How Long Information Stays on a Credit Report, Item by Item
Most negative information, including late payments, stays on a credit report for seven years. A Chapter 7 bankruptcy stays for 10 years, Chapter 13 for seven, and hard inquiries typically for two. Accurate positive information has no fixed removal date. Federal law, chiefly the Fair Credit Reporting Act, sets these reporting periods.
This guide is general educational information for U.S. readers. It is not financial advice and does not describe your individual credit file. Figures such as score ranges and timeline estimates are typical examples, not promises.
Key takeaways
- Most negative information, including late payments and collections, stays on a credit report for seven years.
- A Chapter 7 bankruptcy stays for 10 years, while a Chapter 13 bankruptcy stays for seven.
- Hard inquiries typically remain on a credit report for two years.
- Negative item reporting periods are generally measured from the date of first delinquency on the original account, not from when a debt is sold.
- Fraud alerts and security freezes have their own durations under the FCRA and are separate from ordinary credit report items.
Most negative information stays on a credit report for seven years. A Chapter 7 bankruptcy stays for 10 years, a Chapter 13 bankruptcy stays for seven, and hard inquiries typically remain for two. Accurate positive information has no fixed removal date at all. These limits come from federal law, chiefly the Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U.S.C. section 1681, and the three nationwide credit reporting agencies apply them to the files they maintain.
Why credit reporting has time limits at all
The FCRA was enacted in 1970 to set rules for how consumer credit information is collected, shared, and used, and it was amended by the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act in 2003. One of its central functions is placing outer limits on how long adverse items may be reported. Without a statutory ceiling, an old delinquency could remain part of a consumer's file indefinitely, because nothing in the system would require its removal.
Federal oversight of these rules sits mainly with the CFPB, which was created by the Dodd-Frank Act in 2010 and began operating in 2011. Aggregate consumer borrowing is tracked separately by the Federal Reserve, whose G.19 release reports total outstanding consumer credit.
How long each type of information stays: reference table
| Item | How long it generally stays |
|---|---|
| Late payments and most other negative information | 7 years |
| Collection accounts | Generally 7 years, measured from the original delinquency |
| Chapter 7 bankruptcy | 10 years |
| Chapter 13 bankruptcy | 7 years |
| Hard inquiries | 2 years |
| Initial fraud alert | 1 year |
| Extended fraud alert | 7 years |
| Accounts paid as agreed and other positive information | No fixed federal removal period |
Two clarifications matter. First, the table describes reporting periods, not scoring impact. A scoring model may weigh an item more heavily soon after it appears than it does later, because score models treat recent information differently from old information. Second, the table reflects federal limits. Agency policy, and any state law that is more protective, can affect what actually appears in a given file.
How long do late payments stay on a credit report?
A late payment is negative information, so the general seven-year rule applies. The period is usually measured from the date of first delinquency, meaning the month the account first went past due and was never brought current, rather than from the date a collection account is opened or a debt is sold. That distinction matters because a debt can change hands several times while the underlying reporting clock keeps running.
Payment history is the largest single factor in FICO scoring, at roughly 35% of the total, which is one reason a recent delinquency and an old one are not viewed the same way. Experian maintains a credit education library that explains how lenders report missed payments and how time changes the way those entries are treated. Our guide to payment history and credit scores goes deeper on that factor.
How long do collections stay on a credit report?
Collection accounts fall under the same seven-year rule as other negative information, and the clock generally runs from the original delinquency on the account that was sold or placed for collection. Two consequences follow:
- Paying or settling a collection does not erase it from the report. The item remains for the remainder of its reporting period, although it is normally updated to show a zero balance.
- The original creditor's tradeline and the collection account can both appear, so a single unpaid debt may show up more than once in a file.
Because the reporting period is tied to the original delinquency rather than to collection activity, the time a collection spends on a report can be shorter than consumers expect, particularly when a debt is sold years after it first went unpaid. When the same debt appears on a report more than once, each entry should carry the same underlying delinquency date.
How long does a bankruptcy stay on a credit report?
Bankruptcy follows its own, longer schedule. A Chapter 7 bankruptcy stays on a credit report for 10 years. A Chapter 13 bankruptcy, which involves a repayment plan rather than liquidation of assets, stays for seven years. Both periods are calculated from the filing or discharge date, depending on the chapter and on how the reporting agency records the public record.
Bankruptcy is one of the few public-record items with a specific federal reporting period. Other court and government records are handled under the agencies' own policies rather than under a single uniform national timeline, which is why public-record entries can vary between files.
How long do hard inquiries stay on a credit report?
A hard inquiry, the kind generated when a lender pulls a report in connection with an application, typically remains on a credit report for two years. Its weight in scoring is generally concentrated in a shorter and more recent window, and inquiries are a small part of FICO scoring: new credit accounts for about 10% of the total. A soft inquiry, such as a check for a prescreened offer or a consumer's own review of a report, is generally not shared with lenders. Our pages on credit checks and how credit scores are calculated cover where inquiries fit among the other factors.
