Negative credit accounts, or trade lines, can remain on your credit report for up to 7 years, and bankruptcies and other public records for up to 10 years. Inquiries on your credit report may remain for 2 years. These are the maximum times that are permitted by federal law for reporting agencies to show negative items; however, these times are not mandatory. At any time, a creditor or credit bureau may remove a derogatory remark from your credit report if the consumer requests an investigation into remarks that they feel are incorrect.