CreditCards.com has compiled this list of credit card debt collection statutes of limitations by state by studying each state’s laws and court decisions individually. We have made references to the law where it is available and have made additional notes below.
Credit card debt statute of limitations, by state
1 On April 12, 2011, the Governor signed House Bill 2412 into law. This bill amends section 12-548 of the state code and sets a six-year statute of limitations for credit card debt.
2Clicking this link will take you to a third party website. Click “I agree” to the terms. Click the Colorado Revised Laws link in the left column. On the page that appears, enter 13-80-103.5 in the search bar and press Enter. Scroll down and click on the link 13-80-103.5 to go to the section.
3Go to the Bylaws section, then View Bylaws, scroll to Ch. 926, sec. 52-576.
5 According to the Georgia Department of Law, the appellate courts found that a six-year contract period applies to credit card debt. See Phoenix Recovery Group Inc. v. Mehta, 2008
6 The Illinois Court of Appeals ruled on May 20, 2009 that a credit card agreement cannot be considered a 10-year written agreement.
7 Court decisions have confirmed that card contracts qualify as written contracts with a 10-year limitation period. However, in 2011, a state appeals court ruled that the plaintiff must provide the debtor’s actual agreement, not the general agreement. The court ruled that if the collector cannot produce the original credit card agreement, a five-year time limit for unwritten agreements applies. See Gemini v. New, 2011.
10 Utah courts generally apply the law of the state of the card issuer.
11 See section 893.43.
12Conflicting state laws and the absence of a final court ruling make it difficult to determine whether Kentucky’s five-year or 15-year statute applies to credit card debt.
13 A three-year term applies to unwritten contracts; the courts may apply a five-year time limit for written contracts if the creditor submits a signed account agreement and documentation of the terms of repayment.
14 A ten-year term for written contracts may apply if the creditor has been able to provide sufficient documentation to support the amount owed. In practice, however, creditors only have a general description of the account, such as terms, which does not meet the standard of a written promissory note.
Notes
- The chart shows time limits for revolving credit accounts such as credit card agreements. Most state laws and codes do not specifically mention “credit cards” or “credit card agreements”. Instead, laws generally use generic terms such as “written contracts” or “open accounts”. State laws are subject to change.
- Judges deciding specific cases may interpret state laws in different ways; these judgments may be overturned. Judges can also decide which state law should apply – where the consumer lives or where the card issuer is located.
- While the federal Truth in Lending Act defines credit cards as “perpetual credit plans,” this is irrelevant to the discussion of state statute of limitations. State laws deal with contracts and agreements and how long they can apply.
- The last full chart update was in March 2022. Email [email protected] for updates or corrections.
What is the statute of limitations and how does it work?
Creditors and collectors have a limited time window during which to sue debtors for non-payment of credit card bills. This limit is set by state statute of limitations. These laws exist to protect people from suing after evidence disappears. Anyone with unpaid credit card debt should know their state’s law.
According to the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC), “in most states, the statute of limitations for debts is between three and 10 years; in some states this period is longer.” Debts that linger longer than allowed by law are often referred to as “expired debts.”
Expired debt
“If a debt collector is suing you to collect an expired debt, you can dismiss the claim by telling the court or judge that the debt has indeed expired,” the FTC said in a statement.
However, collectors and consumer advocates warn that the statute of limitations (SOL) does not prevent collectors from trying to collect debts. They simply cannot successfully sue for debt collection if the debtor comes to court to assert their rights.
“Debt does not disappear just because it exceeds a time threshold,” said Mark Schiffman, vice president of public relations for ACA International, the largest trade group in the debt collection industry.
Mary Spector, an associate professor of law at Southern Methodist University’s Deadman School of Law in Dallas, says many consumers ignore court notices about old debts and end up losing cases that might otherwise be thrown out of court because the statute of limitations has expired. .
“In Texas, the defendant usually has to prove that the debt has expired in accordance with the statute of limitations,” Spector says. Her advice: don’t ignore the court papers and hire a consumer lawyer to represent you.
Credit card debt: which state law applies?