What has no expiration date
Not everything on a credit report is negative, and not everything expires. Accounts paid as agreed, longstanding accounts, and identifying information such as name variations and former addresses generally have no fixed removal period under federal law. A closed account in good standing is usually reported for a period set by the furnisher's own policy, and the age of those accounts feeds directly into the length-of-credit-history factor in scoring, which is about 15% of a FICO score.
That is why two files with similar negative items can look different to a lender: the mix and age of the accounts that remain after adverse items drop off shape what appears. See length of credit history explained for how account age and average age are measured.
Fraud alerts, security freezes, and how long those last
Alerts and freezes are not credit report items in the ordinary sense, but they have durations of their own and are governed by the same statute. FCRA section 605A, codified at 15 U.S.C. section 1681c-1, covers fraud alerts: an initial fraud alert lasts one year, and an extended fraud alert lasts seven years. FCRA section 605B, codified at 15 U.S.C. section 1681c-2, covers blocks placed on information that results from identity theft.
A security freeze works differently again. Under federal law it is free to place, temporarily lift, or remove, and it remains in place until the consumer removes it. Our pages on security freezes and identity theft explain how those tools work alongside credit monitoring.
How the reporting clock is measured
Many consumers assume the clock starts when an account is charged off or sent to collections, but the standard measure is the date of first delinquency: the point at which the account first became past due and was not brought current afterward. Reporting guidelines direct furnishers to supply that date so the reporting period can be calculated from it. If a furnisher reports a later date, the item can appear to stay on a file longer than the law allows, which is one reason the underlying date is worth verifying on each negative entry.
Checking what is on a report, and disputing what is wrong
Under the FCRA, consumers have the right to a free credit report from each of the three nationwide agencies every 12 months, and the three agencies currently provide free reports weekly through AnnualCreditReport.com. Reviewing a report makes it possible to see the reported date of first delinquency on each negative item and to identify entries that belong to someone else or that are reported inaccurately.
If a consumer disputes an item, the credit reporting agency generally must investigate within 30 days. That period can extend to 45 days when the consumer provides additional information during the initial 30-day window. The credit reports hub explains what a file contains, how furnishers update it, and what the dispute process produces.
How these timelines connect to credit scores
Reporting periods and scoring are related but separate systems. A score model reads whatever is in the file at the moment a score is requested. FICO's factors and their approximate weights are payment history 35%, amounts owed 30%, length of credit history 15%, new credit 10%, and credit mix 10%. VantageScore uses its own weighting and does not publish fixed percentages. Most credit scores, including FICO and VantageScore, use a range of 300 to 850. Our guides to FICO versus VantageScore, credit utilization, and the credit score hub cover how those factors interact with what a report contains.
Reporting periods are set by statute and applied by the credit reporting agencies, and they change only when the law or agency policy changes. This page is published for education only and is not financial advice.
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Frequently asked questions
How long does information stay on a credit report?
Most negative information, including late payments and collections, stays on a credit report for seven years. A Chapter 7 bankruptcy stays for 10 years, and a Chapter 13 bankruptcy stays for seven. Hard inquiries typically remain for two years, while accounts paid as agreed and other positive information have no fixed federal removal period.
How long do late payments stay on a credit report?
Seven years. The period is generally measured from the date of first delinquency on the original account, not from the date the payment was reported or the debt was sold, so the countdown can already be well underway by the time an entry appears.
How long do collections stay on a credit report?
Collection accounts generally remain for seven years, measured from the original delinquency on the account that was placed or sold for collection. Paying or settling a collection does not remove it early; the entry stays for the remainder of its reporting period and is normally updated to show a zero balance.
Does the reporting clock restart if a debt is sold or transferred?
No. Under the FCRA's reporting rules, the seven-year period runs from the date of first delinquency on the original account, and selling or transferring a debt does not create a new start date. If the same debt appears more than once, each entry should show the same underlying delinquency date.
How long do hard inquiries stay on a credit report?
A hard inquiry typically remains on a credit report for two years. Its influence on a score is generally concentrated in a shorter recent window, and inquiries are a small component of FICO scoring, where new credit accounts for about 10% of the total.
How long do fraud alerts and security freezes last?
An initial fraud alert lasts one year, and an extended fraud alert lasts seven years, under FCRA section 605A. A security freeze is different: it is free to place, temporarily lift, or remove under federal law, and it stays in place until the consumer removes it. Identity theft that involves a credit file can also be reported at IdentityTheft.gov and to the IRS using Form 14039.
Related guides
- How Credit Scores Are Calculated
- Payment History And Credit Scores
- Length Of Credit History Explained
- Fico Vs Vantagescore
Related terms
- Credit Report
- Late Payment
- Collection Account
- Chapter 7 Bankruptcy
- Hard Inquiry
- Date Of First Delinquency