has no grade for your employer, so it falls back on its terms for people whose employer it doesn't know. Some lenders have such terms. Some don't lend in that case at all.

What CAT A, CAT B and the rest mean

There's no common standard. Each lender names its own grades, and CAT A, CAT B and CAT C are common labels. What doesn't change is the direction. The higher the grade, the more confident the lender is that the company's employees will keep getting paid, and so keep up their repayments.

Lenders don't publish how they grade. Their own guides mention things like the company's size, how long it's been running, its finances and public profile, and how the lender's past borrowers from that company have repaid. That last one depends on each lender's own experience, which is one reason the same company can sit in different grades at different lenders.

What your company's category changes

Lenders set their own limits, and they set them by employer category and by salary. A higher category can mean a lower rate, a bigger loan on the same salary and longer to repay. A lower one, or no category at all, can mean the reverse. Some lenders don't lend at all to people whose employer they haven't listed.

Put together, this is why two people on the same salary with similar credit records can get very different offers. Change the category and the offer can change with it. If you want to see how a lender's limits turn into an actual amount, we've worked through the sums here.

How to check your company category for a personal loan

Mostly, you can't. Lenders don't publish the grades they give employers. Some lenders' sites let you check whether your company is on their list, but that tells you about one lender, and being on the list isn't the same as knowing your grade. If a list you find online doesn't say which lender it came from and when, don't rely on it.

What you can see is the effect: the rate and amount each lender would offer you. CrediVitt's eligibility check shows that, lender by lender, for the employer you enter.

Two things worth doing alongside that:

• Ask HR whether the company has an arrangement with any lender for its staff. If it does, start there.
• Don't apply just to find out. Each application lets the lender check your credit report, and several close together can hurt your score. Here's how that works.

Personal loans for unlisted company employees

An unlisted employer narrows your options. It doesn't end them.

Get the company name exactly right. Matching is done on the name. On CrediVitt, start typing your employer and pick it from the suggestions. If you type a variation that isn't in the list, such as a short form or a misspelling, you'll be assessed as unlisted even if one of the lenders does grade your company. If it isn't there, type the full name as it appears on your salary slip.

Look only at lenders that lend to unlisted employers. Applying to one that doesn't wastes an enquiry on your credit report. CrediVitt's eligibility results only include lenders that will consider you.

Clear a small loan or a card first. Every EMI you already pay comes out of the room a lender leaves for a new one. If its terms for unlisted employers are tighter, that room is smaller to begin with, and an existing EMI takes a bigger bite of it.

Bring in a co-applicant with an income. Their income is counted alongside yours, which helps when your own terms are tight. They'll be jointly responsible for the loan, so this is a real commitment for them, not a formality.

Try the bank your salary is paid into. It already sees your salary arrive every month, even if it doesn't know your employer.

Give it time if you've just joined. The application asks for your date of joining and your total experience. A very recent move may count against you whatever your employer, so if the loan can wait a few months, waiting may get you better terms.

If you're about to change jobs

Your category is about where you work when you apply. A move to a company a lender grades higher can improve the next loan you take. A move to a company it doesn't know can make it worse, even with a pay rise. A loan you already have runs on the terms in the agreement you signed.

If you need a loan and a job change is coming, it's usually simpler to borrow while you're settled in your current job and its grade is known, then move.

See what your employer means for your offer

Tell CrediVitt your employer and take-home salary and you'll find out what each lender is likely to offer you. It doesn't touch your credit score. Then use the EMI calculator to test a different amount or tenure before you apply.

Check your eligibility for a personal loan

CrediVitt is not a lender. Loans are provided by RBI-regulated banks and NBFCs, at their sole discretion. Each lender sets and changes its own criteria, including how it grades employers.