Except as provided by chapter 71 of title 41, every civil action commenced against the United States shall be barred unless the complaint is filed within six years after the right of action first accrues. The action of any person under legal disability or beyond the seas at the time the claim accrues may be commenced within three years after the disability ceases.
A tort claim against the United States shall be forever barred unless it is presented in writing to the appropriate Federal agency within two years after such claim accrues or unless action is begun within six months after the date of mailing, by certified or registered mail, of notice of final denial of the claim by the agency to which it was presented.
(June 25, 1948, ch. 646, 62 Stat. 971; Apr. 25, 1949, ch. 92, § 1, 63 Stat. 62; Pub. L. 86–238, § 1(3), Sept. 8, 1959, 73 Stat. 472; Pub. L. 89–506, § 7, July 18, 1966, 80 Stat. 307; Pub. L. 95–563, § 14(b), Nov. 1, 1978, 92 Stat. 2389; Pub. L. 111–350, § 5(g)(8), Jan. 4, 2011, 124 Stat. 3848.)