Nearly all leading credit card issuers name the state whose laws should apply to their credit card agreements. Here’s what they say:
| Issuer | State | Multi-year credit card debt recoverable in court |
|---|---|---|
| american express | Utah | 6 |
| chase | Delaware | 3 |
| Bank of America | North Carolina | 3 |
| City | South Dakota | 6 |
| Capital One | Virginia* | 3** |
| discover | Delaware | 3 |
| US bank | *** | *** |
| Wells Fargo Co. | South Dakota | 6 |
| USA | Nevada | 4 |
| Barclays | Delaware | 3 |
*Capital One claims that Virginia law applies unless the cardholder’s state has a longer term.
**Five years if the lender submits a signed account agreement and documentation of the interest rate and repayment terms.
*** The US Bank Terms and Conditions Agreement specifies which state law should apply to arbitration, but not to other matters such as outstanding debt.
Editor’s Note: The information in this table is current as of March 9, 2022.
Court decisions may take precedence
To construct the chart above, CreditCards.com studied laws and court decisions, and consulted with legal experts to cover all 50 states and the District of Columbia. In most states, the statute of limitations is clear. However, in some of them we could not find a definitive answer due to ambiguities in state law or conflicts between law and court decisions.
Uncertainty about when credit card debt expires arises because state laws governing contracts are interpreted by courts to suit particular circumstances, and those interpretations may change over time.
This was the case in Georgia in January 2008, when the Georgia Court of Appeals ruled (in Hill v. American Express) that the statute of limitations for unpaid credit card debt is six years. The Georgia Code sets a four-year limit on open accounts, but the appeals court applied the law on written contracts to pay off the debt in this case. Another 2008 Court of Appeals decision (in Phoenix Recovery Group, Inc. v. Mehta) upheld Hill’s decision and settled the law in the state, according to the Georgia Law Department.
In other states, it remains difficult to predict how the courts will react when faced with a credit card delinquency issue. Kentucky sets a five-year term for oral contracts and 15 years for written contracts. The period that will apply to card debt is unclear; some courts in other states have ruled that credit card agreements, because they can be unilaterally modified by the card issuer, are not considered written agreements. Legal experts said they were unaware of the Kentucky precedent-setting rulings on the matter, so courts have to weigh the facts and documents on a case-by-case basis.
the federal law
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, a federal law that governs how and when debt collectors can contact consumers and collect unpaid bills, determines where debt can be sued. Under section 811 of the law, collectors can file a claim in a jurisdiction where the “consumer signed the contract” or where the consumer lives.
Some credit card agreements may state that laws governing the state of the issuer, not the consumer, govern the terms and conditions of the agreement. This means that if the credit card holder resides in Maine and the issuer is located in Delaware, Delaware’s statute of limitations may apply.
Do not confuse the statute of limitations with the length of time a debt can remain on a credit report. Bankruptcy, for example, will remain on the credit report for 10 years regardless of the statute of limitations. If the creditor successfully wins the judgment to pay off the debt, this information can remain on the credit report for up to seven years.
When does the clock start ticking? This may vary by state, but typically the statute of limitations starts when the credit card bill becomes past due – the last payment date. However, in some states, the clock starts ticking as early as six months after the last payment. To determine the deadline for filing a claim for debt, add the number of years of limitation to the beginning of the term.
Re-aging debt
Consumers should be aware of a practice called repaying old debts. The statute of limitations can restart if a consumer makes a payment—even a small amount—on a debt that has exceeded or is nearing the end of the statute of limitations. Recognizing old debt can also lengthen the time it takes to process potential debt collection claims. Consumer advocates are now advising debtors not to recognize old debts, or debts they don’t recognize as their own, to avoid inadvertently resetting the clock when the statute of limitations expires.
“Any new action on it could age it and make it more attractive to collectors,” says Lauren Saunders, managing lawyer for the National Consumer Advocacy Center, a consumer advocacy group. “You’d better ignore the ancient debt call. The best thing to do is send them an email saying I won’t find out, or please confirm it.”
bottom line
Knowing the statute of limitations for the state you live in and the state whose laws apply to cardholder agreements with your particular card issuer can help you better understand your consumer rights when it comes to credit card debt.
These statute of limitations help protect consumers from debt collectors who may try to collect old forms of debt. Spend some time learning about how debt is handled in the state you live in so that you are fully aware of your rights.
Editorial disclaimer
The editorial content on this page is based solely on the objective judgment of our contributors and is not based on advertising. It was not provided or ordered by credit card issuers. However, we may receive compensation when you click on links to our partners’ products.
