Texas
Four years, across the board.
Oral contracts, written contracts, promissory notes and open accounts all carry a four year statute in Texas. One number is easy to remember, and just as easy to let slip past.
Where we collect
All 50 states. And international. Every one of them has a deadline.
We collect commercial debt nationwide and internationally. Where your customer is matters for one reason above all: each state sets its own statute of limitations on business debt, and once it runs, the invoice is just paper.
The map is a clock
Fifty states. Fifty different deadlines.
There is no single national deadline for collecting a commercial debt. Every state puts its own statute of limitations on a written contract and another on an open account, and they are not the same length. When the debtor is in one state, the creditor in another and the contract names a third, working out which clock is running is the first real job on the account.
That is the practical reason to move on an old receivable now rather than next quarter. You do not want to learn which deadline applied to you by missing it.
All 50 states
Wherever they are. Licensed wherever it is required.
We are licensed in every state that requires a collection license, and we can legally collect in all 50 states and around the world. Your customer's state does not limit what we can do. It only decides which clock is running.
California
Two years on a handshake.
A written contract, a promissory note or an open account runs four years in California. An oral agreement runs only two, so a deal done over the phone needs to be worked quickly.
Statute of limitations by state
How long you have in every state.
In years, by type of debt: an oral contract, a written contract, a promissory note and an open account. The shortest one that applies to your account is the one to watch.
| State | Oral | Written | Note | Open |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 6 | 6 | 6 | 3 |
| Alaska | 6 | 6 | 3 | 3 |
| Arizona | 3 | 6 | 6 | 3 |
| Arkansas | 5 | 5 | 5 | 3 |
| California | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Colorado | 6 | 6 | 6 | 3 |
| Connecticut | 3 | 6 | 6 | 3 |
| Delaware | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| D.C. | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Florida | 4 | 5 | 5 | 4 |
| Georgia | 4 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Hawaii | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Idaho | 4 | 5 | 5 | 4 |
| Illinois | 5 | 10 | 10 | 5 |
| Indiana | 6 | 10 | 10 | 6 |
| Iowa | 5 | 10 | 5 | 5 |
| Kansas | 3 | 6 | 5 | 3 |
| Kentucky | 5 | 15 | 15 | 5 |
| Louisiana | 10 | 10 | 10 | 3 |
| Maine | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Maryland | 3 | 3** | 6** | 3 |
| Massachusetts | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Michigan | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Minnesota | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Mississippi | Call us | |||
| Missouri | 5 | 10 | 10 | 5 |
| State | Oral | Written | Note | Open |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montana | 3 | 8 | 8 | 5 |
| Nebraska | 4 | 5 | 5 | 4 |
| Nevada | 4 | 6 | 3 | 4 |
| New Hampshire | 3 | 3 | 6 | 3 |
| New Jersey | 6 | 6 | 6 | 3 |
| New Mexico | 4 | 6 | 6 | 4 |
| New York | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| North Carolina | 3 | 3* | 5 | 3 |
| North Dakota | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Ohio | 6 | 15 | 15 | 6 |
| Oklahoma | 3 | 5 | 5 | 3 |
| Oregon | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Pennsylvania | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Rhode Island | 10 | 5 | 6 | 4 |
| South Carolina | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| South Dakota | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Tennessee | 6 | 6 | 6 | 3 |
| Texas | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Utah | 4 | 6 | 6 | 4 |
| Vermont | 6 | 6 | 5 | 3 |
| Virginia | 3 | 5 | 6 | 3 |
| Washington | 3 | 6 | 6 | 3 |
| West Virginia | 5 | 10 | 6 | 5 |
| Wisconsin | 6 | 6 | 10 | 6 |
| Wyoming | 8 | 10 | 10 | 8 |
* North Carolina: 10 years if the contract is under seal.
** Maryland: 12 years if the contract or promissory note is under seal.
Please note. Statutes of limitations change, and this chart may not reflect the current law in every state. It is general information, not legal advice. The deadline on a particular account can also depend on the contract and on the history of the account. Call us for the details on yours. Chart compiled June 2024.
State guides
Know the clock in your customer's state.
International
Owed by a company in the States? Act before the statute runs.
Whether the debtor is in the same town or overseas, the reach is there to recover what is owed, along with the experience to work across different laws and jurisdictions.
Foreign sellers owed by companies in the United States tend to wait too long, often out of politeness or distance, and the American deadline does not wait with them. If you are an overseas creditor with an unpaid invoice here, the time to ask is now.
Questions
About where and how long.
Do you collect in my state?
Yes. We collect in all 50 states and internationally, and we are licensed in every state that requires a collection license. It does not matter which state you are in or which state your customer is in.
My customer is in a different state than I am. Which state’s rules apply?
It depends on the contract and on where the debtor is, and it is one of the first things worked out on a new account, because each state sets its own statute of limitations on written contracts and on open accounts. It is also a reason not to wait: the shorter of the possible deadlines is the one that can hurt you.
Can you collect from a company in another country, or for one?
Yes. We work domestic and international claims, including overseas creditors who are owed money by companies in the United States. Waiting too long to act is the most common and most expensive mistake foreign sellers make.
Does freight follow the same deadlines?
No. Freight claims under Section 7 and Title 49 run on an eighteen month clock rather than the state statute of limitations, which is why we keep dedicated freight collectors.
Commercial (B2B) collections only. We do not collect consumer debt.
Let’s go get your money.
Bring the account. You get a straight answer on whether it is worth placing, what the timeline looks like and what it will take to get you paid.