How Does Sequestration Affect Your Credit File In Scotland?
The credit reference agencies hold insolvency data for six years from the start of the bankruptcy, under their own published retention schedules. No statute, no statutory instrument and no Financial Conduct Authority rule sets that period.
It runs from the award rather than from your discharge, which is the part most pages get wrong. Being discharged at twelve months does not restart the clock.
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Free, confidential and no obligation.There are also two separate records and they are routinely merged into one. The Register of Insolvencies is public and statutory; your credit file is private and commercial.
Nothing below tells you what a lender will do afterwards. No official Scottish source publishes lending criteria or a waiting period, and any page that gives you one is guessing.
How long does sequestration stay on your credit file?
Six years for live lending decisions, and the agencies do not all say it the same way. Experian gives six years from the start date or the stated end date, whichever is later.
The three schedules, in their own words
| The agency | What it publishes for insolvency data | The tail beyond that |
|---|---|---|
| Experian | Six years from the start date, or until the stated end date, whichever is later | A further five years for profiling and statistical analysis |
| Equifax | Discharged records: six years from the court date, for live decision making | Undischarged: at least six years, or until discharge if later |
| TransUnion | Ten years from the date of the relevant insolvency | The most recent six years is what is used for live lending decisions |
Equifax measures a discharged record from the court date, and TransUnion holds ten years and uses six.
So the honest sentence is that six years is what the industry uses to decide whether to lend to you, not the point at which the data is deleted. The extra years are for profiling and statistical work.
Why the start date matters more than the discharge date
Experian’s wording measures from the start of the insolvency, with the end date only displacing it if it falls later. A twelve-month discharge therefore sits inside the six years rather than ending them.
Equifax’s undischarged wording pulls the other way, keeping the record at least six years or until discharge if that is later. How long sequestration lasts sets out the discharge clock itself.
Which law says six years?
None does. The only legal control is the storage limitation principle in Article 5(1)(e) of the UK GDPR, which is a principle rather than a period.
What actually sets it
| Who or what | What it sets | The detail |
|---|---|---|
| A statute or statutory instrument | Nothing | No enactment sets a period for credit data |
| The Financial Conduct Authority | Nothing | No rule in the Handbook sets one |
| UK GDPR Article 5(1)(e) | A principle, not a period | Data must not be kept longer than is necessary |
| The Principles of Reciprocity | The terms on which lenders share data | Run by the Credit Information Governance Body since 31 May 2026 |
| Each agency's own retention schedule | The actual six years, ten years or eleven years | Published under CRAIN, and they differ from each other |
| The Information Commissioner | Reports the periods without setting them | Its consumer guidance cites no legal source for six years |
The industry agreement is the Principles of Reciprocity, and since 31 May 2026 they have been run by the Credit Information Governance Body rather than by the Steering Committee on Reciprocity.
Any page still explaining the six years by reference to SCOR is out of date. That body ceased to operate on 31 May 2026.
The regulator has never set it either
The Information Commissioner’s Office reports the six years in its consumer material and cites no legal source for it.
The joint industry notice says the same in its own way. The Credit Reference Agency Information Notice, in the version adopted on 2 December 2024, says each agency may retain data for different periods of time.
How long debt information stays on a credit file deals with the wider question across every kind of entry.
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Free, confidential and no obligation.How does a sequestration reach your credit file?
Through the public register. Section 200 of the Bankruptcy (Scotland) Act 2016 requires the Register of Insolvencies to hold sequestrations, and the agencies take insolvency data from the Accountant in Bankruptcy.
The chain, and it is checkable at both ends
The Accountant in Bankruptcy runs a commercial data download from the register, and the main credit reference agencies subscribe to it. The joint industry notice names the Accountant in Bankruptcy among its sources of insolvency data.
So the entry does not depend on any single creditor reporting it. Whether your sequestration is public sets out what the register itself holds.
What the register entry actually contains
The Accountant in Bankruptcy publishes a defined set of fields, including your name, address, date of birth and the level of debt at the date of bankruptcy. That is a fuller record than most people expect.
It is also the reason the data reaches the agencies without any creditor doing anything. The register is the source and the download is the route.
