State file — Utah
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 | 6 years (written contract) / 4 years (open account) · Utah Code §§ 78B-2-309, 78B-2-307 Split VERIFIED from Utah appellate text: § 78B-2-309 = 6 years for a contract 'founded upon an instrument in writing'; § 78B-2-307 = 4 years for a contract 'not founded upon an instrument in writing' and open accounts (quoted in Dahl v. Dahl, 2015 UT 23, and Gillett v. Brown, 2017 UT App 19, via utcourts.gov). Contested: Card classification is argued: issuers plead the 6-year written-instrument period (§ 78B-2-309); defendants plead the 4-year open-account period (§ 78B-2-307(1), which runs from 'the last charge is made or the last payment is received' for contracts not founded on a writing and for open store accounts). |
| If the clock has run out | Paying part of it, or signing a written statement that the debt is yours, can restart it. Utah Code §§ 78B-2-307(1), 78B-2-309 From a secondary source — double-check before you rely on it Both statutes run the clock from the last payment: § 78B-2-307(1) measures the 4 years 'after the last charge is made or the last payment is received,' and secondary sources describe the 6-year written period as running from the latest of accrual, a written acknowledgment, or the last payment - so a part payment or a signed written acknowledgment restarts the applicable period. |
| Deadline to answer a lawsuit | Serve an answer within 21 days after service is complete in Utah; 30 days if served outside Utah · Utah R. Civ. P. 12(a) From a secondary source — double-check before you rely on it |
| Taking your paycheck (wage garnishment) | Follows the federal cap. Follows the federal CCPA formula: lesser of 25% of disposable earnings or the amount by which weekly disposable earnings exceed 30 times the federal minimum wage. Utah Code § 78B-5-105; Utah R. Civ. P. 64D From a secondary source — double-check before you rely on it |
| Taking your bank account (a levy) | No Utah-specific automatic bank-balance floor located this pass. Benefit and other exempt funds listed in Utah's exemption statute remain exempt when traceable and must be claimed; non-exempt balances are reachable by writ of garnishment/levy. Utah Code § 78B-5-505 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? | No equivalent statute found. The federal FDCPA binds third-party collectors and debt buyers in Utah, and federal law still bans deceptive practices by the bank itself. |
| How long a judgment lasts | 8 years — An action on a judgment must be brought within 8 years; a judgment may be renewed by motion/action filed before the 8-year period expires, for a further 8 years · Utah Code § 78B-2-311 From a secondary source — double-check before you rely on it |
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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.
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6 years (written contract) / 4 years (open account) under Utah Code §§ 78B-2-309, 78B-2-307. 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).
Paying part of it, or signing a written statement that the debt is yours, can restart it. (Utah Code §§ 78B-2-307(1), 78B-2-309).
Serve an answer within 21 days after service is complete in Utah; 30 days if served outside Utah (Utah R. Civ. P. 12(a)). Most of these cases are lost by default — by never answering at all.
Follows the federal CCPA formula: lesser of 25% of disposable earnings or the amount by which weekly disposable earnings exceed 30 times the federal minimum wage. (Utah Code § 78B-5-105; Utah R. Civ. P. 64D).