New Jersey Debt Statute of Limitations: 6-Year Rule Explained

New Jersey law gives creditors exactly six years to sue you for unpaid credit card bills, medical debt, or personal loans. Miss that window, and the debt becomes legally unenforceable—but only if you raise the defense. Debt collectors know most people don't.

Here's what the six-year rule means for you, when the clock starts, and how to use it as a weapon when a collector drags you to court.

The Six-Year Rule: What's Covered

New Jersey Revised Statutes §2A:14-1 sets a six-year statute of limitations on any "contractual claim or liability, express or implied, not under seal." Translation: if you signed a contract or opened an account, the creditor has six years from your last payment or the date you defaulted to file a lawsuit.

This covers:

• Credit card debt
• Medical bills
• Personal loans
• Auto deficiency balances
• Payday loans
• Store financing accounts

The six-year clock also applies to mortgage deficiencies and state tax debt. Once it expires, you can't be sued. But debt collectors will still call, text, and send letters,because they can still ask you to pay. They just can't force you through the courts.

When the Clock Starts (and Restarts)

The statute of limitations starts on the date of your last payment or the date you first missed a payment and never caught up. If you made a $25 payment in March 2019 and nothing since, the clock started in March 2019. Six years later,March 2025,the debt becomes time-barred.

Here's the trap: any payment, even $1, restarts the clock. So does a written promise to pay. Debt collectors exploit this. They'll call and say, "Just send us $10 to show good faith," knowing that $10 resets the entire six-year countdown.

Do not pay a dime on old debt until you've verified:

• How old the debt actually is
• Whether the statute has expired
• Whether the collector can prove they own the debt

If you're sued and the debt is older than six years, you have an absolute defense,but you must raise it. Courts won't dismiss the case automatically.

Debts With Longer (or Shorter) Clocks

Not everything follows the six-year rule. New Jersey carves out exceptions for debts tied to sealed contracts or judgments.

16-year statute: Rental arrears based on a sealed lease (N.J. Stat. §2A:14-4). This is rare. Most residential leases aren't sealed contracts.

20-year statute: If a creditor already sued you and won a judgment, they have 20 years to collect on it (N.J. Stat. §2A:14-5). Judgments are renewable, too. Once a creditor has a judgment, the statute of limitations becomes far less useful as a defense.

Federal student loans have no statute of limitations. The government can sue you 30 years after you defaulted. Private student loans follow the six-year rule.

What Happens After Six Years

Once the statute expires, the debt is "time-barred." You still owe it technically,it just can't be enforced in court. Debt collectors can:

• Call you
• Send letters
• Report the debt to credit bureaus (for up to seven years from the date of first delinquency)

They cannot:

• Sue you
• Threaten to sue you
• Imply that legal action is possible if they know the debt is time-barred

If a collector threatens a lawsuit on a time-barred debt, they've violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. You can sue them for up to $1,000 plus attorney fees.

How to Use the Statute of Limitations as a Defense

If you're served with a lawsuit for old debt, the statute of limitations doesn't automatically dismiss the case. You must affirmatively raise it in your answer.

In New Jersey, you have 35 days after being served to file an answer with the court. Your answer should include an affirmative defense that states: "Plaintiff's claims are barred by the applicable statute of limitations under N.J. Stat. §2A:14-1."

Include any evidence you have:

• Your last payment date
• Account statements showing the default date
• Letters from the original creditor

If the debt is clearly older than six years and you raise the defense, the case will likely be dismissed. If the collector can't prove the date of last activity, you win.

Need help drafting an answer? Start with our free debt screener to see if bankruptcy or settlement makes more sense than fighting the lawsuit.

Debt Collectors Bank on Your Silence

Roughly 70% of debt collection lawsuits in New Jersey end in default judgment,meaning the defendant never responded. Collectors file thousands of cases on time-barred debt every year because they know most people won't show up.

If you ignore the lawsuit, the court enters a judgment by default. The collector can then garnish your wages (up to 10% in New Jersey), freeze your bank account, or place a lien on your property. The statute of limitations becomes irrelevant once there's a judgment.

Even if the debt is eight years old, you must respond. Silence is not a defense.

Can You Still Settle Time-Barred Debt?

Yes. If a collector offers to settle a time-barred debt for 30 cents on the dollar, you can take the deal,but get everything in writing first. The settlement agreement should state:

• The total amount you're paying
• That payment resolves the debt in full
• That the collector will not sue
• That negative credit reporting will be removed or updated

Never agree to a payment plan on time-barred debt unless the terms are worth restarting the statute. Once you pay, the six-year clock resets, and the collector can sue if you stop paying.

What If You're Not Sure How Old the Debt Is?

Request validation. Under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you have 30 days after a collector's first contact to send a written request asking them to verify:

• The amount owed
• The original creditor
• Proof they own the debt
• The date of last payment or default

Send the request via certified mail. Once they receive it, they must stop collection activity until they provide verification. If they can't prove the age of the debt, you have leverage.

Bankruptcy vs. Waiting Out the Statute

If you're juggling multiple debts and some are approaching the six-year mark, bankruptcy might still make sense. Chapter 7 wipes out unsecured debt in about four months. Chapter 13 consolidates everything into one payment over three to five years.

Waiting out the statute works if you can avoid lawsuits and judgments in the meantime. But if collectors are already filing cases, or if wage garnishment would destroy your budget, bankruptcy stops everything immediately.

The automatic stay halts all collection activity the moment you file,lawsuits, garnishments, bank levies, everything. Even judgments get frozen.

The Bottom Line

New Jersey gives creditors six years to sue. After that, you have a bulletproof defense,but only if you raise it. Never ignore a lawsuit, even on ancient debt. File an answer, assert the statute of limitations, and force the collector to prove their case. Most won't.