If your credit scores are a little higher all of a sudden and you can’t figure out why, there’s an explanation.

Starting April 16, all three credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion) will remove all tax liens from consumer credit reports. If you’re facing a tax lien, that information could be dragging your credit score down by as much as 30 points on the FICO^® scale of 300 to 850, according to LexisNexis. With all tax liens stricken from the credit record, some consumers may see a jump in their scores.

The change is a result of a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Study that reported issues with the way information was sent to credit bureaus. Last July, all three bureaus implemented changes to how they would include items such as civil judgments and tax liens on consumer credit reports.

The new rules required that public records data, such liens, and civil judgments, had to contain a consumer’s name, address, Social Security number, and/or date of birth. The information also had to be refreshed every 90 days. If public records data did not meet this criteria, they had to be excluded from credit reports.

Information courtesy of Experian