State file — Rhode Island
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 · R.I. Gen. Laws § 9-1-13(a) From a secondary source — double-check before you rely on it 'Except as otherwise specially provided, all civil actions shall be commenced within ten (10) years next after the cause of action shall accrue' — Rhode Island has no shorter contract-specific period, so written, oral and open-account/card debt all sit at 10 years, among the longest in the country. UCC sale-of-goods claims are 4 years (§6A-2-725) and do not govern a card account claim. |
| If the clock has run out | Paying part of it, or signing a written statement that the debt is yours, can restart it. R.I. Gen. Laws § 9-1-13 (acknowledgment/part-payment case law) From a secondary source — double-check before you rely on it No Rhode Island revival statute was located this pass; secondary debt guides treat a part payment or a written acknowledgment as restarting the 10-year period under general acknowledgment doctrine. Marked secondary and flagged for primary verification before any consumer-facing claim about revival mechanics. |
| Deadline to answer a lawsuit | 20 days after service of summons and complaint · R.I. Super. Ct. R. Civ. P. 12(a) From a secondary source — double-check before you rely on it |
| Taking your paycheck (wage garnishment) | More protective than the federal cap. Garnishment may reach only wages in excess of the amount exempt by law (§10-5-8, child support has priority); the exemption incorporated by §9-26-4 yields the commonly stated cap of the lesser of 25% of disposable earnings or the amount by which disposable earnings exceed 40 times the federal minimum wage. NEW: for judgments based on MEDICAL debt, wage garnishment is barred from January 1, 2026 under §10-5-8 as amended by 2025 P.L. ch. 300/301 — that bar does not extend to credit-card judgments. R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 10-5-8, 9-26-4 From a secondary source — double-check before you rely on it |
| Taking your bank account (a levy) | Bank accounts are reachable by trustee process/attachment subject to the exemptions in §9-26-4 (which exempt specified earnings, benefit income and enumerated personal property, plus a modest general exemption); no Rhode Island bank-account-specific dollar exemption was located this pass. R.I. Gen. Laws § 9-26-4 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 Rhode Island, and federal law still bans deceptive practices by the bank itself. |
| How long a judgment lasts | 20 years — An action on a judgment (and on a contract under seal) may be brought within 20 years (§9-1-17); a judgment lien executed against real property is deemed discharged after 20 years (§9-26-33). Note the trap: a WRIT OF EXECUTION on a judgment must issue within 6 years (§9-25-3) — that is an execution deadline, not the judgment's life. No renewal is needed within the 20 years. · R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 9-1-17, 9-26-33, 9-25-3 From a secondary source — double-check before you rely on it |
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10 years under R.I. Gen. Laws § 9-1-13(a). 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. (R.I. Gen. Laws § 9-1-13 (acknowledgment/part-payment case law)).
20 days after service of summons and complaint (R.I. Super. Ct. R. Civ. P. 12(a)). Most of these cases are lost by default — by never answering at all.
Garnishment may reach only wages in excess of the amount exempt by law (§10-5-8, child support has priority); the exemption incorporated by §9-26-4 yields the commonly stated cap of the lesser of 25% of disposable earnings or the amount by which disposable earnings exceed 40 times the federal minimum wage. NEW: for judgments based on MEDICAL debt, wage garnishment is barred from January 1, 2026 under §10-5-8 as amended by 2025 P.L. ch. 300/301 — that bar does not extend to credit-card judgments. (R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 10-5-8, 9-26-4).