Last reviewed: 9 October 2026
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The minimum payment warning on your credit card statement: what it must say
Regulation Z requires a card issuer to put a bold “Minimum Payment Warning” on each periodic statement for a credit card account, along with an estimate of how long minimum payments alone would take to pay off the balance, what that would cost in total, and what monthly payment would clear the balance in 36 months.[1] The requirement comes from 15 U.S.C. § 1637(b)(11).[2] This page explains each item in that box and the cases where it changes or disappears. It does not tell you what to pay.
The short version
- The warning wording is fixed. The regulation’s text is: “Minimum Payment Warning: If you make only the minimum payment each period, you will pay more in interest and it will take you longer to pay off your balance”[1]
- The estimates assume nothing else changes. They are based on the balance shown on that statement and on the assumption that only minimum payments are made and no other amounts are added to the balance.[1]
- There is a 36-month comparison. The statement generally also shows the monthly payment that would pay off the balance in 36 months, a statement that the issuer estimates the balance would be repaid in 3 years at that payment, the total cost at that payment, and the savings compared with minimum payments.[1]
- There is a credit counseling number. The issuer must give a toll-free number where you can get information about credit counseling services.[1]
What each item in the box means
| Item on the statement | What the regulation says |
|---|---|
| Minimum payment repayment estimate | Disclosed in months if it is less than 2 years, otherwise in whole years rounded to the nearest year.[1] (The statute itself says the number of months rounded to the nearest month.) It is the time to pay the balance if the consumer pays only the required minimum payments and no further advances are made.[2] |
| Minimum payment total cost estimate | The interest and principal paid if minimum payments are made for the length of time of the repayment estimate, rounded to the nearest dollar or cent at the issuer’s option.[1][3] |
| Estimated monthly payment for repayment in 36 months | The level payment that would pay off the balance shown on the statement in 36 months, assuming the same amount is paid each month for 36 months. The statement must also say the issuer estimates the balance will be repaid in 3 years if that payment is made each month for 3 years.[1][3] |
| Total cost estimate for repayment in 36 months | The interest and principal paid if that 36-month payment is made each month for 36 months.[3] |
| Savings estimate for repayment in 36 months | The minimum payment total cost estimate minus the 36-month total cost estimate.[3] |
| Credit counseling telephone number | Through that number the issuer must give, to the extent available from the United States Trustee or a bankruptcy administrator, the name, address, telephone number and website of at least three organizations approved under 11 U.S.C. § 111(a)(1), and must update that information at least annually.[1] |
How the issuer calculates the estimates
Appendix M1 to Regulation Z tells the issuer to use the minimum payment formula that applies to the account and the annual percentage rates that apply to the balance. If an account has more than one minimum payment formula, the issuer discloses the longest repayment period it calculates.[3] For a promotional rate, the issuer applies the promotional rate until it expires and then the rate that applies afterward.[3] The statute likewise says the creditor applies the interest rate in effect on the date of the disclosure until the balance would be paid in full, with a separate rule for a temporary rate that will change under an index or formula.[2] The practical consequence is that the figures on your statement are an issuer calculation for your account on that date, and they change from month to month as the balance, the rate and the minimum payment change.
When the statement shows something different
Minimum payments that never pay off the balance
If the minimum payment calculation produces negative or no amortization, the issuer must replace the standard box with a different warning: “Even if you make no more charges using this card, if you make only the minimum payment each month we estimate you will never pay off the balance shown on this statement because your payment will be less than the interest charged each month” It must also say that paying more than the minimum means paying less interest and paying off the balance sooner, give the 36-month monthly payment, state that the issuer estimates the balance would be repaid in 3 years if that payment is made each month for 3 years, and give the credit counseling number.[1]
When the 36-month figures are left out
The 36-month disclosures do not have to appear when the minimum payment repayment estimate, after rounding, is three years or less, or when the 36-month payment (after rounding) would be less than the plan’s required minimum payment for that cycle. They are also not required in a cycle in which the account has both a revolving balance that will not amortize in a fixed time and a fixed-repayment balance that will amortize in under 36 months.[1]
When the whole box is not required
The repayment disclosures do not apply to charge card accounts that require payment in full each billing cycle, to a billing cycle that follows two consecutive cycles in which the consumer paid the balance in full or had a zero or credit balance, or to a cycle in which the minimum payment due would pay the entire balance.[1] The rule covers credit card accounts under an open-end (not home-secured) plan.[1]
An example of the 36-month arithmetic
The numbers below are our own illustration, using the standard amortization formula and an invented balance and rate. They are not a statement from any issuer, and an issuer’s calculation under Appendix M1 may differ in rounding and in how it handles several balances at different rates.
| Assumed balance | APR | Level payment for 36 months | Total paid over 36 months |
|---|---|---|---|
| $3,000 | 24% | $117.70 | $4,237.15 (about $1,237 of it interest) |
On a real statement, the savings line compares that 36-month total cost with the minimum payment total cost estimate that your own issuer computed.[3]
What this page does not cover
It does not cover home equity lines, the late payment fee and penalty rate warnings that sit in the same area of the statement, or how an issuer sets the minimum payment amount in the first place. It does not say whether the figures on your statement are right; that depends on your account terms. If you think a statement contains an error, see credit card billing disputes. For rate rules, see when a card issuer can raise your rate.
Your next step
The box on the front of your statement shows these figures for your account today, and the regulation above is the key for reading each line. For where counseling fits among your options, see nonprofit credit counseling and debt management plans and how to verify a nonprofit credit counseling agency. For how revolving balances affect scores, see the credit utilization ratio.
When we will update this page
We revisit it when 15 U.S.C. § 1637, Regulation Z § 1026.7 or Appendix M1 is amended. The eCFR and statute text were read on 9 October 2026.
What you can do next
- Find a company — see which specific US companies we checked and what we could verify.
- How we check — the rules and sources behind each result.
- More credit help guides
- Report an error on this page or in a result.