How long does an IVA stay on your credit file?

An IVA (individual voluntary arrangement) stays on your credit file for 6 years from the date it started, whether it runs the full term, finishes early, or breaks down before completion. The 6-year clock is fixed to the start date, not to whenever the arrangement ends, which surprises a lot of people who have paid everything off ahead of schedule.

This matters if you are trying to work out when your file will look clear again, particularly if you are also thinking about a future remortgage.

Why the 6 years runs from the start, not the end

Credit reference agencies follow the same principle for an IVA as they do for a default or a CCJ: the clock starts when the entry is first recorded, and later events such as paying it off do not restart or shorten it. For an IVA, that recorded date is the day it was formally approved and began, not the day the last payment was made.

So if an IVA started in June 2022 and was due to run for 5 years, it would normally drop off your credit file in June 2028, six years after it started. If you finished paying it in June 2025 instead, the entry would still show as completed, but it would stay visible until June 2028 either way.

The Insolvency Register works differently

People sometimes assume the Insolvency Register and the credit file entry are the same thing. They are not.

An IVA can disappear from the Insolvency Register within months of finishing, while still showing on your credit file for years afterwards. Both matter, but for a mortgage application, it is the credit file entry a lender will see.

What happens if your IVA fails or is terminated

Not every IVA runs to completion. If payments stop or circumstances change, a supervisor can terminate the arrangement. When that happens:

• The IVA is still recorded on your credit file for the full 6 years from when it started, marked as failed or terminated rather than completed.
• The protection an IVA gives you from the included creditors usually ends, which can mean those debts become chaseable again.
• Individual creditors may then register their own defaults on those accounts, each with its own separate default date and its own 6-year period.

This can mean a failed IVA leaves more than one entry on your file: the IVA record itself, plus any fresh defaults registered afterwards. If your IVA is at risk of failing, speaking to your supervisor early, or to a free debt charity, can help you understand your options before it breaks down.

Does an IVA on your file affect your home?

An IVA does not automatically put your home at risk in the way that bankruptcy can, but many IVAs include a clause asking you to try to release equity from your home, often towards the final 6 months of the arrangement, to increase what unsecured creditors receive. Some IVAs are extended, commonly by up to 12 months, if that release of equity is not possible.

If you are in this position, check your own IVA terms or ask your supervisor exactly what is expected, since arrangements vary. Remortgaging while an IVA is still active usually needs your supervisor’s agreement, since it affects money that would otherwise go to your creditors.

What this means if you’re remortgaging with an IVA on your file

Whether an IVA on your file is a problem for a remortgage depends heavily on where you are in the process.

During an active IVA, most mainstream lenders are unlikely to consider an application, and any remortgage would usually need your supervisor’s sign-off. Our page on remortgaging during an IVA covers what that involves.

Once an IVA has completed, more options can open up, even though the entry stays on your file for the rest of the 6 years. Some specialist lenders will consider applications from people with a completed IVA, particularly once some time has passed since completion and the rest of the file looks clean. Our page on remortgaging after a completed IVA goes into this in more detail, and our remortgage after an IVA hub covers the wider picture, including how it compares with remortgaging on a debt management plan, which is an informal arrangement rather than a formal insolvency.

Bankruptcy follows a similar 6-year principle but with its own rules about your home and the trustee’s interest in it. Our guide on how long bankruptcy stays on your credit file explains the difference if you are weighing up which route applied, or applies, to your situation.

Before applying anywhere, it is worth reading your own IVA paperwork or asking your supervisor for exact dates and terms, then checking your statutory credit report free from Experian, Equifax and TransUnion to see precisely how the IVA, and any related entries, currently show. If money worries remain alongside the IVA, free and impartial guidance is available from MoneyHelper, StepChange and National Debtline.