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Learn How Long Student Loans Appear on Credit Reports

Credit Score Report History
HIGHLIGHTS
  • Federal law controls the behavior of credit bureaus.
  • Federal student loans can be reported indefinitely.
  • Private student loans follow conventional rules for delinquent debt.

Learn When Delinquent Student Loans Will Disappear From Your Credit Report

Current and delinquent student loans appear on borrowers' credit reports. How long a delinquent student loan will appear on a credit report depends on whether the loan is private or federal. Federal law controls how long a derogatory, the term used to describe a negative mark, can appear on a credit report. Let us start by reviewing the rules for credit reports.

Credit Report Rules

Federal law (US Code Title 15, §1681c) controls the behavior of credit reporting agencies. This law is known as the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). Under FCRA §605 (a) and (b), an account in collection will appear on a consumer’s credit report for 7½ years. The clock starts approximately 180 days after the date of first delinquency on the account. To learn when an account will be removed by the credit reporting agencies (TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian and others), add 7½ years to the date of first delinquency. Subsequent activity, such as resolving the debt, is irrelevant to this rule. The seven-year rule does not apply to all debts, however. Here are four exceptions:

  • A tax lien can appear for seven years from the date of payment.
  • A bankruptcy will appear for 10 years from the date of the final order.
  • Federal student loans can be reported for as long as they are delinquent. (Private student loans follow the 7½-year rule.)
  • A civil judgment can appear for seven years, or the length of a judgment’s statute of limitations in the consumer’s state, whichever is longer.

Learn the lifespan of a judgment in your state at the Bills.com Statute of Limitations Laws by State page.

The start of the seven-year begins at the date of first delinquency, or if no payments are made, when the first payment was due. Review your credit report carefully to make certain the dates of first delinquency are reported correctly. Unscrupulous collection agents reset the date of first delinquency to stretch out how long a derogatory account appears on consumer’s credit report. This is illegal under the FCRA.

Just because a debt does not appear on a credit report does not mean the statute of limitations for the debt has passed. The opposite is also true: The passing of a state statute of limitations on a debt does not mean the debt may not appear on a credit report. The federal FCRA and state statutes of limitations are separate and independent of each other.

Whether a debt appears on a credit report does not establish legal liability for the debt. The opposite is also true: You may have legal liability for a debt not reported to the credit reporting agencies. Credit reports are not legal records of every debt a person owes.

Quick Tip Get a no-cost, no obligation analysis of your debt options from a pre-screened debt relief provider.

Private Student Loans & Credit Reports

Private student loans are treated no differently from other private debt. As mentioned above, the 7½-year rule applies to private student loan debt.

If you have a derogatory relating to a student loan, review your credit reports to verify accuracy of the date of last payment and date of default. Do this for reports generated by three reports credit reporting agencies. You can obtain a free copy of your credit report from each credit bureau once every 12 months by visiting AnnualCreditReport.com. You can also purchase a copy of your credit report from the credit reporting agencies if you would like to review your report more often.

A private student loan falling off a credit report will not cancel the debt or make it uncollectable. Also, the date a debt falls off a credit report has no relationship to a state's statute of limitations. See the Bills.com resource Private Student Loan Settlement to learn strategies for resolving private student loans.

Federal Student Loan Rehabilitation & Credit Reports

Delinquent federal student loans can be reported indefinitely, i.e., for as long as they are delinquent. For federal student loans, the Dept. of Education will continue its collection efforts until the loan is paid. If your student loan is federal, consider rehabilitating your loan, which should allow you to resume payments on the loan and have the default removed from your credit report. The Dept. of Education may also offer other options to help you repay your loan at a rate you can afford. Contact the Dept. of Education’s collections office to discuss the repayment options available to you.

If you fail to resolve your student loan obligations, the Dept. of Education may garnish your wages, levy your bank or credit union accounts, or place a lien on your property. If you cannot afford to make payments, or do not wish to do so, consult with an attorney in your state to discuss the risks associated with your unpaid student loan.

See the following Bills.com resources to learn more about resolving student loan debt and avoiding private student loan default:

Comments (25)


Ashley A.
Dickinson, TX  |  April 01, 2012
I have a private student loan which defaulted in July of 2007. I would like to pay off this debt, but I have read that once you make one payment the 7 1/2 year clock starts over, and the time that the loan was derogatory will show for another 7 1/2 years. Is this true, or can I make a payment lets say, tomorrow, and it will only show my derogatory items on my loan until 2014? Or if I make a payment tomorrow will my derogatory items stay until almost 2019? I have been hesitant to pay off this debt because of that reason, I would just like my credit report to be free and clear of derogatory items.
Bills.com
April 02, 2012
The 7½-year rule you referred is found in the Fair Credit Reporting Act. The clock starts on the 7½-year rule at the date of first delinquency. It does not restart when a person makes a payment. Let us say for the sake of argument a debt becomes delinquent January 1, 2000. The person makes payments, and the debt is paid in full in 2004. The derogatory will remain on the credit report until July 1, 2007.

The rule you referred to concerns state statutes of limitations for contracts, which have no relationship to the federal 7½-year rule.
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Tania B.
Corpus Christi, TX  |  April 24, 2012
I had me loans paid via consolidation; the account status on my credit report is paid, closed or transferred. Is that a negative status or is it he payment history a negative status? On the payment history is states 180 days past due. Will it do any good to contact the original creditor and dispute the payment history or can I dispute that with the credit bureau?
Bills.com
April 24, 2012
If the account was never 180 days past due, then you should definitely dispute a notation that says it was. If the notation is accurate, then it can remain on the report for 7½ years from the time you went delinquent.

