How Long Is a Termite Letter Valid?

A termite letter is a written report from a licensed inspector detailing whether a building shows visible evidence of wood-destroying insects on the date of inspection. Almost nowhere does the report itself expire, because the deadline you were given usually comes from your lender or purchase contract rather than a state law. The 30-day and 90-day figures you have been quoted are clocks on four different things, and only one of them is the document going out of date.

How long is a termite letter good for?

A termite letter remains an accurate snapshot of the property only for the specific day the inspector walked the structure.

Unless you live in South Carolina, state regulations do not put an expiration date on the inspection report itself. Instead, the deadline forcing a second inspection almost always comes from your mortgage lender’s underwriting file or your real estate purchase contract. If you need to know which official document governs your specific address, I map out which form each state requires. You can also see where the inspection fits into your overall purchase in my termite inspection guide for home buyers.

Where does the 90 days on the national form come from, and what does it govern?

The 90-day limit on the national NPMA-33 form is a transaction condition set by a trade association, requiring the report to be used for closing within 90 days of the inspection.

On the standard national report, two sentences sit right next to each other. The National Pest Management Association writes that “This report shall be considered invalid for purposes of securing a mortgage and/or settlement of property transfer if not used within ninety (90) days from the date of inspection.” In the very next sentence, the form clarifies that “This shall not be construed as a 90-day warranty.”

That rule is printed directly by the trade group whose members fill out the document, not by state lawmakers. It sets a clock on the financial transaction, not on the physical house. If your deal uses state-specific paperwork instead, that clause does not apply to your loan file. I explain every section of that national document in my NPMA-33 form breakdown.

What does the 90 days mean in Georgia, Alabama, and Louisiana?

In Georgia, Alabama, and Louisiana, 90 days is a free treatment guarantee required from the pest control operator, not a shelf life for the document.

Under Rule 620-6-.03 of the Rules of the Georgia Structural Pest Control Commission, a report must carry a guarantee that if an infestation of the organisms the report certified apparent freedom from is found within 90 days of issuance, the licensee must treat the structure free of charge. The qualifier is the whole guarantee: it covers what the report said was not there. Georgia also mandates that if a conducive condition known to exist at inspection was left off the report and found within 90 days, the inspector must correct it for free.

Alabama’s Department of Agriculture and Industries sets a matching standard in Administrative Code rule 80-10-9-.18, requiring a 90-day free re-treatment guarantee running from the date of issuance.

Louisiana’s Structural Pest Control Commission takes this a step further under Title 7 of its Administrative Code. The state mandates a 90-day free treatment guarantee for live subterranean termites in readily accessible areas, running from the inspection date. Louisiana law also explicitly forbids operators from overpromising. The regulation states that no licensee, pest control operator, or employee shall represent, “either before or after issuing a wood destroying insect report, that if wood destroying insects are discovered more than 90 days after the date of the WDIR inspection the licensee or pest control operator will treat the property at no cost or repair any damage caused by the wood destroying insects.”

A rule banning operators from claiming coverage past 90 days makes sense because the 90-day window is a legal guarantee, not an expiration date. Louisiana also notes the report is not renewable and provides no guarantee to repair damage.

Why does Tennessee’s 90 days run in the opposite direction?

Tennessee’s 90-day rule is a legal warranty holding the inspector accountable for the accuracy of their report for 90 days after the inspection.

Instead of paper going stale, Tennessee turns the report into legal liability running against the inspector. The University of Tennessee Extension notes that a report acts as a 90-day warranty of accuracy for any representations in it. If an inspector misses something covered by that warranty, a buyer can recover compensatory damages, including repair costs.

If an operator knowingly issues a false report or skips the inspection entirely, state law holds them liable for triple the amount of damages. The Tennessee Department of Agriculture states the same rule on its consumer tips page, clarifying that the report must be warranted for 90 days of accuracy. That is the exact opposite of paperwork expiring; it is a clock on how long you can hold the inspector responsible for getting the report wrong.

Is South Carolina’s 30-day limit a state rule?

It is printed on the state’s official form CL-100 and it is not in the state’s administrative code, which are two different kinds of authority for the same number.

The top of South Carolina’s official Wood Infestation Report, Form CL-100, states in capital letters: “THIS REPORT IS VALID FOR 30 DAYS ONLY. THIS REPORT IS NOT A GUARANTEE OR WARRANTY AGAINST FUTURE INFESTATION OR DAMAGE.”

