Criminal Defense Lawyers

Statute of Limitations Expired: When Can Federal Prosecutors Still Charge You?

When Time Runs Out: Has Your Federal Statute of Limitations Expired?

The letter arrived five years and three days after you submitted that PPP loan application. Your hands are shaking. Can they still charge you? Your staring at the envelope from the FBI, and your not sure wether the goverment can still prosecute or if you’re in the clear. The statute of limitations is suppose to protect you—but does it? And more importantly, has it actually expired for you’re specific situation?

Look, here’s the deal. The federal statute of limitations ain’t as simple as “five years and your safe.” Their are exceptions. Extensions. Tolling rules that pause the clock. And if you miscalculate by even one day, the difference could be freedom versus federal prison.

This article breaks down exactly how the federal statute of limitations works, what the exceptions are, and how to calculate wether your past the deadline or still in danger. We’re talking about all 94 federal judicial districts, every U.S. Attorney’s Office from Manhattan to Los Angeles to Miami. The rules are the same everywhere—but how prosecutors apply them varies alot.

The General 5-Year Rule (And the Exceptions That Destroy It)

Most people Google “federal statute of limitations” and see the same answer everywhere: five years. That comes from 18 U.S.C. § 3282, which says the goverment can’t prosecute you for a non-capital federal crime if more then five years have passed since you commited it. Seems straightforward, right?

Wrong.

Here’s the thing—that five-year rule is just the default. Congress has created all kinds of exceptions, and if your not aware of them you could think your safe when you’re actually still facing serious exposure. I mean we’re talking about exceptions that double the statute, triple it, or eliminate it completly.

Financial institution crimes get 10 years, not 5. This is where alot of people mess up. If you took a PPP loan in 2020 and lied on the application, you might of thought the statute expired in 2025. But PPP loans are backed by the Small Business Administration, which makes them financial institution offenses under 18 U.S.C. § 3293. That means the goverment has 10 years to indict you—not 5. So if the fraud occured in March 2020, there actually safe until March 2030.

Think about that for a second. Someone who commited bank fraud in 2019 might of celebrated in 2024 thinking they was in the clear after five years passed. But the prosecutor can still file charges all the way through 2029. That’s a brutal suprise.

And it gets worse. Some federal crimes have a 20-year statute of limitations. Theft of major artwork under 18 U.S.C. § 3294 gives prosecutors two full decades. Certain terrorism offenses get eight years under 18 U.S.C. § 3286. And capital offenses—murder, treason, espionage—they have no statute of limitations at all. The goverment can charge you 30 years later if they want.

But wait, there’s more. You also have to worry about state charges for the same conduct. Let’s say you commited wire fraud, which is a federal crime with a five-year statute. But that same conduct might also violate state fraud laws, and your state might have a six-year or even ten-year statute. So even if the federal statute expired, you could still get prosecuted by the state. The clocks run seperately.

I mean think about it—your sitting their thinking “I’m safe, it’s been five years” and then the state attorney general indicts you based off the same facts. Federal expiration doesn’t equal state expiration, irregardless of what you might of assumed. Both clocks are ticking at the same time, and they don’t stop when the other one runs out.

The 2025 PPP Fraud Timeline You Need to Know

Right now—and I mean right now in late 2025—there’s a massive wave of PPP fraud cases hitting the statute of limitations deadline. The Paycheck Protection Program distributed loans from March 2020 through May 2021. For most borrowers, that means the five-year statute (or ten-year for financial institution fraud) is expiring between March 2025 and May 2026.

The DOJ knows this. Their rushing to indict cases before the deadline hits. The DOJ’s Pandemic Fraud Strike Force has been working overtime trying to beat the clock. If you applied for a PPP loan in April 2020 and the goverment thinks you lied on the application, they have until April 2025 (five-year statute) or April 2030 (ten-year statute) depending on how they charge it.

But here’s what matters: if they haven’t indicted you by the expiration date, they can’t charge you. Period.

So if your wondering “am I safe yet?” the answer depends on the exact date of the offense and which statute applies. You need to calculate: offense date + applicable statute period = expiration date. Miss that calculation, and you might take a plea when you could of gotten the whole case dismissed. Ain’t no fixing that mistake once you’ve plead guilty.

Tolling vs. Extension—Why the Clock Might Not Have Started

Okay so you’ve calculated you’re five years. You think the statute expired last month. Your ready to breath a sigh of relief. Then the prosecutor says “actually, the statute was tolled.” What does that even mean?

