Arrears, or arrearages is a legal term for a type of debt which is overdue after missing an expected payment. Arrears accrue from the date on the first missed payment was due. The term is often used to describe being late with rent, royalties (or other contractual payments), child support, or other legal financial obligation. This article does not cite any references or sources. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with rental agreement. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... A contract is a legally binding exchange of promises or agreement between parties that the law will enforce. ... In many countries, child support or child maintenance is the ongoing obligation for a periodic payment made by a non-custodial parent to a custodial parent, caregiver or guardian, for the care and support of children of a relationship or marriage that has been terminated. ...

This should not be confused with the singular "arrear", which is usually used to describe contractual entitlements which fall due to be paid at the end of an accrual period, such as an interest payment or a job wage or salary.

For example, a housing tenant who is obliged to pay rent at the end of each month, but who has not paid rental due for 90 days is said to pay rent in arrear, but to be three months in arrears.

"Arrears" is, further, not a late payment or charge for late rent, but the state of being late for rent. Charges such as this are impermissible under most Landlord/Tenant agreements.

Accounting

In accounting, arrears is used in at least two situations. One use involves the past, omitted dividends on cumulative preferred stock. If a corporation fails to declare the preferred dividend, those dividends are said to be in arrears. The dividends in arrears must be disclosed in the notes (footnotes) to the financial statements. (Cumulative preferred stock requires that any past, omitted dividends must be paid to the preferred stockholders before the common stockholders will be paid any dividend.)

Another use of the word arrears occurs with annuities (an annuity is a series of equal amounts occurring at equal time intervals, such as $1,000 per month for 20 years). If the recurring amount comes at the end of each period, the annuity is described as an annuity in arrears or as an ordinary annuity. A loan repayment schedule is usually an annuity in arrears. For example, you borrow $10,000 on September 30 and your first monthly payment will be due on October 31, the second payment will be due on November 30, and so on. An annuity (from Latin annus, a year), is an investment that provides a defined series of payments in the future in exchange for an up-front sum of money. ...