However, if you look at the Department of Pesticide Regulation rules under S.C. Code Regs. 27-1085(K), the administrative code sets rules for who can sign the report and requires using the official form, but sets no 30-day expiration date itself. The form records that it was approved by the South Carolina Pest Control Association and Clemson University’s Division of Regulatory and Public Service Programs.

My read of this distinction is that the 30-day limit functions as a binding form instruction rather than a codified state statute. Because the state requires licensees to use this specific form, that 30-day limit is effectively real for your real estate closing.

What do Florida’s and Mississippi’s regulators say about expiration?

Florida and Mississippi state regulators explicitly confirm that termite reports carry no statutory expiration date and offer no implied warranties.

The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services addresses this directly in its instructions for Form 13645. The department states that the report “is not required to be guaranteed by the licensee nor is it required to be good for any set period of time,” and that what is required instead is that it accurately reflect the condition of the property at the time the inspection was performed. Fla. Stat. § 482.226 works the same side of the line: an inspection report does not constitute a guarantee of the absence of wood-destroying organisms or damage unless the report states the extent of that guarantee, and the state form carries the same limit in capitals on its face.

Mississippi takes the exact same position. Under Title 2 of the Mississippi Administrative Code, the Bureau of Plant Industry explicitly states that “There is no warranty, express or implied, related to the Mississippi Official Wood Destroying Insect Report form.”

Other states follow similar logic without setting expiration clocks. In Texas, the official four-page form carries no expiration date, and state rules establish no validity window. North Carolina’s WDIR 100 form and administrative rules contain no language limiting how long the document remains valid. In Virginia, state regulations do not address wood-destroying insect reports at all.

Why do Arizona and California count 30 days and four months?

Arizona’s 30-day and California’s four-month rules govern follow-up visits and reinspection fees rather than report expiration dates.

Under Arizona Administrative Code Title 3, Chapter 8, an applicator has 30 days following an original inspection to conduct a supplemental inspection verifying a treatment or a corrected condition. Instruction 7 on Arizona’s official state form repeats this 30-day limit. Anything conducted past 30 days is not a supplemental inspection. Arizona statute A.R.S. § 3-3633 adds that a report cannot be construed as a guarantee of conditions after the inspection date.

California uses a four-month window for reinspections under Business and Professions Code § 8516. The state allows companies to reinspect repairs within four months of the original visit and caps the reinspection fee at no more than the original inspection fee. After four months, all inspections count as brand-new original inspections.

California law also clarifies when a report can be reused. The Structural Pest Control Board states that an inspection requested by a different party, for a different transaction, or for a different purpose requires a new original report. Form 43M-41 separately tells the reader they are entitled to obtain copies of all reports and completion notices filed on the property with the board during the preceding two years. That is a window on the records rather than on the report’s validity, and it is worth using: it is the cheapest way to find out what the house has been told about itself before.

Does an older termite report tell you less than a fresh one?

An older report tells you exactly what was visible on the day of inspection, but it cannot account for termite activity that started immediately afterward.

The North Carolina Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services notes in its home buyer’s guide that research has shown termites can build tubes at roughly two and a half inches per hour, so it is possible for them to show up shortly after the structure has been inspected.

North Carolina advises buyers to obtain the report early in the transaction and read it carefully, paying particular attention to the introductory statements and the conditions printed on the reverse. My read of those two together is that a fresh report is not automatically a safer report. What changes the value of one is what it says about how much of the house the inspector could reach, and that is recorded on the report itself and does not improve with a newer date. You can read about what the inspector can and cannot get to in my guide on what happens during a termite inspection. If an inspection uncovers active insects, I outline the next steps in my guide on what to do after a failed inspection.

What should you do when someone says your termite letter has expired?

When someone tells you a termite letter has expired, ask them to show you the specific contract clause or loan requirement setting that deadline.

Before paying for a second inspection, check the three documents that actually dictate transaction deadlines:

• Your lender’s written underwriting guidelines.
• The formal escrow instructions.
• The signed real estate purchase contract.

If a closing date slipped and your lender wants an updated report, that is a condition from the bank rather than a rule about the document. Those deadlines are real, and unlike a state rule they are usually negotiable, which is the whole reason it is worth finding out which one you are actually up against. If a re-inspection is required, review my guide on who pays for a termite inspection to confirm whether the buyer or seller covers that cost. If you are financing through a government program, check my breakdown of VA loan termite inspection rules.

What I would do if someone called my termite letter stale

If a lender or real estate agent told me my termite report was too old to use, I would ask to see the exact line in my loan file or purchase agreement setting that cutoff date.