Your own accounts are a separate feed
Each lender reports the status of its own account, and those entries are not the insolvency entry. They have their own retention periods, which is why a file can look busy long after the bankruptcy line appears.
Is your credit file the same as the Register of Insolvencies?
No, and the two periods are unrelated. Neither of them sets the other, and only one of them exists in statute.
The two records compared
| The question | The Register of Insolvencies | Your credit file |
|---|---|---|
| Who holds it | The Accountant in Bankruptcy | Experian, Equifax and TransUnion |
| Who can see it | Anyone, free of charge | Organisations you apply to, and you |
| What creates it | Section 200 of the Bankruptcy (Scotland) Act 2016 | A data feed, plus what your own lenders report |
| How long it lasts | No statutory period exists at all | Each agency's own published schedule |
| Can you correct it | Errors are for the Accountant in Bankruptcy | Section 159 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 gives you a route |
| Does one set the other | No | No, and a page saying otherwise has merged two things |
There is no retention period for the register in the Act or the regulations. The figures in circulation come from guidance, and they do not reconcile with each other.
A page that explains the six years by saying that is how long the register keeps you has merged two different things. The register question deals with what is actually published there.
How this differs from the other Scottish solutions
No credit reference agency publishes a retention rule for a Debt Arrangement Scheme. Experian, Equifax and TransUnion all publish what they hold and for how long, and none of them lists a Debt Arrangement Scheme at all.
A Debt Arrangement Scheme is not an insolvency, so the insolvency schedules do not reach it. Whether a Debt Arrangement Scheme shows on your credit file sets out what was checked.
A protected trust deed is an insolvency and is treated like one, and how long a trust deed stays on your credit file gives the same three schedules applied to it.
What happens to the accounts behind the insolvency entry?
They are separate entries with separate retention. The insolvency line and the account lines come off at different times.
What the agencies publish for accounts
| The data | Experian | Equifax | TransUnion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Credit account performance, including defaults | Eleven years, six of them for live decisions | Up to four years of monthly performance, plus six years after closure | Ten years from closure or default, six years used |
| Decrees and judgments | Eleven years, six of them live | Six years following the court date | Ten years from the judgment, six years used |
| Hard search footprints | One year, plus five years for profiling | Two years for debt collection searches, one year otherwise | Six years held, two years used |
A default recorded before the award has its own clock running from the default date. That is why two people discharged on the same day can have very different looking files.
Checking what is actually recorded is the practical step. How long debt information stays on a credit file covers each type of entry.
Borrowing while you are undischarged
Section 218(13) makes it an offence to obtain credit of £2,000 or more without disclosing that your estate has been sequestrated and you have not been discharged.
While you are undischarged you must tell a lender you are bankrupt if you are borrowing £2,000 or more, or any amount at all if you already owe £1,000 or more.
Utility charges and council tax are left out of that £1,000 calculation.
These are disclosure duties rather than bans. The offence is borrowing without saying, not borrowing.
Does a bankruptcy restrictions order change the position?
It can, and it is the one thing that reaches past the usual six years. TransUnion publishes that restrictions orders may stay in active use beyond six years.
What an order is, and how long it runs
Section 159(2) gives an order made by the Accountant in Bankruptcy a length of between two and five years, and one made by the sheriff between five and fifteen.
There is no such thing as a bankruptcy restrictions undertaking in Scotland. The 2016 Act provides for orders and interim orders only, and undertakings belong to the law of England and Wales.
Orders are made on conduct grounds rather than on the size of the debt. They are not a routine part of every sequestration.
The credit thresholds are not automatic
The credit restrictions are not automatic. Section 157(1) lets the decision maker specify that they apply, which means some orders carry them and some do not.
So a page telling you that every order carries the same borrowing rules is overstating it. Which jobs and professions sequestration affects covers the other consequences of an order.
What can you do about the entry?
Check that it is accurate, and use the statutory correction route if it is not. Section 159 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 still applies and no competitor page in this market mentions it.
The route, with its deadlines
Section 158 gives a right to a copy of your file, and in practice all three agencies provide one free under data protection law.
