New Hampshire credit and debt laws

New Hampshire statute of limitations on debt

• Written contracts. New Hampshire's three-year rule covers all personal actions except slander and libel. The Attorney General's consumer guide says most debt claims on a written credit contract must be brought within 3 years of the payment default.
• Promissory notes. For a note payable on a set date, the six years run from the due date in the note, or from the accelerated due date.

Time limits to sue vs. time on your credit report

The New Hampshire 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.

Does New Hampshire limit lawsuits on old debt?

New Hampshire 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 New Hampshire

New Hampshire 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

New Hampshire 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?

New Hampshire 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 New Hampshire, complaints about debt collectors and credit reporting can go to New Hampshire Department of Justice, Consumer Protection and Antitrust Bureau, as well as to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

More to know in New Hampshire

New Hampshire allows three years for all personal actions except slander and libel (N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. 508:4), and the Attorney General's consumer guide says most debt claims on a written credit contract must be filed within 3 years of the payment default. Contracts under seal and court judgments get 20 years (508:5), so a debt already turned into a judgment can be collected for much longer. Negotiable promissory notes have six years from the due date (382-A:3-118). The state's collection practices law, RSA 358-C, reaches creditors collecting their own debts, not only collection agencies. If a creditor or collector breaks it, a court awards the greater of actual damages or $200 and reduces the debt by that amount. Complaints about New Hampshire collection agencies go to the Consumer Protection and Antitrust Bureau. New Hampshire 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.