Collection decision flow

This does not tell you whether a lawsuit would succeed. It separates the lawsuit clock from the credit-report clock, and it points at a letter. Only five states have verified periods on this site. Those notes are here.

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