Where an entry is incorrect and likely to prejudice you, you may require the agency to remove or amend it. The agency then has 28 days to say what it has done.
If you are not satisfied, you have a further 28 days to require a notice of correction of not more than 200 words to be added. The agency has 28 days to confirm compliance or refer the matter on.
The Information Commissioner is the backstop where an agency will not comply.
Two practical checks
Check that the start date on the insolvency entry matches the date of the award. Check that each account it relates to shows the balance as satisfied or included rather than still running.
Those two checks catch most of what actually goes wrong. Neither of them depends on anyone’s goodwill.
What nobody can tell you
No official Scottish source publishes lending criteria or a waiting period after discharge. Treat any confident claim about when a mortgage becomes possible as marketing.
What is knowable is the record itself and its published retention. What a sequestration costs and whether a trust deed would be better are the decisions worth taking advice on instead.
Frequently asked questions
How long does bankruptcy stay on a credit file in Scotland?
Six years for live lending decisions under the agencies’ own published schedules, though Experian holds a further five years for profiling and TransUnion holds ten years in total.
Does the six years run from discharge?
No. Experian measures from the start date, or the stated end date if that is later, so a twelve-month discharge sits inside the period rather than ending it.
Is six years the law?
No. No statute, statutory instrument or Financial Conduct Authority rule sets it, and the only legal control is the storage limitation principle in Article 5(1)(e) of the UK GDPR.
Is the Register of Insolvencies the same as your credit file?
No. The register is public, statutory and kept by the Accountant in Bankruptcy, while your credit file is commercial and kept by the agencies, and neither period sets the other.
Can you borrow while you are undischarged?
Only with disclosure. Section 218(13) makes it an offence to obtain credit of £2,000 or more, or any amount while you already owe £1,000 or more, without disclosing that you are undischarged.
Does a bankruptcy restrictions order show separately?
TransUnion publishes that restrictions orders may stay in active use beyond six years. An order made by the Accountant in Bankruptcy runs for two to five years, and one made by the sheriff for five to fifteen.
Can you get the entry removed early?
Not if it is accurate. Where it is wrong you can require the agency to remove or amend it under section 159 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974, and add a notice of correction of up to 200 words.
When will you be able to get a mortgage again?
No official source publishes an answer, and this page will not invent one. What is published is how long the data is held, not what any lender will decide.
Related guides
- Is Your Sequestration Public On The Register Of Insolvencies? What the register shows, who can search it and for how long, why the entry outlasts discharge, and how it differs from a credit file.
- How Long Does Sequestration Last In Scotland? When discharge comes, why twelve months is a decision rather than a date, what carries on afterwards, and how long the record lasts.
- Does Discharge From Sequestration End Everything After 12 Months? What discharge releases, what keeps running afterwards, how the trustee's own discharge differs, and when yours can be delayed.
- How Long Does Debt Information Stay On Your Credit File? Why six years is convention rather than law, what each of the three agencies publishes, when the clock starts, and how to challenge an entry that overstays.
- How Long Does MAP Bankruptcy Stay On Your Credit File? Six years from the date the bankruptcy begins, why the public register clears much sooner, and what else sits on your file alongside it.
- How Long Does A Trust Deed Stay On Your Credit File? When the six years start and finish, why the date you granted the deed matters more than discharge, and how the entry differs from the public register.
- Does A Debt Arrangement Scheme Show On Your Credit File? The public DAS Register, how a programme reaches a credit file through your creditors, how long it lasts, and how it compares with a trust deed.
- Which Jobs And Professions Does Sequestration Affect In Scotland? The five roles closed off by statute, what the company director rule says, where the position is unresolved, and how long it lasts.
- Can You Have A Bank Account While You Are Bankrupt In Scotland? What happens to the money in your account on the day of the award, whether a bank can refuse or close it, and which features go.
- How Does Sequestration Work In Scotland? The three routes in, who becomes your trustee, what you pay, what happens to the things you own, and what discharge does not clear.
Written as general information about Scottish debt law rather than regulated financial or legal advice, and your own circumstances may change the answer. Free, impartial help is available from Citizens Advice Scotland, StepChange, National Debtline and Advice Direct Scotland.