State file — New York
Every number below names the law it comes from (its statute citation), checked October 18, 2026. Where a number comes from a secondary source instead of the official text, this page says so — double-check it before you rely on it.
| How long they have to sue you — credit-card debt | 3 years · CPLR §214-i 'An action arising out of a consumer credit transaction where a purchaser, borrower or debtor is a defendant must be commenced within three years.' Consumer Credit Fairness Act, effective April 7, 2022. Roundup tables still listing New York consumer-credit debt at 6 years (the old CPLR §213(2) contract period) are WRONG for consumer credit transactions. The CCFA also overrides a card agreement's out-of-state choice-of-law period where it would shorten/lengthen inconsistently (CPLR §202 / CCFA borrowing rule) — the 3-year New York period controls for a New York resident defendant. |
| If the clock has run out | Nothing restarts it. Paying, or promising in writing, after the deadline does not bring the claim back. CPLR §214-i; Gen. Oblig. Law §17-101 as limited by CCFA VERIFIED in the same official §214-i text: 'Notwithstanding any other provision of law, when the applicable limitations period expires, any subsequent payment toward, written or oral affirmation of or other activity on the debt does not revive or extend the limitations period.' Revival is ABOLISHED once the period has expired; the general §17-101 written-acknowledgment doctrine does not resurrect an expired consumer-credit claim. |
| Deadline to answer a lawsuit | 20 days if served in person, 30 days if served by any other method · CPLR §320 From a secondary source — double-check before you rely on it |
| Taking your paycheck (wage garnishment) | More protective than the federal cap. Income execution capped at 10% of gross income — far below the federal 25% of disposable earnings — and no amount may be taken if weekly disposable earnings are at or below 30 times the applicable (higher of federal/state) minimum wage; disposable earnings also cannot be reduced below that 30x floor. CPLR §5231 From a secondary source — double-check before you rely on it |
| Taking your bank account (a levy) | Exempt Income Protection Act: a restraining notice / levy cannot reach a protected amount equal to 240 times the applicable minimum wage in the account, and an additional $2,500 is protected if the account contained directly deposited exempt benefits (e.g. Social Security) during the 45 days before service. Banks must leave the protected amount available. CPLR §§ 5222(i)-(j), 5205, 5222-a From a secondary source — double-check before you rely on it Federal benefits deposited directly get an automatic two-month shield everywhere (31 CFR Part 212). |
| Original creditor calling? | Yes — the Debt Collection Procedures Law — Gen. Bus. Law §601 (principal creditors); Gen. Bus. Law §349; 23 NYCRR Part 1 (third-party collectors/debt buyers) (N.Y. Gen. Bus. Law §§ 600-602, 349) applies FDCPA-style rules to original creditors. Unusually, New York's §601 list of prohibited practices is addressed to 'principal creditors' — i.e. original creditors collecting their own consumer debts — so original creditors ARE covered, in addition to the DFS rules in 23 NYCRR Part 1 for third-party collectors and debt buyers and §349 deceptive-practices liability. |
| How long a judgment lasts | 20 years — A money judgment is presumed paid after 20 years and an action on it lies within 20 years; the judgment LIEN on real property lasts 10 years and may be renewed for one additional 10-year period before it expires. · CPLR §§ 211(a), 5203 From a secondary source — double-check before you rely on it |
Run my dates through the free checker
Card agreements often pick another state's law (Delaware for Chase, Bank of America, Discover, Barclays; South Dakota for Citi and Wells Fargo). A court may use the shorter of the two deadlines, under a rule called a borrowing statute — the free checker works out both clocks for you.
One payment. Every stage of the road, and the deadline tables for all 50 states — every number with its law cited. No account, no subscription — and the free checker above stays free whether you buy or not.
DebtDecoded is education, not a law firm. If the checker points you to a free route — legal aid, a lawyer who fights debt collectors, a nonprofit counselor — take it. We would rather lose the sale than sell you the wrong tool.
3 years under CPLR §214-i. The clock usually starts at the first missed payment that was never made up. Debt collectors may still call after it runs out, but Regulation F (12 CFR 1006.26(b)) bars them from suing — or threatening to sue — over a debt that is too old (time-barred).
Nothing restarts it. Paying, or promising in writing, after the deadline does not bring the claim back. (CPLR §214-i; Gen. Oblig. Law §17-101 as limited by CCFA).
20 days if served in person, 30 days if served by any other method (CPLR §320). Most of these cases are lost by default — by never answering at all.
Income execution capped at 10% of gross income — far below the federal 25% of disposable earnings — and no amount may be taken if weekly disposable earnings are at or below 30 times the applicable (higher of federal/state) minimum wage; disposable earnings also cannot be reduced below that 30x floor. (CPLR §5231).