Credit Card Grace Periods

If a consumer loses a purchase grace period by not paying the required balance in full, interest can apply to the unpaid balance and to new purchases from their transaction dates under the card terms.

Grace periods typically apply to purchases and generally do not apply to cash advances, which commonly begin accruing interest on the transaction date.

Credit card issuers generally must adopt procedures designed to ensure periodic statements are delivered at least 21 days before the payment due date when grace-period timing rules apply.

A deferred-interest promotion is not the same thing as a regulatory grace period.