Seven years.
1 Tax liens. 2  Paid tax liens will typically stay on your credit report for seven years from the date released (paid), while unpaid tax liens can remain on your credit report for 15 years. 3  Bankruptcies. 4  In general, the public record of a bankruptcy can stay on your credit report for 10 years. How long negative information appears on your credit report depends on the type of information: 1  Late paid accounts. 2  In general, negative information will stay on your credit report for seven years from the date of last activity. Steve, the charge-off will remain on your credit report for seven years. The Fair Credit Reporting Act states that negative items will stay on your credit report for seven years from the first date of delinquency resulting in the charge-off. Typically, a debt is charged off once it is delinquent for 120 to 180 days.  -- Lindsey. Dear Lindsey, The statute of limitations and the length of time items remain on your credit report are two completely separate issues. The length of your statute of limitations -- the number of years before a debt is time barred from collection -- is based on state law. Nothing's stopping creditors from attempting to contact you, as long as they stay within the rules. If you pay off the debt, it will be marked as paid on your credit report. If you don't pay off the debt, the best you can do is to keep your credit report clean from now on and wait for the seven years to pass. Keep a close eye on your credit from now on, and soon you can have a credit history to be proud of Most negative credit entries remain on your credit report for seven years. This includes late payments -- such paying a credit card bills more than 30 days after the due dates -- foreclosures, Chapter 13 bankruptcies and debt being sent to collections. There are, however, a few exceptions to the seven year practice. In general, negative credit entries will stay on your credit report for seven years. However, the exact amount of time varies based on factors such as whether the delayed payment or bad debt is disputable, and the source of the bad credit. - Good credit stays for 10 years and then it is aged off but can stay longer. - Bankruptcies that, from the date of adjudication, (means decision) antedate (means predate) the report by more than 10 years. - Collection accounts and charge offs remain for 7 years from first serious delinquency or charge off date. (NOT the last date of activity.) - Paying an old debt does NOT reset the clock on reporting for another 7 years. (Paid tax liens are reported for 7 years from date paid not filed! So pay them quickly!) - Records of arrest, indictment, information, misdemeanor complaint, or conviction of a crime that, from the date of disposition, release, or parole, antedate the report by more than seven years. How long a bankruptcy stays on your credit report depends on the type of bankruptcy you filed. Chapter 13 bankruptcies may be removed from your credit report after 7 years, whereas Chapter 7 and Chapter 11 bankruptcies can remain on your report for 10 years.  Accounts paid as agreed will generally stay on your credit report for up to 10 years from the date of last activity. If you’ve paid off your mortgage, for example, that positive information can stay on your credit report for up to a decade from the account’s date of last activity. How long negative information appears on your credit report depends on the type of information: 1  Late paid accounts. 2  In general, negative information will stay on your credit report for seven The Fair Credit Reporting Act is the federal law that spells, among other things, out how long negative information can remain on your credit report. The credit reporting time limit is seven years for most negative information. Certain types of negative information will stay on your credit report for longer than that. 
http://blog.equifax.com/credit/how-long-does-information-stay-on-my-credit-report/ http://www.bankrate.com/finance/debt/time-limits-old-bad-debt.aspx http://www.creditcards.com/credit-card-news/how-long-old-debt-stays-on-credit-reports-1294.php http://www.ehow.com/facts_4969733_bad-credit-stay-credit-report.html http://carreonandassociates.com/reporting-limitations-for-bad-credit http://blog.readyforzero.com/how-long-does-a-bad-mark-stay-on-your-credit-report/ http://blog.equifax.com/credit/how-long-does-information-stay-on-my-credit-report/ http://credit.about.com/od/creditreportfaq/f/negativecrinfo.htm
how long does bad debt stay on your credit