Paying the loans off, bringing them to a $0 balance, is a step that both insulates you from collection efforts and improves your score.
Mitch U.
Troy, MI  |  March 16, 2012
I defaulted on a student loan back in 2007, and now it looks like three loans instead of one on my credit report. Is that normal? I fear it is making my report look worse than it is and I can't seem to find where to fix that.
Bills.com
March 16, 2012
Dispute the earlier two entries for the same debt on your credit report. Follow the link I just mentioned to learn how.
Mika T.
Decatur, GA  |  November 08, 2011
I consolidated my loans in 2006; however, they are still showing on credit report. The consolidated ones, as well as the company that took possession of all the combined loans. So, all the loans are showing double on my credit report. Once consolidated, do the loans still suppose to show on my credit report or does this 7 1/2 year rule apply to me as well? Its shows 1st delinquency 2/2006! Does this mean it won't come off my credit report until around August of 2013? I was under the assumption that once consolidated, it would no longer be on my credit report, that only the company in which currently has all the loans would?!?! Thanks in advance for reply! :-)
Bills.com
November 09, 2011
The loan that you consolidated can continue to show on your report for the 7½ years after the first delinquency, as long as the information reported is accurate. If you paid off the loan via consolidation, the old loan should show as $0 balance.
Angela W.
Tampa, FL  |  September 19, 2011
I just recently signed up to consolidate my defaulted loans with direct loans. If I became defaulted in August 2007 does this mean it will fall off my credit report in February 2014 or does the 7 1/2 year rule begin when payment arrangements are made?
Bills.com
September 19, 2011
The key date for this type of question is the date of first delinquency. This issue has been challenged by creditors, who despite the plain language in the law want the date to be some later date. However, courts and the FTC keep returning to the plain language in the law — the date of first delinquency.
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Bills.com
July 20, 2010
Delinquent federal student loans can be reported on a credit report indefinitely, i.e., for as long as they are delinquent. Private student loans must follow the seven-year rule.
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Sarah P.
Cayucos, CA  |  February 28, 2011
what about private student loans. If those are charged off, will those drop after 7 years?
Bills.com
February 28, 2011
Private student loans are treated the same as other consumer debt. In other words, the 7½-year rule applies to private student loans.
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Rachel G.
La Vergne, TN  |  May 25, 2011
i recently paid off my student loan that was in default, but it still shows on my credit report. it was paid off in mid february of 2011. i even have a statement letter this loan was back from 2004..
Bills.com
May 25, 2011
Paying-off a loan, either delinquent or not, does not remove it from a consumer's credit report. A delinquency, called a derogatory in the credit report trade, can be reported for 7½ years under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. If the date of first delinquency was in February of 2004, this derogatory can remain on your credit report until the end of August 2011.
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;-) :.
Augusta Township, MI  |  June 04, 2011
I just tried to dispute w Equifax about my student loan which has been paid since paid in full (due to garnishment) since July 2007. I disputed because I thought it was the Date of First Delinquency: (05/2004) would be when Equifax would the date to determine when the loan would come off from my credit report. Is this correct? Well this is what equifax replied sent to me; We have researched the credit account. Account # - 8**** The results are: Equifax verified that this item belongs to you. Additional information has been provided from the original source regarding this item. Adverse accounts that have been paid in full will automatically be deleted seven years from the date of last activity. Well you can see how a person could get confused. Please tell me which one is correct. 1st date of Del, or Date of last activity? Thanks in advance.
Bills.com
June 04, 2011
Federal student loans are reported indefinitely, and then for 7 years after final payment. Private student loans, to my understanding, are treated the same as other private debt, which is to say 7½ after the date of first delinquency. Was your student loan federal or private?
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:-) :.
Augusta Township, MI  |  June 05, 2011
Yes my loan was a federal loan, bummer so it will be on my credit report until 2014...
Stacey .
July 18, 2010
I've had a rehabilitated loan for at least 3 years. I've paid the defaulted loan on time and they went ahead and closed that account. However it is still on my report and I was told by the representative that it will be updated and removed once my new rehabbed loan takes place. I"m going to now dispute this again. I was not aware of the The higher education act of 1965
Jill .
October 13, 2009
the debt has been paid since Jan 2009. Thanks for the info and I will definitely be disputing this.
Avatar
Bills.com
October 13, 2009
You do not mention when the debt was paid. Sixty to 90 days is common for a credit report to reflect updated information. If it has been longer than 90 days, dispute the listing. See the Bills.com debt self-help center for a sample dispute listing letter.
Jill .
October 13, 2009
what if the student loan payments were garnished from my wages and the loan is now paid in full. It is still appearing on my credit report as transferred to government. When will this show as paid?
Mike .
April 21, 2009
The bad news: Due to changes in federal laws in 1998 and 2005, collection on student loans now have no statute of limitation and - with very limited exceptions - can no longer be erased though bankruptcy. (For details on the exceptions, visit the Department of Education’s website. The good news: There are many, often flexible, options available for student loan resolution. Depending on the specifics of the situation, student loan borrowers may be eligible for programs that offer extended repayment periods, modifications that are income-sensitive (salary based), or graduated (starting small and rise over time). Some plans also offer possibility of "rehabilitating" a defaulted loan, so that some or all negative information about the loan is expunged from the borrower's credit report if certain criteria are met. A good place to start your search is with the US Department of Education. You can find information on addressing your student loan debt on their website at: www.ed.gov. Options for addressing your student loan debt can also be found at Bills.com. Visit http://www.bills.com/student-loans/ where you will find a wealth of information and links to sites covering a wide-range of student loan related issues, as well as our Saving Center tool where you can apply online to be matched with a Bills.com pre-approved provider specializing in student loan repayment solutions.
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