Statute of Limitations on Debt in Kentucky (2026): 5 or 10 Years Explained

Last updated 07/31/2026 by

Andrew Latham

Edited by

Andrew Latham

Summary:

The statute of limitations on debt in Kentucky is ten years for written contracts and five years for open accounts, measured from your last payment. Credit card debt can fall under either, depending on the paperwork.

Written contracts: Ten years under KRS 413.160 for agreements made after July 2014.
Open accounts: Five years under KRS 413.120.
Credit cards: Often ten years, five if treated as an open account.

Kentucky is one of the states where the classification fight decides everything, and the gap here is unusually wide.

Whether your card debt is a written contract or an open account can swing the deadline by five years.

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What is the statute of limitations on debt in Kentucky

Kentucky gives creditors and collectors ten years to sue on a written contract made after July 2014, set by KRS 413.160, and five years on an open account under KRS 413.120.

Credit card debt often falls under the ten-year written-contract limit, but it can be five years if treated as an open account. Once the applicable window closes, the debt is time-barred and a collector cannot win a lawsuit to force payment.

The debt still exists after the limit passes. You continue to owe it, but the legal power to sue over it is gone.

Kentucky statute of limitations by debt type

The limit that applies depends on how your debt is classified under Kentucky law.

Debt type	Time limit	Kentucky statute
Written contract (after July 2014)	10 years	KRS 413.160
Open account / oral	5 years	KRS 413.120
Credit card	5 to 10 years	KRS 413.120 or 413.160
Written contract (before July 2014)	15 years	KRS 413.090

How credit card debt is classified in Kentucky

Credit card debt in Kentucky usually falls under the ten-year written-contract limit because courts often treat a signed cardholder agreement as a written contract.

If a collector cannot produce that signed agreement, the debt may be treated as an open account with the shorter five-year limit under KRS 413.120.

Kentucky also shortened its written-contract limit from fifteen years to ten for agreements executed after July 15, 2014, so the age of the account matters.

When the clock starts in Kentucky

The clock starts on the date of your last payment or default, not the day you opened the account.

If you made your final credit card payment in April 2020, a ten-year window would generally close around April 2030.

Pro Tip: Given Kentucky’s long ten-year window, confirm your date of last payment before you make any payment on an old debt.

A payment or written acknowledgment can restart the clock from zero, and here that reset can extend your exposure by a full decade.

Time-barred debt and your Kentucky credit report

The lawsuit limit is separate from credit reporting. Under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act, most negative debts stay on your report for seven years from the first delinquency.

In Kentucky this can flip the usual pattern: a written credit card debt can stay legally enforceable for ten years while aging off your credit report after seven.

Key takeaways

Kentucky allows ten years to sue on written contracts under KRS 413.160 and five years on open accounts under KRS 413.120.
Credit card debt often falls under the ten-year limit but can be five if treated as an open account.
Written contracts made before July 2014 can carry a fifteen-year limit under KRS 413.090.
The clock starts on your last payment or default.
A payment or written acknowledgment can restart the clock from zero.
Time-barred debt can still appear on your credit report for up to seven years.

Frequently asked questions

What is the statute of limitations on credit card debt in Kentucky?

Usually ten years, under the written-contract limit in KRS 413.160, running from your last payment. It can be five years if the debt is treated as an open account under KRS 413.120, which often happens when a collector cannot produce a signed agreement.

Can a debt collector still contact me after the limit passes in Kentucky?

Yes. The statute of limitations only bars lawsuits, not contact. A collector can still ask you to pay, but under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act they cannot sue or threaten to sue over a time-barred debt.

Does paying an old debt restart the clock in Kentucky?

It can. A payment or a written acknowledgment that the debt is yours generally restarts the period, so confirm whether the debt is already time-barred before you pay anything.

If old balances are piling up, comparing structured debt relief options can consolidate several collector accounts into one negotiated plan.