# Hawaii statute of limitations on debt

> In Hawaii, the statute of limitations on a written contract is 6 years under HRS § 657-1(1). Periods for oral contracts, open accounts and promissory notes.

- Source: https://ottoforfirms.com/statute-of-limitations/hawaii/
- Publisher: Otto — https://ottoforfirms.com
- Updated: 2026-09-01

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In Hawaii, the statute of limitations on a written contract is 6 years under HRS § 657-1(1).

**Rule.** A written contract claim in Hawaii must be brought within 6 years.

**Authority.** [HRS § 657-1(1)](https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol13_Ch0601-0676/HRS0657/HRS_0657-0001.htm)

| Contract type | Limitations period |
| --- | --- |
| Written contract | 6 yr |
| Oral contract | 6 yr |
| Open account | — |
| Promissory note | 6 yr |

## What the statute says

> The following actions shall be commenced within six years next after the cause of action accrued, and not after: (1)  Actions for the recovery of any debt founded upon any contract, obligation, or liability, excepting such as are brought upon the judgment or decree of a court; excepting further that actions for the recovery of any debt founded upon any contract, obligation, or liability made pursuant to chapter 577A shall be governed by chapter 577A

— [HRS § 657-1(1)](https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol13_Ch0601-0676/HRS0657/HRS_0657-0001.htm)

## When does the clock start?

HRS § 657-1: six years "next after the cause of action accrued." For open accounts, HRS § 657-2 (Mutual current account): "In all actions in the nature of debt, account, or assumpsit, brought 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."

## What pauses it?

HRS § 657-18 (Extension by absence from State): if the defendant is out of the State when the cause accrues, suit may be brought within the limited term after the person's return, and post-accrual absence "shall not be deemed or taken as any part of the time limited." Chapter 657 also provides §§ 657-13 (infancy, insanity, imprisonment), 657-19 (injunction), 657-20 (fraudulent concealment), 657-21 (keeping defendant in ignorance).

Last reviewed 2026-07-26

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- [What documents you need to file suit on a credit-card debt](https://ottoforfirms.com/guides/documents-to-file-suit/) — The evidence a collections firm needs in hand before a credit-card complaint goes out: chain of title, account-level documentation, the signed agreement and its alternatives, affidavit requirements, and how proof expectations differ across Florida, Georgia, Texas and New York.

## About Otto

This table is a free reference and it is not the product. Otto is case management for US collections law firms; the rules engine ships all fifty states configured — four shown in end-to-end depth in the demo — and it checks a date like this one before a file moves rather than after.

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This is an informational reference, not legal advice, and using it creates no attorney-client relationship. Limitations periods turn on facts this page cannot know — which state's law governs, the contract type, when the claim accrued, and whether anything tolled or revived it. Confirm against the primary source and your own counsel before acting.