Credit glossary
CARD Act
The Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009, which limited card rate hikes and penalty fees and added statement disclosures.
The law, passed in 2009 and carried out through Regulation Z, reshaped card pricing. The CFPB's 2013 review says it prevented unexpected rate hikes, required penalty fees to be reasonable and proportional, made over-limit fees opt-in, and required applicants under 21 to show an independent ability to pay or have a cosigner over 21. Issuers must also deliver statements at least 21 days before the payment due date.
Two pieces matter every month. The 21-day gap is why your reported balance and your payment deadline fall on different days. And the minimum payment warning on each statement, required by Regulation Z, shows how long repayment would take at the minimum and what monthly payment would clear the balance in 36 months. Read that box before deciding how much to pay.
Guides that go deeper
- Statement closing date vs. due date: which one sets your utilizationYour card usually reports your balance on the statement closing date, weeks before the due date. See the timeline, the math, and how to time payments.
- Balance transfers and your credit: the score side and the cost sideA balance transfer moves debt, it doesn't shrink it. What a new transfer card does to inquiries, utilization and account age, plus the fee and payoff math.
Sources
- CFPB Finds CARD Act Reduced Penalty Fees and Made Credit Card Costs Clearer (Oct. 2, 2013), Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
- 12 CFR 1026.5: General disclosure requirements (Regulation Z), eCFR
- 12 CFR 1026.7, Periodic statement (Regulation Z), eCFR
This is education, not legal or financial advice. Spot an error? Tell us and we'll fix it.