Here’s what alot of defense attorneys don’t explain well: tolling and extension are completly different things, and prosecutors mix them up all the time. If you understand the diffrence, you can challenge wrongful tolling claims that could save you’re case.

Extension means you had a longer statute from the very begining. Like how financial institution crimes get 10 years instead of 5. The clock started on day one, it just runs for a longer period. Their’s no pause—you just have more time from the start. It’s baked into the statute itself.

Tolling means the clock pauses temporarily, then starts again. For example if you become a fugitive (meaning you leave the jurisdiction to avoid prosecution), the statute stops running while your gone. When you come back, it starts again. So if you commited fraud in 2020, then moved to Mexico in 2022 and came back in 2024, those two years in Mexico don’t count. The five-year clock paused, and it resumes when you return.

The problem is prosecutors sometimes claim tolling when it doesn’t actually apply. I’ve saw cases where the goverment argued “the statute was tolled because we was still investigating” or “it was tolled because the defendant didn’t know about the investigation.” That’s not how it works. The statute runs wether the goverment is investigating or not. They can’t just pause it because there slow.

Real talk: if the prosecutor can’t point to a specific tolling provision in the statute, there probably trying to extend the deadline when they don’t have the authority to do so. Challenge it.

But here’s a tricky one: continuing offenses. Some crimes don’t have a start date for the statute because the offense never ends. If your still recieving money from a fraud scheme, the fraud is “continuing” and the statute hasn’t started running yet. This applies to stuff like money laundering, ongoing RICO violations, and some conspiracy charges.

If you commited fraud in 2018 but your still getting payments from it in 2025, the goverment might argue the statute hasn’t even begun. That means you could be prosecuted in 2030 for conduct that started 12 years ago, based off the theory that it’s a continuing offense. It’s a brutal rule.

And one more thing people don’t know: sealed indictments don’t extend the deadline. Let’s say the prosecutor files a sealed indictment (meaning it’s kept secret from you) in 2024, then waits until 2026 to unseal it and arrest you. You might think “they waited to long!” But actually if they filed the indictment before the statute expired, it doesn’t matter when they unsealed it. The filing date is what counts, not the arrest date.

So you could discover you was indicted years ago, and as long as the indictment was filed before the statute ran, your out of luck. The seal protects the investigation but it doesn’t give them extra time to indict. They still have to meet the deadline—they just don’t have to tell you about it right away.

Conspiracy and Overt Acts—How Your Co-Defendant Extended Your Exposure

Here’s where it gets really unfair. Let’s say you participated in a fraud scheme back in 2018. You did you’re part, took your cut, and stopped. You haven’t done anything illegal since then. It’s now 2025—seven years later. Your thinking “I’m definately safe, the statute expired in 2023.”

But then the FBI arrests you. How? Conspiracy charges.

For conspiracy cases, the statute of limitations runs from the last overt act by any conspirator—not from when you personally stopped. So even though you quit the scheme in 2018, if one of you’re co-defendants took an action in 2023 (like moving money, making a false statement, whatever), the statute doesn’t expire until 2028. Your co-defendant’s conduct extended you’re exposure by five more years.

I mean think about how messed up that is irregardless of fairness. You could of been living clean for seven years, but because someone else in the conspiracy did something in 2023, the goverment can still charge you. The statute runs from there last act, not yours. And you might not even know they was still active in the scheme.

And it doesn’t even have to be a major act. An “overt act” can be pretty much anything done to further the conspiracy—a phone call, a bank transfer, even just a meeting. As long as one conspirator does something, the clock keeps running for everybody.

So if your trying to figure out wether your conspiracy case is time-barred, you can’t just look at when you stopped. You have to know: when did the last conspirator take the last action? And good luck finding that out if your not in touch with them anymore.

One more thing: prosecutors love to file sealed indictments right before the statute expires. They might indict you in 2024 (within the statute), keep it sealed for two years, then arrest you in 2026. You won’t even know you was indicted until they come knocking. And by then you can’t argue the statute expired because they filed within the deadline—you just didn’t know about it.

The One-Day Deadline—Midnight on Day 1,825 Changes Everything

Your facing federal charges. The crime occured exactly five years ago—or maybe five years and one day. Your lawyer says “it’s close.” The prosecutor says they filed in time. Your freedom depends on wether the grand jury voted before or after midnight on one specific day.

This ain’t theoretical. This is real. One day makes all the difference.

The statute requires the indictment to be “found” within five years. That doesn’t mean the prosecutor started the investigation within five years. It doesn’t mean they was working on it. It means the grand jury must return the indictment before the deadline. And “found” means the grand jury votes—not when the prosecutor files paperwork later.

