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The Credit Library
Credit report terms explained, in words you already know.
Twenty terms that appear on almost every report. One plain line each, and the action at the end.
20 termsFour lines eachUpdated September 2026
Harish Krishnamurthy
Co-founder, Kenstone Credit Solutions LLP
Wrote this guide
20 terms
Plain language, no jargon
Written by Harish Krishnamurthy, Co-founderReviewed & updated September 202611 min readReviewed by Vaidhehi P, Sr. Credit Analyst4.9★ · 500+ Google reviews30 documented cases with report evidence10 walk-in officesFixed, published pricing
Key takeaways
- Every entry here says four things: what the term means, why the bank used it, what it changes for you, and what you can do.
- The foreclosure amount and the Total Loan Value are different numbers — paying the smaller one closes the account but leaves the label, and the bank may ask for the difference up to the larger one before the label goes.
- XXX is not a black mark, and -1.00 in a written-off amount means the field does not apply.
- Nine of these terms have a full guide behind them; the glossary gives you the one-line version and the link.
Start here
What this page is.
This is the Library's dictionary: credit report terms explained one at a time, in plain words. Twenty of them appear on almost every CIBIL report, and most people meet them for the first time while worried about a loan. Each entry says the same four things, in the same order, so you can read only the line you need.
If one of these words turns out to be your problem rather than your curiosity, the pages that deal with it are written off, settled, wilful default and a business CMR rank.
The status line
What the bank says happened to the loan.
Written-off#
- What it means
- The bank gave up on getting this money back and recorded the loan as a loss in its own books.
- Why the bank did it
- Payments stopped for a long time, so the bank was required to stop counting the loan as good.
- What it means for you
- This is one of the hardest marks to carry, and most lenders refuse a new loan while it shows.
- What you can do
- You still owe the money. Pay it in full, then ask the bank to re-report the account. → Full guide: what "written off" means and how it is fixed.
Post Write Off Closed#
- What it means
- The bank had written off this loan. Later you paid and closed it — so the account is settled and shut, but the report still shows that it was written off once.
- Why the bank did it
- Payments stopped for a long time, so the bank removed it from its list of good loans. Your payment came after that.
- What it means for you
- Many banks will still refuse a new loan while this shows. It is not the same as "Closed."
- What you can do
- The label does not go by itself. Before it re-reports the account as Closed, the bank may ask for the difference up to the full Total Loan Value — not just the foreclosure amount. Ask in writing what it will take.
Settled#
- What it means
- You paid less than you owed, and the bank agreed to take that smaller amount and shut the account.
- Why the bank did it
- The bank decided some money now was worth more than a long chase for all of it.
- What it means for you
- Lenders read this as a loss they took, so it is not the same as Closed and it slows approvals for years.
- What you can do
- Ask the bank what it waived. Paying that difference is what upgrades the status. → Full guide: loan settlement and your CIBIL report.
Closed#
- What it means
- The loan is finished, you paid everything you owed, and the account is shut.
- Why the bank did it
- Nothing is pending, and this is the ordinary ending every loan is meant to reach.
- What it means for you
- This is a good entry, and a closed loan with on-time payments helps you.
- What you can do
- Check that the closing date is right and the balance shows zero. Clients are often told an account is closed while the report still says something else — if it does, take it to the bank.
Suit Filed#
- What it means
- The bank has gone to court to recover the money.
- Why the bank did it
- The dues stayed unpaid long enough that the bank chose legal recovery.
- What it means for you
- This is among the strongest negative marks a report can carry, and new loans are very unlikely while it shows.
- What you can do
- A real court case cannot be disputed away. Resolve the dues, then have the bank report the correct status. → Full guide: every status code, decoded.
Wilful Default#
- What it means
- The bank says you had the money to pay and chose not to.
- Why the bank did it
- A committee at the bank decided this after sending you a notice and hearing your reply.
- What it means for you
- This is the most serious label a report can carry, and for a company it is recorded against its directors too.
- What you can do
- If no notice reached you, or the facts are wrong, it can be contested with evidence. → Full guide: what wilful default means and how it is decided.
The payment grid
The month-by-month row of codes.
DPD (Days Past Due)#
- What it means
- How many days late each month's payment was, shown as one entry for every month.
- Why the bank reports it
- The bank sends your payment record every month, and this grid is that record.
- What it means for you
- 000 means you paid on time that month, and a bigger number means you paid that many days late.
- What you can do
- Check every month against your own statements. Wrong entries are common and can be disputed. → Full guide: DPD, decoded in five minutes.
