Hawaii gives creditors six years to sue on a debt founded on any contract, written or not. But if the claim arose outside Hawaii, the deadline drops to four years. That second rule, in HRS § 657-6, is unusual, and for a credit card issued by an out-of-state bank it raises a question the statute does not answer: where did the claim arise?
The deadlines, and where each one is written
| What is being collected | Deadline to file suit | Statute |
|---|---|---|
| Recovery of any debt founded upon any contract, obligation, or liability | 6 years | HRS § 657-1(1) |
| Personal actions not specifically covered elsewhere | 6 years | HRS § 657-1(4) |
| Recovery of a debt founded on a contract where the cause of action arose in a foreign jurisdiction | 4 years | HRS § 657-6 |
| Judgment of a Hawaii court | 10 years, extendable to no more than 20 | HRS § 657-5 |
Section 657-1 says the actions it lists “shall be commenced within six years next after the cause of action accrued, and not after.” Its first category is “actions for the recovery of any debt founded upon any contract, obligation, or liability,” which does not distinguish written from oral agreements. It excludes actions on judgments and debts made under chapter 577A, which has its own rule.
Six years or four? Where the claim arose decides it
Section 657-6 provides that, subject to § 657-9, “actions for the recovery of any debt founded upon any contract, obligation, or liability, where the cause of action has arisen in any foreign jurisdiction … shall be commenced within four years after the cause of action accrued, and not after.” The chapter does not define where a cause of action “has arisen,” and it never mentions credit cards.
What this means in practice: a Hawaii resident who used a card from a mainland bank could face either the six-year rule or the four-year rule, depending on where a court decides the claim arose. The statute does not say, so we mark this as unresolved rather than pick one. If you are sued on an old debt from a lender based outside Hawaii, the four-year rule is worth raising.
When the clock starts, and what pauses it
For one kind of account the code sets the start date. Under § 657-2, in actions “to recover any balance due upon a mutual, open, and current account, the cause of action shall be deemed to have accrued from the time of the last item proved in the account.” Otherwise the chapter does not define accrual for a card or loan.
Section 657-18 pauses the clock while the debtor is out of the state: the action may be brought within the usual period “after the return of the person into the State,” and time spent living elsewhere after the claim accrues does not count. Section 657-19 pauses it while an injunction is in force.
What restarts the clock in Hawaii: no statute says
Part I of Chapter 657 has no section on payments, acknowledgments, or new promises. The case notes the Legislature publishes with § 657-1 point to court decisions on the subject, under headings such as “Part payment as new promise” and “Acknowledgment and new promise,” with cases going back to 1893. One note summarizes the rule as requiring an “express promise or admission of debt which party is liable to pay.”
Those are summaries of case law, not statutory text. They show that Hawaii courts have treated payments and acknowledgments as capable of restarting the clock, but the legislature has not written the rule down, and the details depend on the facts of each case.
Debts from other states
Alongside the four-year rule, § 657-9 is a borrowing statute. When a claim arose elsewhere and cannot be maintained there because of the lapse of time, “an action thereon shall not be maintained against the person in this State, except in favor of a domiciled resident thereof, who has held the cause of action from the time it accrued.”
How often Hawaii consumers report collection problems
Hawaii consumers filed 389 debt collection complaints with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in the 12 months ending October 7, 2026, which is 0.1% of the 316,737 filed nationwide and ranks 45th among reporting states.
Of those, 94, or 24% of the Hawaii total, were categorized as a collector taking or threatening to take negative or legal action, against 25% nationally.
These are raw complaint counts, not rates. They are not adjusted for population, and a complaint is an allegation the CFPB has published, not a finding that a company broke the law. The figures refresh weekly from the CFPB’s public database.
If you are sued on a debt you believe is too old
The statute of limitations is a defense you have to raise in your answer. A person who does not respond to a Hawaii collection suit can lose by default, and a Hawaii judgment can last ten years and be extended toward twenty under § 657-5.
Two Hawaii-specific things to check: whether the debt arose outside Hawaii, which could bring in the four-year rule of § 657-6 or the borrowing rule of § 657-9; and whether the creditor claims a payment or acknowledgment restarted the clock, which is a question of case law. Court deadlines are short, so this is a point at which speaking with a Hawaii attorney or a legal aid organization is worth the call.
How Hawaii compares
The same question gets a different answer a state line away. These are the closest comparisons to Hawaii:
- Washington: six years, and nothing revives a debt once the period runs
- Oregon: six years written or oral, and suing on expired debt is unlawful
- California: four years on a written contract and two on an oral one
The full comparison table covers every state we have published.
Sources and verification
Statutes quoted from the Hawaii Revised Statutes as published by the Hawaii State Legislature, Chapter 657, Part I (Personal Actions). Provisions cited: HRS §§ 657-1, 657-2, 657-5, 657-6, 657-9, 657-18, and 657-19; we read every section of Part I. Section histories show § 657-1 last amended in 1978, § 657-6 last amended in 1943, and § 657-5 last amended in 2001. The case-note summaries quoted above are published with § 657-1 and are not statutory text. Text retrieved October 2, 2026. Complaint data: CFPB Consumer Complaint Database, filtered to the Debt collection product and the Hawaii state field over a rolling 12-month window, re-queried weekly by this site. Our data sources and update policy lists every figure on this site that refreshes automatically and how often.
This page explains what the Hawaii statutes say. It is general information, not legal advice. It does not decide whether a particular debt “arose” outside Hawaii, and it does not state what restarts the clock, because Chapter 657 does not address either question.
Frequently asked questions
What is the statute of limitations on debt in Hawaii?
Six years for the recovery of any debt founded upon any contract, obligation, or liability under HRS § 657-1(1), whether or not the contract is written. If the cause of action arose outside Hawaii, § 657-6 sets four years.
Is credit card debt six years or four in Hawaii?
The statute does not name credit cards. Six years is the general rule, but § 657-6 gives four years where the claim arose in a foreign jurisdiction, and the code does not define where a card debt arises when the issuer is outside Hawaii.
Does a payment restart the statute of limitations in Hawaii?
No Hawaii statute says. Chapter 657 has no section on payments or acknowledgments. Court decisions noted with § 657-1 have treated part payment and acknowledgments as capable of restarting the clock, depending on the facts.
How long does a Hawaii judgment last?
Ten years under HRS § 657-5, unless extended. An extension must be sought within ten years, and no judgment may be extended beyond twenty years from the original date.