The claim
Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. § 1681c(a)), a consumer reporting agency may not make a consumer report containing certain items once they are older than a stated period: more than seven years for accounts placed for collection or charged to profit and loss and for any other adverse item (other than records of convictions of crimes), and more than 10 years for bankruptcy cases. Under subsection (b), those limits do not apply to a consumer credit report used in connection with a credit transaction involving a principal amount of $150,000 or more, the underwriting of life insurance with a face amount of $150,000 or more, or the employment of an individual at an annual salary of $75,000 or more.
The receipt
Except as authorized under subsection (b), no consumer reporting agency may make any consumer report containing any of the following items of information:
(1) Cases under title 11 or under the Bankruptcy Act that, from the date of entry of the order for relief or the date of adjudication, as the case may be, antedate the report by more than 10 years.
(2) Civil suits, civil judgments, and records of arrest that, from date of entry, antedate the report by more than seven years or until the governing statute of limitations has expired, whichever is the longer period.
(4) Accounts placed for collection or charged to profit and loss which antedate the report by more than seven years.
(5) Any other adverse item of information, other than records of convictions of crimes which antedates the report by more than seven years.
The provisions of paragraphs (1) through (5) of subsection (a) are not applicable in the case of any consumer credit report to be used in connection with—
(1) a credit transaction involving, or which may reasonably be expected to involve, a principal amount of $150,000 or more;
(2) the underwriting of life insurance involving, or which may reasonably be expected to involve, a face amount of $150,000 or more; or
(3) the employment of any individual at an annual salary which equals, or which may reasonably be expected to equal $75,000, or more.
The 7-year period referred to in paragraphs (4) and (6) of subsection (a) shall begin, with respect to any delinquent account that is placed for collection (internally or by referral to a third party, whichever is earlier), charged to profit and loss, or subjected to any similar action, upon the expiration of the 180-day period beginning on the date of the commencement of the delinquency which immediately preceded the collection activity, charge to profit and loss, or similar action.
A credit reporting company generally can report most negative information for seven years.
Information about a lawsuit or a judgment against you can be reported for seven years or until the statute of limitations runs out, whichever is longer. Bankruptcies can stay on your report for up to ten years.
Even though credit reporting companies usually won’t report this negative information after these limits they still may keep your information on file.
What the rule doesn't say
The 7- and 10-year figures come from different paragraphs, and each is measured from a date the statute names: the date of entry of the order for relief or the date of adjudication for bankruptcy cases, the date of entry for civil suits and judgments, the date of payment for paid tax liens. For accounts placed for collection or charged to profit and loss, subsection (c)(1) starts the 7-year period when the 180-day period beginning on the date the delinquency began expires. For civil suits, civil judgments, and records of arrest, the period is seven years or until the governing statute of limitations has expired, whichever is longer. The text limits what a consumer reporting agency may include in a consumer report; the CFPB adds that credit reporting companies “still may keep your information on file.” Subsection (b) speaks only of paragraphs (1) through (5) of subsection (a): it does not mention paragraphs (6) through (8), which deal with medical information furnishers and veterans' medical debt. And its exceptions turn on what the report is to be used for.
What you can do
The periods run from dates the statute names: the date of entry or adjudication, the date of payment, or, for accounts placed for collection or charged to profit and loss, the end of the 180-day period that begins when the delinquency began. Whether a limit applies to a given item depends on the item's type and on those dates. Another page on this site quotes the statute's dispute and reinvestigation deadlines; it is linked below.
Sources: 15 U.S.C. § 1681c (Fair Credit Reporting Act § 605), U.S. Code · CFPB, Ask CFPB: How long does information stay on my credit report?
Sources last checked: October 8, 2026.
Everything here is consumer information — not financial or legal advice. It covers what a rule says and where to find it; the decisions stay yours.