Montana credit and debt laws

Montana statute of limitations on debt

• Accounts not founded on a writing. The five-year rule names a contract, account or promise not founded on an instrument in writing.

Time limits to sue vs. time on your credit report

The Montana deadlines above control how long a creditor or collector can win a lawsuit. They don't change how long an account stays on your credit report. The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act limits most negative items to 7 years in every state, counted from the date of first delinquency, and a payment doesn't restart that reporting clock. See how long negative items stay for both clocks side by side.

Can a payment restart the clock?

An acknowledgment or a part payment, meaning any payment of principal or interest, starts the limitations period running anew. An acknowledgment counts only if it is in a writing signed by you (Mont. Code Ann. 27-2-409).

Does Montana limit lawsuits on old debt?

Montana law adds no rule of its own on suing over old debt. The federal Regulation F ban on suing or threatening suit over time-barred debt applies to debt collectors.

Medical debt on credit reports in Montana

Montana has no law of its own limiting medical debt on credit reports, so the national rules decide what shows. The three bureaus leave off paid medical collections and any under $500, and an unpaid one can't appear until it is a year old.

Compare every state in medical debt laws by state.

Marriage and debt

Montana is not a community property state. Each spouse keeps a separate credit report, and a debt generally belongs to the people who signed for it.

Can employers check your credit?

Montana has no statewide law limiting employer credit checks. The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act still requires your written permission before an employer pulls your report.

Where to complain about a debt collector

In Montana, complaints about debt collectors and credit reporting can go to Montana Department of Justice, Office of Consumer Protection, as well as to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

More to know in Montana

Montana gives six years to sue on a contract founded on a written instrument and five years on a contract, account or promise that isn't (Mont. Code Ann. 27-2-202). Other obligations not founded on a writing have three years under the same section. The revival rule reaches payments as well as signed letters. Under 27-2-409, any part payment of principal or interest starts the full period running again, and so does a signed written acknowledgment of the debt. That means a small payment on an old account can give a creditor a fresh five or six years to sue. The Office of Consumer Protection in the Department of Justice takes consumer complaints online. Montana has no law keeping medical debt off credit reports. It is not a community property state, and it has no statewide law limiting employer credit checks.

Guides that go deeper

• The statute of limitations on debt, and how a payment can reset itA statute of limitations limits when a collector can sue, not whether it can ask you to pay. How the clock starts, how it can restart, and what Reg F bans.
• How zombie debt and illegal re-aging bring old debts backZombie debts are old, paid, or wrong debts that resurface after a sale. Re-aging is reporting a newer delinquency date. How to spot and fight both.
• Sued by a debt collector? What to do in the first 2 weeksA debt lawsuit you ignore usually ends in a default judgment. What to read on the summons, how to respond on time, and where to find free legal help.
• Which states ban medical debt on credit reports? The 2026 listFifteen states have laws keeping medical debt off credit reports. The statute, start date and reach of each, plus the bureau rules that apply everywhere.
• Medical debt on credit reports: the rules in force in 2026The federal medical debt ban was struck down in 2025. What still protects you in 2026: bureau policies, newer scores, state laws and hospital aid rules.