How Long Bankruptcy Stays on Your Credit Report

How Long Each Type of Bankruptcy Stays on Your Report

A Chapter 7 bankruptcy can stay on your credit report for up to 10 years from the filing date, and a completed Chapter 13 drops off after 7 years. Early removal works only for an inaccurate entry that you dispute with each bureau, and paying a company to remove an accurate bankruptcy does not work.

Three rows depend on the bureau. Chapter 12 cases run 10 years at Experian and 7 at Equifax. For a Chapter 13 plan that ends without completion, TransUnion says the bankruptcy stays 10 years, while Equifax lists every dismissed case at 7 years from filing.

Why Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 Get Different Periods

The 10-year figure is the legal maximum for every chapter, and the 7-year period for a completed Chapter 13 is the bureaus' stated practice. The FCRA bars a report from including a bankruptcy case more than 10 years old, measured from the order for relief or the date of adjudication. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) lists Chapters 7, 11, 12 and 13 under that same 10-year limit.

The FCRA also requires a report to name the chapter a case was filed under, when the source provides it. If you withdraw a case before a final judgment, the bureau must note the withdrawal once it receives documentation certifying it.

The bureaus count both chapters from the filing date. The discharge does not restart the count. In Chapter 7, U.S. Courts says the meeting of creditors is held 21 to 40 days after the petition. The discharge generally comes 60 to 90 days after the date first set for that meeting. Adding those ranges puts the discharge about 81 to 130 days after filing, and those months already count toward the 10 years.

Chapter 13 plans run three years when income is below the state median and generally five years when it is above, and no plan may run longer than five. The bureaus report a completed Chapter 13 for 7 years from filing. With a five-year plan, the entry stays on your report about two years after the last payment, and with a three-year plan about four years. TransUnion says a plan that is not completed keeps the bankruptcy on the report for 10 years. Our guide on getting out of Chapter 13 early explains how a plan can end before completion.

Reporting time is one difference between the chapters, and our Chapter 7 vs Chapter 13 comparison lays out the others. Courts, trustees and local rules vary, so a bankruptcy attorney, a legal-aid office or a nonprofit credit counselor can apply these rules to your case.

When Accounts Included in the Bankruptcy Drop Off

Each account included in a bankruptcy follows its own clock, so those accounts can leave your report years before the bankruptcy entry does. Experian says included accounts stay seven years from the original delinquency date. An account that was never late before the filing stays seven years from the filing date instead. TransUnion describes the period as up to seven years from the date of closing or last activity, regardless of chapter.

Take a credit card that first went late in March 2017, followed by a Chapter 7 filing in March 2019. Under Experian's rule, the card's entry would drop off around March 2024, while the bankruptcy entry would stay until about March 2029. Equifax's help page says included accounts can remain up to 10 years from the date of last activity, depending on the bankruptcy type. Equifax's figure does not match Experian, myFICO or the seven-year limit for adverse items in §1681c(a)(5).

While those accounts remain, Experian says they should be recorded as "discharged" with a $0 balance after the discharge. Experian shows a zero balance on included accounts in Chapter 7, 11 and 12 cases. Since Feb. 16, 2018, Experian has shown Chapter 13 petition balances as blank.

The account history freezes at the filing. Experian does not display status or payment changes reported after the petition date, and late payments from before the bankruptcy stay on the report. On a joint account where only one borrower filed, the other borrower's account keeps displaying normally with its balance.

Look at each included account for four things:

• It appears as discharged only if the debt was part of your filing, a check myFICO recommends.
• It shows a zero balance, which is item 12 on the CFPB's credit report review checklist.
• Its status reads included in or discharged in bankruptcy. For Chapter 13, Experian changes the status to discharged once the plan is complete.
• Its original delinquency date matches your records, because Experian counts the account's seven years from that date.

In its December 2024 Supervisory Highlights, the CFPB said examiners found furnishers continuing to report accounts that had been discharged in bankruptcy. A December 2019 edition found furnishers failing to update charged-off balances after discharge, even though their own records showed the change.

Equifax says included accounts are not automatically removed from its report, and it suggests contacting the creditor first, then disputing errors with the bureaus. If an account is missing its included-in-bankruptcy status, Experian asks for the Schedule A document from your filing that lists the account.

Disputing an Inaccurate or Outdated Bankruptcy Entry

A bankruptcy comes off your report early only when the entry is inaccurate, incomplete or cannot be verified. Experian states there is no way to remove an accurate bankruptcy record. Experian names an entry kept past its expiration date, or one showing an incorrect filing date, as grounds for a dispute. The CFPB's guidance is to dispute information only when it is inaccurate.

Work through the dispute in this order:

1. Pull your reports from all three bureaus. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) says each bureau lets you check your report once a week for free at AnnualCreditReport.com. The FTC calls AnnualCreditReport.com the only website authorized to fill orders for the free reports, and you can also order by phone at 1-877-322-8228.
2. Compare each bankruptcy entry with your court papers: the chapter, the filing month and the status.
3. File a dispute with every bureau that shows the error. State what is wrong and attach a copy of the court document that shows the correct date or chapter.
4. Send the same dispute to the creditor that supplied a wrong account entry. The CFPB's dispute page says furnishers generally must investigate and respond within 30 days of receiving it.
5. Keep copies of everything you send and the date each bureau received it, because the deadlines run from receipt.

Under 15 U.S.C. §1681i, a bureau must reinvestigate free of charge, or delete the item, within 30 days of receiving your dispute. That period can stretch by up to 15 more days if you send relevant information during the first 30. The extension does not apply when the item is found inaccurate or unverifiable within those 30 days. After the reinvestigation, the bureau has 5 business days to send written results.

