New Jersey credit and debt laws

New Jersey statute of limitations on debt

• Written contracts. Covers contract claims, express or implied, that are not under seal. Contracts for the sale of goods are excluded and follow N.J. Stat. Ann. 12A:2-725.
• 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.
• Accounts not tied to the trade of merchandise. The six-year rule names actions on an account other than one that concerns the trade or merchandise.

Time limits to sue vs. time on your credit report

The New Jersey 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?

A spoken acknowledgment or promise does not restart the clock. It has to be in a writing signed by you, and the statute leaves in place the effect of a payment of principal or interest made by anyone on the debt (N.J. Stat. Ann. 2A:14-24).

Does New Jersey limit lawsuits on old debt?

New Jersey 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 Jersey

Under the Louisa Carman Medical Debt Relief Act, medical creditors and medical debt collectors may not report a patient's medical debt to the credit bureaus for care provided on or after the law took effect. The bureaus may not include paid medical debt, or any medical debt under $500, in a credit report, no matter when it was incurred. The law also requires provider contracts that bar collectors from furnishing medical debt to the bureaus. The law: N.J. Stat. Ann. §§ 56:11-57, 56:11-58, 56:11-59(4)(d), 56:11-62 (P.L.2024, c.48). In effect since July 22, 2024.

Compare every state in medical debt laws by state.

Marriage and debt

New Jersey 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 Jersey 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.

Do debt collectors need a New Jersey license?

A collection agency must have a bond on file with the Secretary of State before collecting in New Jersey or soliciting collection work (N.J. Stat. Ann. 45:18-1).

In New Jersey, complaints about debt collectors and credit reporting can go to New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs, as well as to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

More to know in New Jersey

New Jersey gives six years to sue on a contract, written or oral, and on most accounts (N.J. Stat. Ann. 2A:14-1). Negotiable promissory notes also get six years from the due date (12A:3-118). Contracts for the sale of goods are carved out and follow the commercial code instead. To restart the clock, an acknowledgment or promise must be in a signed writing, while a payment keeps whatever effect it already has (2A:14-24). Collection agencies must post a bond with the Secretary of State before collecting. The medical debt rules come from the Louisa Carman Medical Debt Relief Act, P.L.2024, c.48, signed July 22, 2024, and its credit reporting section took effect that day. Providers and their collectors can't report medical debt for care given after the law took effect, and the bureaus can't show paid medical debt or any medical debt under $500, whatever its age. New Jersey 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.