United States · Federal statutory limitations
How is the one-year state-prisoner habeas limitation determined?
Section 2244(d) generally supplies one year for a federal habeas application by a person in custody under a state judgment. The clock starts from the latest applicable event among four statutory branches. Qualifying time while a properly filed state postconviction or other collateral-review application is pending is excluded. A judgment date alone cannot determine the complete deadline.
- Period
- One year from the latest applicable section 2244(d)(1) event, excluding qualifying section 2244(d)(2) pendency
- Trigger
- Latest applicable statutory commencement branch, with qualifying state collateral-review pendency
- Rule
- 28 U.S.C. § 2244(d)(1)(A)–(D) and (d)(2)
S. Code, laws in effect January 6, 2025. The subsequent-law review covers the retained 119th Congress corpus through Public Law 119-118, approved September 30, 2026. Its scoped candidate findings do not establish every claim-specific exception or later judicial application. This page requires the stated covered cause and legally established event.
Source guide · No automated date
How is the one-year state-prisoner habeas limitation determined?
The latest-of four commencement events and properly filed state collateral-review intervals are not captured by a single trigger date. No computed or paid habeas deadline is supplied.
28 U.S.C. § 2244(d)(1)(A)–(D) and (d)(2)What lawyers say
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Which event starts this particular limitation?
Section 2244(d) generally supplies one year for a federal habeas application by a person in custody under a state judgment. The clock starts from the latest applicable event among four statutory branches. Qualifying time while a properly filed state postconviction or other collateral-review application is pending is excluded. A judgment date alone cannot determine the complete deadline.
Responsible actor. The person in custody pursuant to a state-court judgment applying for federal habeas relief.
Establish finality at conclusion of direct review or expiration of the time to seek it.
Review the statutory state-created impediment, newly recognized retroactive right and diligently discoverable factual-predicate branches.
Identify each properly filed state collateral application and its legally established pending interval.
This guide concerns state-judgment custody and section 2244(d). It does not determine direct-review finality, state application filing or pendency, or a separate federal-prisoner section 2255 claim.
28 U.S.C. § 2244(d)(1)(A)–(D) and (d)(2)Which statutory comparisons and filing events must be resolved?
- Latest applicable statutory commencement branch, with qualifying state collateral-review pendency
- Determine the latest applicable event under section 2244(d)(1)(A)–(D), then identify every qualifying properly filed state collateral-review interval under subsection (d)(2). Count the limitation clock with those exclusions and the applicable filing law. This guide supplies no judgment-date anniversary or automatically restarted year.
- Establish the complete habeas limitation analysis and applicable filing rules. Preserve direct-review and collateral-review dockets, orders and filing evidence.
Retained 2024 annual U.S. Code, laws in effect January 6, 2025. The subsequent-law review covers the retained 119th Congress corpus through Public Law 119-118, approved September 30, 2026. Its scoped candidate findings do not establish every claim-specific exception or later judicial application. This page requires the stated covered cause and legally established event. Court computation uses the retained December 1, 2025 FRCP compilation; identified agency regulations use their separately stated 2026 API editions.
The latest-of four commencement events and properly filed state collateral-review intervals are not captured by a single trigger date. No computed or paid habeas deadline is supplied.
28 U.S.C. § 2244(d)(1)(A)–(D) and (d)(2)What distinguishes these procedural facts?
Two fictitious prisoners have state judgments entered on the same date. Their direct-review histories and properly filed state collateral applications differ. The shared judgment date does not establish identical section 2244(d) clocks.
The latest-of four commencement events and properly filed state collateral-review intervals are not captured by a single trigger date. No computed or paid habeas deadline is supplied.
Which qualifications can change this limitation analysis?
- Latest applicable event
- Each branch has statutory conditions; a recent discovery allegation does not automatically replace direct-review finality.
- Properly filed state application
- The statute excludes qualifying pending time. The date a prisoner signs a document does not by itself establish every filing or pendency condition.
- Separate federal custody
- Section 2244(d) describes state-judgment custody. A section 2255 motion requires its own statute and review.
- This guide concerns state-judgment custody and section 2244(d). It does not determine direct-review finality, state application filing or pendency, or a separate federal-prisoner section 2255 claim.
- The latest-of four commencement events and properly filed state collateral-review intervals are not captured by a single trigger date. No computed or paid habeas deadline is supplied.
What must be completed and preserved?
Questions about this particular statutory limitation
How is the one-year state-prisoner habeas limitation determined?
Does one year always start on sentencing day?
No. The statute requires the latest applicable commencement branch, including the defined direct-review finality event.
28 U.S.C. § 2244(d)(1)(A)–(D) and (d)(2)Different state-claim tolling mechanismDoes every collateral filing restart a full year?
The text excludes qualifying pending time; it does not state that each filing automatically starts a new full year.
28 U.S.C. § 2244(d)(1)(A)–(D) and (d)(2)Different ordinary action against the United StatesCan this preset determine a section 2255 deadline?
No. It addresses state-judgment custody under section 2244(d), not the separate federal-prisoner statute.
28 U.S.C. § 2244(d)(1)(A)–(D) and (d)(2)Different civil catchall periodOfficial sources and review
Provisions used (4)
| Provision | Purpose |
|---|---|
| 28 U.S.C. § 2244(d)(1)(A)–(D) and (d)(2) | This statutory actor, event, period and qualifications |
| 28 U.S.C. § 1367(d) | The separately identified agency procedure, related statutory requirement or primary decision |
| 28 U.S.C. § 2401(a) | The separately identified agency procedure, related statutory requirement or primary decision |
| 28 U.S.C. § 1658(a) | The separately identified agency procedure, related statutory requirement or primary decision |