So let’s do the math. Say you commited PPP loan fraud on March 15, 2020. Five years from that date is March 15, 2025. The statute expires at midnight on March 15, 2025. If the grand jury returns the indictment on March 15, 2025 at 11:59 PM, your getting charged. If they return it on March 16, 2025 at 12:01 AM—one day late—the case gets dismissed. Period.

Federal courts have dismissed cases for being one day late. I’m not exagerating. The statute of limitations is a jurisdictional requirement, which means judges don’t have discretion. If the goverment missed the deadline by even one day, the court must dismiss the case. Their’s no “close enough.” No “good faith effort.” No exceptions for prosecutor error.

Think about how insane that is from both sides. If your the defendant and the indictment came one day late, you walk free—even if your obviously guilty. If your the prosecutor and you miscalculated by one day, you lose the entire case irregardless of how strong you’re evidence is.

One. Day.

And here’s the kicker: the goverment has to prove they filed in time. If their’s any dispute about the date, the burden is on the prosecutor to show the indictment was timely. So if you’re attorney challenges the statute and the prosecutor can’t prove the exact date the grand jury voted, you might get the case dismissed even if it was probably timely.

Right now in late 2025, this is happening with PPP fraud cases. Loans that was approved in March or April 2020 are hitting the five-year mark. Prosecutors are scrambling to indict before the deadline. Some defendants are getting indicted on the last possible day. Others are slipping through because the goverment waited to long.

If you recieved a PPP loan in 2020 and haven’t been charged yet, here’s what you need to know: Calculate the exact date you submitted the application. Add five years (or ten if they charge it as financial institution fraud). If that date has passed and you haven’t been indicted, the goverment probably can’t charge you anymore. But if that date is coming up in the next few months, the prosecutor might be preparing an indictment right now—trying to beat the clock.

And if you’ve already been charged and you think the indictment might of been late, you need a lawyer to file a motion to dismiss immediately. This isn’t something you argue at trial. It’s a pretrial motion, and if the statute expired the judge has to dismiss before you ever get to a jury.

Look I’ve seen defendants who could of gotten there entire case thrown out because the indictment was two days late, but they didn’t realize it. By the time there lawyer figured it out, they’d already taken a plea deal. Don’t let that be you. If your close to the statute deadline, get a lawyer who knows how to calculate it precisely and who will file the motion if the goverment missed the cutoff.

The Exceptions That Never Expire—Capital Crimes, Terrorism, DNA, and Wartime

Okay so we’ve talked about five-year statutes, ten-year statutes, tolling, extensions—but what if your crime has no statute of limitations at all?

For certain federal offenses, the goverment can charge you 30 years later. 40 years. Whenever they want. Their’s no deadline.

Capital offenses have no statute. That includes any crime punishable by death—murder, treason, espionage, certain terrorism charges. According to Congressional Research Service reports, these crimes can be prosecuted at any time. So if you commited a capital offense in 1995, the goverment can still indict you in 2025. Irregardless of how much time has passed.

Certain terrorism and sex offenses also have no statute. After 9/11, Congress extended or eliminated statutes for alot of terrorism-related crimes. Some terrorism charges get eight years under 18 U.S.C. § 3286, but others have no limit. And federal sex trafficking, certain child abuse offenses—these can be prosecuted decades later based off the nature of the crime.

But here’s the one that catches people off gaurd: the DNA exception. Under 18 U.S.C. § 3297, if the goverment identifies you through DNA evidence, they can prosecute certain violent crimes even if the normal statute expired. So let’s say you commited a federal assault in 1998. The five-year statute expired in 2003. But in 2024, the FBI runs old DNA evidence through a database and gets a match to you. Under the DNA exception, they can charge you now—more then 20 years later.

This has happened. People who commited crimes in the 1990s are getting charged in 2024 because DNA technology finally caught up. The statute “restarts” when the DNA identifies the suspect, even if the original statute expired decades ago. So if you commited a violent federal crime 25 years ago and left DNA at the scene, your not safe just because the five-year statute passed. The DNA exception means that clock could start running again tomorrow if they get a match.

And here’s one almost nobody knows about: wartime fraud gets an extra five years. Under 18 U.S.C. § 3287, if you defrauded the U.S. goverment during a time of war or when Congress has authorized military force, the statute is extended by five years or three years after the war ends—whichever is later. Now technically the Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) from 2001 is still in effect. So you could argue that PPP fraud, government contract fraud, or other fraud against federal agencies during the “war on terror” gets the wartime extension.

