Debt Statute of Limitations by State — The 50-State Map

Every state puts a deadline on debt lawsuits. Miss it, and the debt is “time-barred”: a collector can still ask you to pay, but 12 C.F.R. § 1006.26 (Regulation F): a debt collector “must not bring or threaten to bring a legal action against a consumer to collect a time-barred debt.” Strict liability — it applies whether or not the collector knew the debt was time-barred, in every state.

The table below is verified against each state’s own statute — written contracts, oral contracts, the credit-card classification (the most-litigated column), and the revival regime: whether a payment restarts the clock, whether only a signed writing does, or whether — as in New York, Maryland, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Mississippi — expiry is permanent.

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All 50 states

The three rules that travel with you

1. The federal floor is everywhere. 12 C.F.R. § 1006.26 (Regulation F): a debt collector “must not bring or threaten to bring a legal action against a consumer to collect a time-barred debt.” Strict liability — it applies whether or not the collector knew the debt was time-barred, in every state. 15 U.S.C. § 1692e: misrepresenting the legal status of a debt — including its enforceability — is itself a federal violation.

2. The clock can usually be restarted — by you. In most states a partial payment, and in many a signed acknowledgment, hands the collector a brand-new limitations period. The states that killed revival for consumer debt (New York, Maryland, Minnesota — and Wisconsin and Mississippi, where the debt itself is extinguished) are the exception, not the rule.

3. Classification is leverage. In a dozen-plus states the credit-card period turns on whether the collector can produce the signed agreement — Georgia, Virginia, Alabama, Iowa, Kansas, Montana, Nevada, West Virginia, and more. “Produce the signed writing” is the single highest-value demand in consumer debt defense, and it’s exactly what a validation letter makes.

Pick your state above for the full rules — revival traps, seal and witnessed-note exceptions, borrowing statutes — or start with our debt validation letter guide.

Run your deadline, see the letter

Know who’s collecting? The clock above tells you when they can sue — the collection agency index tells you who you are dealing with: company-by-company guides with verified dispute addresses and the validation letter for each of 37 named collectors and debt buyers.

This page is general information, not legal advice; statutes and regulations are paraphrased; verify current law for your situation. For significant or contested debts, consult a licensed consumer attorney in your state.