Prescribed Debt Checker South Africa (2026)
Old debts do not last forever. Enter the debt type and the last date you paid or acknowledged the debt to estimate whether it has prescribed under the Prescription Act 68 of 1969. Free, instant, and answered entirely in your browser.
Prescription Check
Enter the date to check
How Prescription Works
Section 11 of the Prescription Act sets the ladder: 3 years for most consumer and commercial debts, 6 years for cheques, bills of exchange and notarial contracts, 15 years for certain debts owed to the State, and 30 years for mortgage bonds, judgment debts and tax. The clock generally starts when the debt falls due (s12), and it restarts when the debtor pays or acknowledges liability (s14). Service of a summons interrupts it judicially (s15).
Prescription is a defence, not an automatic switch: you must raise it. For credit agreements, s126B of the National Credit Act goes further and prohibits a credit provider from selling, collecting, or reactivating a prescribed debt where the defence is or would reasonably be raised. The full prescription guide covers the edge cases, including when the start of the period is delayed.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does a debt prescribe in South Africa?
Most debts prescribe 3 years after they fall due, if there has been no payment, no express (spoken or written) or tacit acknowledgment of liability, and no summons served in that time. Cheques and notarial contracts take 6 years; mortgage bonds, judgment debts and tax take 30 years.
Does making a payment restart prescription?
Yes, while the period is still running: a payment or other acknowledgment of liability interrupts prescription and the full period starts afresh from that date (s14). But a payment made only after the period has already run out does not revive the debt: prescription extinguishes the debt (s10(1)), the payment is simply treated as valid and cannot be reclaimed (s10(3)), and for credit agreements NCA s126B bars further collection regardless of any partial payment. That is why collectors push for a small "good faith" payment before the period runs out.
Can a collector still demand payment of a prescribed debt?
For credit-agreement debts, no: NCA s126B prohibits continuing collection, selling, or reactivating a prescribed debt where prescription is or would reasonably be raised as a defence. Raise the defence in writing. For non-credit debts, prescription extinguishes the claim but a voluntary payment made afterwards is treated as valid and cannot be reclaimed.
What if I was served with a summons years ago?
Service of court process interrupts prescription (s15), but not always permanently. If the creditor took judgment, the judgment debt prescribes only after 30 years. If the creditor never pursued the claim to final judgment, or abandoned it, the interruption lapses (s15(2)) and prescription is treated as never having been interrupted, so the debt may be long prescribed. Get advice on which applies.
Does this tool store or send my information anywhere?
No. The check runs entirely in your browser. Nothing you enter is saved, transmitted, or used to contact you.
This checker applies the periods in s11 of the Prescription Act 68 of 1969 and the interruption rules in ss14 and 15 to the dates you give it. It cannot verify the dates, and delayed-start rules (s12) can extend the position. It is general legal information, not legal advice, and RecordingLaw.com is not affiliated with any South African government body. Consult an attorney, or Legal Aid South Africa (0800 110 110), before relying on prescription against a claim.
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