FCRA Date of First Delinquency (DOFD)

    The date that starts the seven-year purge period for certain derogatory events.

    Updated 8/14/2025 · 1 min read

    Regulatory anchor

    The DOFD is the date on which a delinquency that ultimately led to charge-off, collection, or foreclosure first occurred. It must be accurate and immutable once established.

    Establishing DOFD

    Identify the first missed payment that was never fully cured before the charge-off/collection event.

    Lock the date at the moment the account transitions to that terminal path; do not shift the date later for partial payments or internal adjustments.

    Quality checks

    No future dates.

    No movement after initial set; any drift suggests logic errors.

    Consistent with status progression (e.g., a charge-off without a DOFD is a red flag).