I have not seen your specific inspection report, your purchase contract, or your lender’s underwriting file. In my reading of these state regulations, true statutory expiration dates are extremely rare outside of form-specific instructions like South Carolina’s. If the deadline comes from a lender’s internal policy because a closing date moved, I would ask the loan officer if an extension or waiver is possible before calling an inspector back out.

If a second inspection turns out to be unavoidable, I would go back to the company that wrote the first one and ask what it charges for it, because in California a reinspection within four months may cost no more than the original inspection fee and it is worth knowing whether your own state says anything similar. I would not expect a 90-day guarantee to cover it. In Georgia, Alabama and Louisiana that guarantee buys free treatment if something the report certified freedom from turns up, and a fresh piece of paper is not treatment. For general questions about reports, you can always visit my main termite inspection resource center or read my overview on understanding wood-destroying insect reports.

Sources

• Form NPMA-33: Wood Destroying Insect Inspection Report (7/01/19) — National Pest Management Association, hosted by US Department of Housing and Urban Development, 2019-07-01. Accessed 2026-08-07.
• Official South Carolina Wood Infestation Report, Form CL-100 — South Carolina Department of Pesticide Regulation, Clemson University, undated. Accessed 2026-08-07.
• Rules and Regulations for the Enforcement of the South Carolina Pesticide Control Act, S.C. Code Regs. 27-1085(K), Wood Infestation Report (Revised July 2024) — South Carolina Department of Pesticide Regulation, Clemson University, 2024-07. Accessed 2026-08-07.
• Guidelines for Use and Completion of the Form 13645, Wood-Destroying Organisms Inspection Report (Instructions for Form 13645, Rev 12/2008) — Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, 2008-12. Accessed 2026-08-07.
• Fla. Stat. § 482.226, Wood-destroying organism inspection report; notice of inspection or treatment; financial responsibility — The Florida Legislature, undated. Accessed 2026-08-07.
• FDACS-13645, Rev. 05/21, Wood-Destroying Organisms Inspection Report — Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Division of Agricultural Environmental Services, 2021-05. Accessed 2026-08-07.
• Rules of the Georgia Structural Pest Control Commission, Rule 620-6-.03 — Georgia Department of Agriculture, 2026-04-08. Accessed 2026-08-07.
• Ala. Admin. Code ch. 80-10-9, r. 80-10-9-.18, Real Estate Transaction Inspection Report, and Exhibit A (Official Alabama Wood Infestation Inspection Report) — Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries, published by the Alabama Legislative Services Agency, undated. Accessed 2026-08-07.
• La. Admin. Code tit. 7, Pt. XXV, §§ 101 and 121, Structural Pest Control (June 2025 edition) — Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry, Structural Pest Control Commission, 2025-06. Accessed 2026-08-07.
• E&PP Info No. 714, Summary of the Federal and State Pesticide Laws and Regulations — University of Tennessee Extension Pesticide Safety Education Program, undated. Accessed 2026-08-07.
• Pesticide Consumer Tips — Tennessee Department of Agriculture, undated. Accessed 2026-08-07.
• A.R.S. § 3-3633, Wood-destroying insect inspection reports — Arizona State Legislature, undated. Accessed 2026-08-07.
• Arizona Administrative Code, Title 3, Ch. 8, Department of Agriculture — Pest Management Division (Supp. 26-1) — Arizona Secretary of State, 2026-03-31. Accessed 2026-08-07.
• Wood Destroying Insect Inspection Report (WDIIR), the form approved by the Pest Management Division — Arizona Department of Agriculture, Pest Management Division, 2018-05-07. Accessed 2026-08-07.
• Structural Pest Control Act and Rules and Regulations (B&P Code § 8516; 16 CCR §§ 1993, 1993.1, 1996) — California Structural Pest Control Board, 2025-07. Accessed 2026-08-07.
• Wood Destroying Pests and Organisms Inspection Report (Form 43M-41, Rev. 04/2015) — California Structural Pest Control Board, 2015-04. Accessed 2026-08-07.
• 2 Miss. Admin. Code Pt. 1, Subpt. 3, Ch. 11, Subch. 01, R. 115 and R. 117, Contracts and the Wood Destroying Insect Report — Mississippi Bureau of Plant Industry, published by the Mississippi Secretary of State, 2026-01-20. Accessed 2026-08-07.
• A Home Buyer’s Guide for Wood Destroying Insect Information Report (WDIR) — North Carolina Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, Structural Pest Control Division, undated. Accessed 2026-08-07.