Tools · Debt
Missouri Debt Statute of Limitations Calculator (2026)
Enter your last payment or activity date to see when the Missouri limitations period would run out for your debt type — credit-card debt runs 5 years, a written contract 10 years (§516.110). Every result flags revival.
Missouri debt statute-of-limitations calculator
These are the Missouri figures applied to the date you entered — a plain summary of the period, not a determination that any debt is or is not time-barred (too old to sue over).
Under §516.320, once a debt is barred, a new acknowledgment or promise to pay revives it only if it is in writing and signed by the person to be charged. A verbal promise does not count. Be careful before the period expires too: making a partial payment or signing anything that admits the debt can reset the running clock, so do not make a payment or sign an acknowledgment on an old Missouri debt without understanding the effect.
The date above assumes no new activity. A statute of limitations does not erase the debt or remove it from your credit report — it is a defense you must raise if you are sued after the period runs. In many states a partial payment or a signed written acknowledgment can restart the clock entirely, so be careful before paying or signing anything on an old account. Revival rules are complex and this is informational only, not legal advice.
- Debt type
- Credit-card debt
- Time limit to sue (SOL period)
- 5 years
- Last payment / activity
- Not entered
- Period runs out
- —
- Revival
- Only a signed writing revives it
Plain-language summary, not legal advice.
Informational only, not legal advice. The statute of limitations is complex, classification-dependent, and revival can reset it — this tool cannot decide your case. See the full breakdown and citations on the Missouri debt statute-of-limitations reference, cited to Mo. Rev. Stat. §516.110; §516.120; §516.320.
How the Missouri debt clock works
Missouri runs a wide split that catches many people off guard: 10 years for a written promise to pay money or property under §516.110, and only 5 years for oral contracts, open accounts, and general contract claims under §516.120. Ten years is one of the longest written-contract windows in the nation, so a signed note in Missouri can stay enforceable far longer than debt in most states. The practical fight is almost always about which side of that line a debt falls on. Ordinary credit-card accounts usually land on the 5-year open-account side because there is rarely a signed writing that fixes the amount owed. Collectors sometimes reach for the 10-year period by pointing to a "cardholder agreement," so it pays to ask exactly what signed instrument they are relying on. To revive a debt that is already barred, Missouri requires a signed writing under §516.320.
This tool applies the Missouri periods to the date you enter and assumes no new activity. It is informational only and not legal advice — revival can reset the clock and classification can change the period. For the full four-type breakdown, revival rule, and citations, see the Missouri debt statute-of-limitations reference.
Debt statute-of-limitations tools for other states
Same tool, each with its own periods and revival rule.