State file — Vermont
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 | 6 years · 12 V.S.A. § 511 Primary text opened at legislature.vermont.gov (Title 12, ch. 23): § 511 provides a general 6-year period for a civil action not on a judgment - no written/open split for ordinary contracts. The 8-year figure in some roundups is § 507 'specialties' (sealed instruments), not ordinary card contracts; witnessed promissory notes are 14 years (§ 508). |
| If the clock has run out | Paying part of it, or signing a written statement that the debt is yours, can restart it. From a secondary source — double-check before you rely on it No specific Vermont revival statute was located this pass. Secondary 50-state analysis reports both mechanisms exist side by side in Vermont - a part payment restarts the period and a signed written acknowledgment is required for a bare acknowledgment/promise to count. Cite left blank rather than guessed. |
| Deadline to answer a lawsuit | Serve an answer within 21 days after service of the summons and complaint in a regular civil case (small-claims answer period is 30 days) · V.R.C.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. Trustee process with a consumer-credit enhancement: for a judgment on a consumer credit transaction the exempt amount is the greater of 85% of weekly disposable earnings or 40 times the federal minimum wage - i.e. at most 15% can be taken. For non-consumer judgments the exemption is the greater of 75% or 30 times the federal minimum wage (25% cap). 12 V.S.A. § 3170 From a secondary source — double-check before you rely on it |
| Taking your bank account (a levy) | Bank deposits are reached by trustee process; Vermont's exemption list (12 V.S.A. § 2740) protects benefit income and a small wildcard/bank-balance amount when claimed and traceable, but no large automatic account floor was located this pass. 12 V.S.A. § 2740 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? | Yes — the Vermont Consumer Protection Act + Attorney General Rule CP 104 (debt collection) (9 V.S.A. § 2453; Vt. AG Rule CP 104) applies FDCPA-style rules to original creditors. Rule CP 104 (text on ago.vermont.gov) makes threats, harassment, deceptive representations and unconscionable collection means an unfair trade practice for 'any debt arising out of a consumer transaction'; secondary sources report CP 104/CPA apply regardless of whether the collector is the creditor itself, an attorney, or a third-party agency. Scope note is secondary. |
| How long a judgment lasts | 8 years — A judgment may be enforced, or renewed by a new action on the judgment, within 8 years after rendition · 12 V.S.A. § 506 From a secondary source — double-check before you rely on it |
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6 years under 12 V.S.A. § 511. 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. ().
Serve an answer within 21 days after service of the summons and complaint in a regular civil case (small-claims answer period is 30 days) (V.R.C.P. 12(a)). Most of these cases are lost by default — by never answering at all.
Trustee process with a consumer-credit enhancement: for a judgment on a consumer credit transaction the exempt amount is the greater of 85% of weekly disposable earnings or 40 times the federal minimum wage - i.e. at most 15% can be taken. For non-consumer judgments the exemption is the greater of 75% or 30 times the federal minimum wage (25% cap). (12 V.S.A. § 3170).