Statute of limitations on debt in Illinois

In Illinois, the time to file a lawsuit on a consumer debt is set by the sections below. When that time has run, a collector’s ability to win a suit is what has expired — if the dates were measured correctly, and if Illinois law is the law that applies. The debt does not vanish. A collector may still request payment. A United States credit report can still show the item under 15 U.S.C. §1681c.

Verified Illinois limitation periods
Kind of debt	Years	Statute
Written contract	10	735 ILCS 5/13-206
Oral contract	5	735 ILCS 5/13-205
Open account / store account	5	735 ILCS 5/13-205
Promissory note	10	735 ILCS 5/13-206

Not printed, because this site has not verified a period: Credit card. Those rows are not guesses.

Written contract. Written contracts and other evidences of indebtedness in writing. A later written payment or promise restarts the ten years.

Open account / store account. Illinois courts treat a writing as oral for this clock if parol evidence is needed to complete the terms. Invoices alone often fail the ten-year test.

Revival and acknowledgment

A credit-card claim is ten years only if the writing has the essential terms without outside evidence. Otherwise the five-year unwritten period applies. This page does not classify your card.

The reporting clock is not this table

How long a collection may appear on a United States credit report is a federal file rule. Read how long a debt stays on your credit report and what paying a collection changes.

Walk the decision

Lawsuit deadline and credit-report period are different clocks. This is not a ruling.

State whose law you think applies Kind of debt Month of last payment or written acknowledgment, if you know it

What the collector sent

A first collection notice, within 30 days A collection notice, but the 30-day window has passed Calls or letters I want stopped An offer to pay if they stop reporting the item A lawsuit threat, or papers from a court Nothing yet — I am trying to decide whether to pay

The lawsuit clock may have run. The reporting clock is a different clock.

Texas lists 4 years for credit card under Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.004(a)(3). Counting months from the date you entered, that period looks expired. That is not a ruling. Accrual, choice of law, and revival can move the date. For a debt buyer, Texas Finance Code § 392.307 says a payment or agreement that the debt is owed does not revive the limitations period. That section is about debt buyers. It is not a general rule for every original creditor. How long the item stays on a United States credit report is 15 U.S.C. §1681c, generally seven years plus up to 180 days from the delinquency, even after you pay.

Write a debt validation letter

State lawsuit-deadline notes · How long a debt stays on a credit report

Questions

What is the statute of limitations on debt in Illinois?

Written contract: 10 years (735 ILCS 5/13-206). Oral contract: 5 years (735 ILCS 5/13-205). Open account / store account: 5 years (735 ILCS 5/13-205). Promissory note: 10 years (735 ILCS 5/13-206).

Does paying restart the clock?

A credit-card claim is ten years only if the writing has the essential terms without outside evidence. Otherwise the five-year unwritten period applies. This page does not classify your card.

Does that mean the collection comes off my credit report?

No. 15 U.S.C. §1681c is a file rule. A time-barred debt can still appear for the rest of the reporting period.

Sources

735 ILCS 5/13-206 — Illinois statute, last verified 2026-10-28
735 ILCS 5/13-205 — Illinois statute, last verified 2026-10-28
735 ILCS 5/13-205 — Illinois statute, last verified 2026-10-28
735 ILCS 5/13-206 — Illinois statute, last verified 2026-10-28
735 ILCS 5/13-206 — Illinois revival / tolling note, last verified 2026-10-28
Can debt collectors collect a debt that’s several years old? — Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
12 C.F.R. § 1006.26 — Collection of time-barred debts — Regulation F, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau