How long negative items stay on your credit report
Last updated: Sources checked: September 2026
Most negative information can be reported for seven years under section 605 of the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Bankruptcy can be reported for up to ten. The clock starts from the date the problem began, not from the day you paid or the day you check. When the period ends, the item should come off. If it stays past the period, you can dispute it as obsolete.
The limits
| Item | How long it can be reported | What starts the clock |
|---|---|---|
| Late payments | 7 years | The date of the delinquency |
| Collections | 7 years | 180 days after the delinquency that led to the collection began, so about 7 years and 6 months after the date of first delinquency |
| Charge-offs | 7 years | The same: counted from 180 days after the delinquency began |
| Closed accounts with negative history | 7 years | Counted from the negative event, not from when you closed the account |
| Bankruptcy | Up to 10 years | The date the court entered the order |
| Hard inquiries | Not listed by name in section 605. The bureaus generally keep them for about two years. | The date of the inquiry |
The date that matters most
The date of first delinquency is the date an account first went past due and stayed that way. Furnishers must report it to the bureaus. Everything else follows from it. Paying a collection does not move that date. A collector buying the debt does not move it either. If you see a new date on an old debt, that is a possible error.
What the bureaus add
Some practices are the bureaus’ own, not the statute’s:
- Chapter 13 bankruptcy is generally removed sooner than the statute allows.
- Accounts closed in good standing can stay on your report for about ten years, which helps your history.
- The bureaus no longer include most civil judgments and tax liens on reports.
These can change without a new law. Check each bureau’s own pages for the current rules.
The exceptions
The seven-year limits do not apply in three situations: a credit transaction with a principal amount of $150,000 or more, life insurance underwriting of $150,000 or more, and employment at an annual salary of $75,000 or more. In those cases, older negative information can still be reported.
Hard inquiries and your score
Hard inquiries are not on the statute’s list of items with a fixed period. The bureaus generally keep them for about two years, and scoring models generally weigh only recent ones. An older inquiry is not a reason to dispute. An unauthorized one is. See hard inquiries.
If an item is past its period
- Find the date of first delinquency on the tradeline.
- Add the period from the table.
- If today is later than that date, dispute the item as obsolete, and point to the date.
If the date of first delinquency is wrong, dispute the date. See how to dispute a credit report error.
Do this today
Pick your oldest negative item. Write down its date of first delinquency and the date it should come off.