A late payment generally stays on your credit report for up to seven years from the original date it became delinquent and was first reported as late.

How long late payments stay

  • Most negative late-payment marks (30, 60, 90 days late, etc.) remain on your credit reports for up to 7 years from the original delinquency date.
  • This seven‑year rule applies even if the account is later paid and brought current; the late mark itself still ages off at around the seven‑year point.
  • If multiple payments are missed in a row, the first missed payment in that series is what starts the seven‑year clock.

What happens to the account itself

  • If the account stays open and you get back to on‑time payments, the late mark falls off after about 7 years, but the open, positive account can remain and help your credit history.
  • If an account is closed in good standing (paid off, no past‑due balance), it can stay on your report for up to 10 years as a positive item, even though any old late marks tied to it drop off after 7 years.
  • If the account was charged off or sent to collections and then closed while past due, the entire negative account usually disappears about 7 years after the original delinquency that led to the charge‑off.

How much it hurts (and for how long)

  • The biggest impact from a late payment is usually in the first 6–24 months; over time, as you build newer on‑time history, its effect on your scores tends to diminish even though it still appears on the report.
  • Payment history is a major part of many scoring models (around 35% in FICO), so avoiding new late payments is one of the most effective ways to recover.

Quick example

If you were reported 30 days late in June 2022 but caught up in July 2022, that late mark would typically fall off around June 2029, seven years after it was first reported, while the now‑current account could remain as a positive tradeline.

Bottom line: expect a late payment to stay visible for about seven years, but its sting softens over time if you consistently pay on time going forward.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.