New Mexico debt: four years or six, and extra protection for patients
New Mexico gives creditors four years on accounts and six on written contracts, and on a credit card the signed agreement decides which. The state also has a 2021 law limiting how medical debt can be collected from low-income patients.
The check is free. If a dispute letter will help, it costs $29 ($19 for military, veterans, seniors and people with disabilities) with three follow-ups.
Who is asking you to pay?
Look at the company name at the top of the letter or in the caller ID.
New Mexico at a glance
- Written contracts, notes
- 6 years (37-1-3)
- Accounts, unwritten
- 4 years (37-1-4)
- Credit cards
- 6 years only with a signed agreement
- Wages exempt
- Greater of 75% or 40 × highest minimum wage
- Judgments
- 14 years, not renewable
- Medical debt
- Patients' Debt Collection Protection Act (2021)
General information about New Mexico law, with sources below. Not legal advice.
Four years or six in New Mexico
Six years for actions on a bond, promissory note or other contract in writing (NMSA 37-1-3), and four years for actions on accounts and unwritten contracts (37-1-4). If the creditor can produce a signed credit card agreement, the six-year period applies; otherwise the four-year account period does. On an account, the time runs from the last item, which can be the last payment or the last statement sent.
Medical debt and low-income patients
The Patients' Debt Collection Protection Act, signed on April 5, 2021, restricts collection actions against low-income patients over medical debt. If a hospital or clinic bill has gone to collections and your income is low, ask the provider whether the Act applies before paying.
Our guide to time-barred and zombie debt explains what collectors may and may not do once the 4-year limit in New Mexico has passed.
Limits vary a lot between states: by comparison, Pennsylvania sets 4 years and Wyoming sets 8 years for similar debts.
Our guide on how to dispute a debt with a collector applies in New Mexico, with a free sample letter.
Sued in New Mexico? Do not miss the deadline: read how to get a debt lawsuit dismissed before you respond.
Garnishment, judgments and licensing
The greater of 75% of disposable earnings or 40 times the highest applicable minimum wage each week is exempt from garnishment (NMSA 35-12-7). A judgment can be enforced for fourteen years (NMSA 37-1-2), and since 2021 a judgment renewed through a new lawsuit cannot be enforced more than fourteen years after the original judgment.
Third-party collection agencies must be licensed under the Collection Agency Regulatory Act through the Regulation and Licensing Department; creditors collecting their own debts are exempt. A written dispute inside the validation period makes a collector stop until it mails verification.
Our page on how to stop wage garnishment sets New Mexico's rule beside the federal limit and the strongest state protections.
National collectors active in New Mexico include Credence Resource Management and Credit Collection Services; our guides list their official dispute addresses.
Questions people ask about debt in New Mexico
What is the statute of limitations on credit card debt in New Mexico?
Six years if the creditor can produce a signed agreement (NMSA 37-1-3), otherwise four years as an account (37-1-4).
How much of my wages can be garnished in New Mexico?
The greater of 75% of disposable earnings or 40 times the highest applicable minimum wage each week is protected.
How long does a judgment last in New Mexico?
Fourteen years, and it cannot be renewed.
What is the Patients' Debt Collection Protection Act?
A 2021 New Mexico law that restricts collection actions against low-income patients over medical debt.
Do collection agencies need a license in New Mexico?
Yes, under the Collection Agency Regulatory Act. Creditors collecting their own debts are exempt.