STD, SMA, SUB, DBT, LSS#
- What it means
- Five short codes for how healthy the bank thinks the loan is, running from STD at the top to LSS at the bottom.
- Why the bank reports it
- The RBI requires every bank to grade a loan this way as it falls further behind.
- What it means for you
- STD is fine and SMA is an early warning, while SUB, DBT and LSS all mean a long default.
- What you can do
- Find the month the code changed. Check your payments for that month. A code that does not match them can be disputed.
XXX#
- What it means
- The bank sent no information at all for that month.
- Why it happens
- A month goes unreported for ordinary reasons, most often a gap at the bank's end.
- What it means for you
- This is not a black mark, and it says nothing bad about you.
- What you can do
- Leave it alone, unless XXX covers months you know you paid. Then ask the bank to report those months.
The amounts
The rupee figures, and which one matters.
Amount Overdue#
- What it means
- The money you were due to pay and have not paid yet.
- Why the bank reports it
- The bank reports whatever is unpaid on the day it sends your record to the bureau.
- What it means for you
- Any amount sitting here stops most new loans, even when the amount is very small.
- What you can do
- Clear it, then check that the next report shows zero.
Current Balance#
- What it means
- Everything still left on the loan, including the part that is not due yet.
- Why the bank reports it
- The bank reports how much of the loan is still outstanding on the reporting date.
- What it means for you
- A balance on a running loan is normal, but a balance on a loan you closed is an error.
- What you can do
- If you closed the loan, send the bank your closure proof and ask it to report zero.
Written-off Amount (Principal / Total)#
- What it means
- Two labels printed against every account in the detailed CIR report format, showing how much the bank wrote off.
- Why the bank reports it
- The format prints these labels on every account, whether or not anything was ever written off.
- What it means for you
- A blank, or -1.00, means the field does not apply — that is the report's way of writing "nothing here." It is not a write-off, and you do not owe ₹1. You will see -1.00 in other fields too, like Interest Rate.
- What you can do
- Read -1.00 as blank. Take it seriously only when a real number appears there.
Settlement Amount#
- What it means
- The reduced amount the bank agreed to accept in place of the full loan.
- Why the bank did it
- The bank chose to take less rather than keep chasing the whole amount.
- What it means for you
- This number is the record of the loss the bank took, and every future lender can read it.
- What you can do
- Ask the bank for the difference between this and the full amount. Paying that difference is what upgrades Settled.
What you are asked to pay
Two numbers that are not the same.
Foreclosure amount#
- What it means
- The amount the bank asks for today to close the account at zero.
- Why the bank quotes it
- This is the bank's own quote for shutting the loan early.
- What it means for you
- Paying it closes the account, but it does not remove a written-off or settled label.
- What you can do
- Ask for it in writing. Then compare it with the Total Loan Value before you pay — the two are different numbers, and the difference decides what your report says afterwards. → Full guide: foreclosure amount vs Total Loan Value.
Total Loan Value (TLV)#
- What it means
- Everything the loan actually cost, including the part the bank had written off or waived.
- Why the bank quotes it
- This is the full amount, counted before any reduction the bank offered you.
- What it means for you
- It is the higher of the two numbers. Paying the foreclosure amount closes the account, but the label does not go by itself: before it re-reports the account as Closed, the bank may ask for the difference up to the Total Loan Value. Closing the account and losing the label are not always the same thing.
- What you can do
- Ask the bank, in writing, for both numbers: the foreclosure amount to close the account, and the Total Loan Value to learn whether anything more is owed after a settlement or write-off. Most banks do not quote a Total Loan Value unless asked — many quote only a foreclosure, closure or settlement amount — so ask plainly whether any further sum is needed for the status to be re-reported as Closed, and what the status will read after you pay. Three of our documented cases turn on exactly this choice — one client chose closure and kept the label, one paid ₹254 more on an Axis account and the status went blank, and one cleared the outstanding instead of leaving a settlement standing. → Full guide: foreclosure amount vs Total Loan Value.
Documents and errors
Paper you hold, and mistakes that are not yours.
NOC / No Dues Certificate#
- What it means
- The bank's letter saying you owe it nothing more on that loan.
- Why the bank issues it
- The bank issues it once a loan has been fully paid and closed.
- What it means for you
- The letter on its own changes nothing on your credit report.
- What you can do
- Keep it safe, then check your report after the next reporting cycle. → Full guide: the No Dues Certificate (NOC).
Duplicate or mixed file#
- What it means
- Someone else's records sitting inside your report, or your own records split across two files.
- Why it happens
- Names, dates of birth and PAN details get entered wrongly, and the system joins the wrong records together.
