Subchapter II. General Relief
50 U.S.C. § 3935: How Long an SCRA Stay Lasts, and Co-Defendants
Official heading: Duration and term of stays; codefendants not in service
In one line
Sets how long a stay under this chapter can run: the whole period of service plus 90 days, or any part of it. A plaintiff may proceed against co-defendants who are not in service with the court’s approval.
- A stay may be ordered for the period of military service and 90 days thereafter, or any part of that period
- Does not govern § 3932 stays or § 4021 anticipatory relief
Text checked October 9, 2026
What § 3935 does to your money
A stay is only as useful as its length. Under § 3935 a court may stay an action, proceeding, attachment or execution for the period of military service and 90 days after, or any part of that period. It may also set the terms and amounts of installment payments it considers reasonable, so a stay can come with a payment plan rather than a full pause.
If you are sued with co-defendants who are not in military service and not entitled to relief, the plaintiff may proceed against them with the court’s approval. That matters on a joint debt: a spouse or business partner who is not a servicemember may still face the case. Section 3913 decides whether the court will extend your stay to a co-signer.
Two exceptions. This section does not govern the § 3932 stay, which has its own 90-day minimum and extension rules, or anticipatory relief under § 4021, which has its own repayment schedule. A stay with installments is often a better request than a bare pause: interest can keep accruing during a pause, while a court-set payment keeps the balance from growing and shows good faith.
The full text of 50 U.S.C. § 3935
From the United States Code, 2024 Edition, current through January 6, 2025, as published by the U.S. Government Publishing Office on GovInfo (retrieved October 10, 2026). No amendment enacted after the edition cutoff was found on Cornell LII or in GovInfo’s compiled SCRA (amended through Pub. L. 118-159, Dec. 23, 2024). House style: the Code’s em dashes before a list are shown as colons, and en dashes as hyphens or “to”; no word of the text is changed.
(a) Period of stay
A stay of an action, proceeding, attachment, or execution made pursuant to the provisions of this chapter by a court may be ordered for the period of military service and 90 days thereafter, or for any part of that period. The court may set the terms and amounts for such installment payments as is considered reasonable by the court.
(b) Codefendants
If the servicemember is a codefendant with others who are not in military service and who are not entitled to the relief and protections provided under this chapter, the plaintiff may proceed against those other defendants with the approval of the court.
(c) Inapplicability of section
This section does not apply to sections 3932 and 4021 of this title.
Enacted and amended by: (Oct. 17, 1940, ch. 888, title II, §205, as added Pub. L. 108-189, §1, Dec. 19, 2003, 117 Stat. 2844.)
Effective date: Section applicable to any case not final before Dec. 19, 2003, see section 3 of Pub. L. 108-189, set out as a note under section 3901 of this title.
Every section of the Act, including the short administrative ones without their own page, is on the section-by-section index.
Heads up: SCRA Saver publishes general information, not legal or financial advice. Laws change and every situation differs. Confirm details with your installation legal assistance office (free for service members) or a licensed professional.