Prosecutors rarely invoke this statute, but it exists. And if your facing fraud charges related to goverment funds and your close to the statute expiring, don’t be suprised if the prosecutor tries to claim the wartime extension applies. I ain’t saying it’s a strong argument, but I am saying they might try it.

Bottom line: if your crime involved violence, terrorism, sex offenses, or was against a federal law enforcement officer, you need to check wether a special statute applies. Don’t assume it’s five years just because that’s the general rule. The exceptions can destroy that assumption.

Federal Districts and How Prosecutors Actually Use These Rules

Here’s what the statutes say. But how do prosecutors actually use them? That varies based off which U.S. Attorney’s Office is handling your case.

The Southern District of New York (Manhattan federal court) is known for agressive prosecution of financial crimes. They’ll use every tolling argument, every extension, every exception to preserve there ability to charge you. If your case is in SDNY and your close to the statute expiring, expect the prosecutor to fight hard to claim some exception applies.

Other districts—especially smaller ones with less resources—might let cases go if the statute is about to expire and the investigation isn’t complete. They have to prioritize, and if there running out of time on a case that isn’t there highest priority, they might just let it go.

But don’t count on that. Some U.S. Attorneys’ Offices have made PPP fraud a priority irregardless of the district size. The DOJ’s Pandemic Fraud Strike Force is coordinating prosecution across all 94 federal districts, and there pushing to indict before the statute runs.

The point is: the statute of limitations is a federal law that applies everywhere, but how prosecutors use it—wether they rush to indict before the deadline or let cases go—varies alot based off local priorities and resources.

What to Do RIGHT NOW—Calculate Your Date and Get a Lawyer

So you’ve read all this. You understand the statute might have expired—or might not have. You know about tolling, extensions, conspiracy rules, the one-day deadline. Now what?

Here’s you’re action plan based off where you are:

If you haven’t been charged yet:

• Calculate the exact date of the offense (when you submitted the false application, when you recieved the money, when you made the misrepresentation—whatever the criminal act was)
• Add the applicable statute: 5 years for most crimes, 10 years for financial institution offenses, 8 years for terrorism, 20 years for art theft, or no limit for capital crimes
• Check wether any tolling might apply (was you a fugitive? Is it a continuing offense?)
• If the expiration date has passed and you haven’t been indicted, your probably in the clear—but talk to a lawyer to confirm
• If the expiration date is coming up in the next 6-12 months, the goverment might be preparing charges right now. Consider talking to a federal criminal defense attorney about wether you should proactively cooperate or just wait it out.

If you’ve been charged and you think the statute might of expired:

• Get a lawyer immediately—like today, not next week
• Your attorney needs to file a motion to dismiss based off the statute of limitations. This is a pretrial motion, and it has to be filed before trial.
• The burden is on the goverment to prove the indictment was timely. If their’s any ambiguity about the date, that works in you’re favor.
• If the judge grants the motion, the case gets dismissed and the goverment can’t refile (double jeopardy doesn’t apply because you was never convicted, but they can’t fix a statute of limitations problem by refiling).

If your not sure wether you committed a crime or wether anyone is investigating:

Don’t do anything that could be seen as obstruction. Don’t destroy documents. Don’t lie to federal agents if they contact you (lying to a federal agent is itself a crime under 18 U.S.C. § 1001, and that lie starts a new statute of limitations). But also don’t voluntarily give statements without a lawyer present. You have the right to remain silent, and you should exercise it until you have legal advice.

And here’s the thing—if the statute is about to expire, the goverment might rush to indict just to beat the deadline, even if there case is weak. They can always dismiss it later, but they want to preserve the option. So if your close to the expiration date, expect the possibility of last-minute charges.

Don’t Guess When Your Freedom Is on the Line

The federal statute of limitations is suppose to protect you from being prosecuted for old conduct. But it’s full of exceptions, tolling rules, and traps. The diffrence between freedom and federal prison can come down to wether the grand jury voted on March 15 or March 16. Wether the goverment charges you with bank fraud (10 years) or wire fraud (5 years). Wether you was part of a conspiracy that continued after you stopped.

If you think the statute might have expired on you’re case, don’t guess. Get a federal criminal defense lawyer who can calculate it precisely. If the goverment missed the deadline by even one day, you could get the entire case dismissed. But if you don’t raise it in time, you’ll lose that defense forever.

Call a lawyer. Right now. Your facing this alone otherwise.