State file — Illinois
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 | 10 years (written contract) / 5 years (open account) · 735 ILCS 5/13-206; 735 ILCS 5/13-205 Expect 5 years for most card cases after Feltman, with collectors arguing for 10. Contested: Written contracts get 10 years under §13-206, but in Portfolio Acquisitions, LLC v. Feltman, 391 Ill. App. 3d 642 (2009), the court held the card paperwork did not add up to a single written contract, so the 5-year period in §13-205 applied. Collectors still argue for 10 years when a signed agreement exists. |
| If the clock has run out | Signing a written statement that the debt is yours — or a signed promise to pay — can restart it. Paying alone cannot. 735 ILCS 5/13-206 Only a payment or new promise made in writing restarts the clock: the statute allows an action within 10 years after a payment or promise in writing, made within or after the original period. A bare part payment with nothing in writing does not do it. |
| Deadline to answer a lawsuit | 30 days after service to file an answer or appearance; small-claims cases instead use the appearance (return) date printed on the summons · Ill. S. Ct. R. 101(b), 181(a) From a secondary source — double-check before you rely on it |
| Taking your paycheck (wage garnishment) | More protective than the federal cap. A wage deduction is capped at the lesser of 15% of gross pay for the week, or the amount by which disposable earnings exceed 45 times the greater of the federal or Illinois minimum wage — much more protective than the federal 25% rule. 735 ILCS 5/12-803 |
| Taking your bank account (a levy) | On a consumer debt judgment, $1,000 in a checking or savings account is protected automatically — the bank must leave it alone until the court return date — as part of a $4,000 wildcard the debtor can apply to any personal property, including bank money. Benefit income such as Social Security is fully exempt. 735 ILCS 5/12-1001(b); 735 ILCS 5/12-1001.1 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 Illinois, and federal law still bans deceptive practices by the bank itself. |
| How long a judgment lasts | 15 years — None for consumer debt judgments entered on or after Jan. 1, 2026 — they are enforceable for 15 years and may not be revived (P.A. 104-120). Consumer judgments entered in 2020–2025 could be revived once if a petition was filed within 10 years; older judgments follow the old 7-year enforcement-and-revival cycle. · 735 ILCS 5/2-1602(a-10); 735 ILCS 5/12-108 |
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.
10 years (written contract) / 5 years (open account) under 735 ILCS 5/13-206; 735 ILCS 5/13-205. 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).
Signing a written statement that the debt is yours — or a signed promise to pay — can restart it. Paying alone cannot. (735 ILCS 5/13-206).
30 days after service to file an answer or appearance; small-claims cases instead use the appearance (return) date printed on the summons (Ill. S. Ct. R. 101(b), 181(a)). Most of these cases are lost by default — by never answering at all.
A wage deduction is capped at the lesser of 15% of gross pay for the week, or the amount by which disposable earnings exceed 45 times the greater of the federal or Illinois minimum wage — much more protective than the federal 25% rule. (735 ILCS 5/12-803).