- What it means for you
- You can be refused a loan because of a default that was never yours.
- What you can do
- Mark every account you do not recognise, then dispute them with proof of identity.
Hard vs soft enquiry#
- What it means
- A hard enquiry is a lender checking you because you applied; a soft enquiry is you checking yourself.
- Why lenders record it
- Lenders record every application they receive, and the bureau keeps that list.
- What it means for you
- Hard enquiries are visible to other lenders and count a little, while soft enquiries do not affect your score at all.
- What you can do
- Check your own score as often as you like. Dispute only enquiries from applications you never made. → Full guide: enquiries: what they cost, what removes them.
The two numbers
One for you, one for your business.
CIBIL score (300–900)#
- What it means
- One number between 300 and 900 that sums up how you have repaid loans so far.
- Why banks look at it
- Lenders wanted a single quick figure to compare one applicant against another.
- What it means for you
- Around 750 and above is comfortable at most banks, and below 550 is read as high risk; NA or NH means too little history yet, not a bad score.
- What you can do
- Fix what the report gets wrong, and pay on time from here. → Full guide: what the 300–900 range actually means.
CMR / CIBIL MSME Rank (1–10)#
- What it means
- A rank from 1 to 10 for a business rather than a person, where 1 is the safest.
- Why banks use it
- Banks wanted one figure for company lending, in the way the score works for individuals.
- What it means for you
- 1–3 reads strong, 4–6 is the watch zone where most banks set their comfort gate, and 7–10 reads as distress.
- What you can do
- One wrongly reported DPD line can sink an otherwise healthy rank, and that is correctable. → Full guide: the commercial report and CMR rank.
Sources & regulation
Where these definitions come from.
| Claim in this glossary | Source |
|---|---|
| How lenders must report account status, amounts and payment history to the bureaus | RBI Master Direction — Credit Information Reporting, 2025 |
| The STD / SMA / SUB / DBT / LSS grading ladder applied to every loan account | RBI asset-classification norms (Income Recognition & Asset Classification) |
| Your right to dispute and correct an inaccurate entry | Credit Information Companies (Regulation) Act, 2005 |
| The wilful-defaulter committee process, notice and representation | RBI Master Direction on Treatment of Wilful Defaulters & Large Defaulters, 2024 |
Quick answers
Answered first.
What is the meaning of STD in a CIBIL report?
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STD stands for standard, and it is the healthiest grade a loan can carry. It means the account is being repaid on time, with nothing overdue beyond the point at which the RBI requires a bank to grade it as stressed. STD sits at the top of a five-step ladder: STD, then SMA for an early warning, then SUB, DBT and LSS as a default runs longer. Seeing STD across your grid is good news.
What is the meaning of LSS in a CIBIL report?
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LSS stands for loss, and it is the bottom of the five-step ladder that starts at STD. The bank has graded the loan as one it does not expect to recover. It does not mean the debt is gone: the money is still owed and can still be collected. The honest route out is to clear the dues in full and have the bank report the corrected status afterwards.
What is the meaning of XXX in a CIBIL report?
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XXX means the lender sent no information for that month. It is not a missed payment and not a black mark, and it says nothing bad about you. Reporting gaps happen for ordinary reasons at the bank's end. The one time XXX is worth acting on is when it covers months you know you paid, because those on-time payments are missing from your record; ask the lender to report them.
What is the difference between the foreclosure amount and the Total Loan Value?
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The foreclosure amount is what the bank asks for today to close the account at zero. The Total Loan Value is everything the loan actually cost, including the part the bank wrote off or waived, so it is the higher number. Paying the foreclosure amount closes the account but leaves a written-off or settled label behind. Before the label goes, the bank may ask for the difference up to the Total Loan Value — not always, and not always the full gap. Most lenders do not quote it unless asked, so ask for both figures in writing before you pay anything.
What does -1.00 mean in the Written-off Amount on a credit report?
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It means the field does not apply to that account. The detailed CIR report format — consumer CIRs as well as commercial ones — prints Written-off Amount (Principal) and Written-off Amount (Total) against every account, whether or not anything was ever written off, and fills them with -1.00 when there is nothing to show. It does not mean one rupee was written off and it does not mean you owe ₹1. Read -1.00 as blank; the same placeholder turns up in other fields, such as Interest Rate.
What is the difference between Current Balance and Amount Overdue?
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Current Balance is everything still left on the loan, including instalments that are not due yet. Amount Overdue is only the part you were already supposed to have paid. A current balance on a running loan is completely normal. An amount overdue is not, and even a small one stops most new loan applications. A current balance on a loan you have already closed is an error worth disputing.
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