If the item is inaccurate, incomplete or cannot be verified, the bureau must promptly delete or modify it. The FTC's dispute guide adds that a business that finds its own information inaccurate must tell the bureau to update or delete it. If the creditor stands by its information, the CFPB says you can ask it to include a statement explaining your dispute.

Why Paid Bankruptcy Removal Does Not Work

Credit repair companies cannot legally remove an accurate, current bankruptcy, and both the CFPB and the FTC say so directly. The CFPB explains what happens when a company disputes an accurate item anyway: the item disappears temporarily while the bureau verifies it, then reappears after verification.

The FTC's credit repair FAQ adds that disputing mistakes or outdated items yourself is free. The FAQ lists these warning signs of a scam:

• Insisting you pay before they help you.
• Telling you not to contact the credit bureaus directly.
• Telling you to dispute accurate information or to lie on credit applications.

The Credit Repair Organizations Act (CROA) backs those warnings with rules. A credit repair organization may not charge or receive any money for a service before that service is fully performed. It may not make untrue or misleading statements about its services, or advise you to alter your identification to hide accurate adverse information.

The FTC adds that these companies must give you a written contract that explains your rights, including a three-day right to cancel without charge. A goodwill letter asks a creditor to remove a legitimate negative mark. Experian says goodwill letters are not meant for serious marks such as bankruptcy, and creditors do not have to agree to them. Pay-for-delete requests apply to collection accounts, which are a different entry, and our guide to pay-for-delete letters covers them.

An accurate bankruptcy entry stays until its reporting period ends. Early removal needs a mistake on your report: a wrong filing date, the wrong chapter, a debt you did not include, or an entry past its expiration. For an accurate entry, Equifax says keeping open accounts in good standing can help scores improve while you wait.

What to Do When Bankruptcy Stays on Your Credit Report Too Long

An expired bankruptcy should drop off with no action from you, because Experian says it deletes the entry automatically 7 or 10 years after filing, depending on the chapter. Experian dates that expiration from the month you first filed, so count from the filing month on your court papers. The discharge date does not start the clock.

Compare your end date with each bureau's period for your chapter, since Chapter 12 and unfinished Chapter 13 cases carry different periods at different bureaus. If the date has passed at a bureau that still shows the entry, file a dispute with that bureau and attach the court document that shows your filing date. The 30-day reinvestigation deadline applies to that dispute like any other.

A discharged debt that comes back as a collection call is a separate problem with its own remedy. Under 11 U.S.C. §524, a discharge works as an injunction against acts to collect a discharged debt as a personal liability. If a creditor tries to collect, U.S. Courts says you can file a motion with the court reporting the attempt. The CFPB states that debt collectors cannot try to collect discharged debts.

Regulation F also bars a debt collector from selling or placing for collection a debt it knows or should know was discharged in bankruptcy. The CFPB adds that a lender with a repossession right, such as an auto lender, may still repossess after discharge if the debt is unpaid. The CFPB has also said that student loan servicers collecting on loans a bankruptcy court discharged are likely engaging in an unfair practice. Our guide on dealing with debt collectors covers your contact and complaint rights.

When a Bankruptcy Can Appear After Its Reporting Period

The FCRA's time limits do not apply to three kinds of report, so a bankruptcy older than 10 years can legally appear in them. The exceptions cover reports used for:

• A credit transaction expected to involve a principal amount of $150,000 or more.
• Underwriting life insurance with a face amount of $150,000 or more.
• Employment at an annual salary of $75,000 or more.

The CFPB's summary of reporting periods describes the same exceptions, and the CFPB notes elsewhere that in certain instances bankruptcy can be reported beyond 10 years. Our guide to buying a house after bankruptcy covers mortgage applications after a filing.

Bankruptcy is also the only public record left on credit reports. The CFPB says civil judgments came off reports in July 2017 under a settlement called the National Consumer Assistance Plan (NCAP). The number of reported bankruptcies stayed virtually unchanged. The CFPB's retrospective found the last tax liens were gone by April 2018.

Living with a Bankruptcy While It Is on Your Report

A bankruptcy counts against your FICO Score until it falls off your report, and myFICO and Experian both say its impact lessens over time. myFICO adds that a bankruptcy will always be considered a very negative event by your FICO Score.

The size of the first drop depends on the rest of your file. myFICO says someone with a score in the mid 700s might see it fall by 100 points or more, and filings that include more accounts tend to hurt more. A 2010 presentation by Fair Isaac (FICO), hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, used two hypothetical consumers. After a bankruptcy posted, the consumer at 680 fell to 530 to 550, and the consumer at 780 fell to 540 to 560.

The same presentation said that as negative information ages, fewer points are lost to recency, assuming no new late payments reach the file. Those are 2010-era illustrations. myFICO's current table of how credit actions affect FICO Scores does not include bankruptcy.

Equifax says scoring models weigh the past 24 months more heavily, so open accounts kept in good standing can help scores improve within about two years. The CFPB's own rebuilding guide says rebuilding takes time and there are no shortcuts or secrets.

Our guide on how to rebuild credit after bankruptcy walks through secured cards, credit builder loans and on-time payment habits. Our guide to what counts as a good credit score gives you a target. Pull your three free reports and find the filing month on each bankruptcy entry. Add 7 or 10 years, depending on your chapter and the bureau, to see how long the bankruptcy stays on your credit report.

Frequently asked questions