The effect of creep on the load carrying ability of plates was investigated. The plates were loaded by compressive forces applied in the plane of the plate. It was assumed that the material deforms due to linear elasticity and steady state creep, and creep strain rate is given by the power law. When a fixed uniaxial load is applied to the plate in such a way that the load remains uniformly distributed during the buckling process, the governing equations indicate that a finite time exists after which the lateral deformations of the plate become unbounded. Simple, closed form expressions for this critical time are derived for various values of the creep exponent, and for the case where primary creep plays an important role. (Author).