How to File a Second Bankruptcy After Discharge

• Step 1

  Verify the date the court signed the final order of discharge in the first case. Copies of final orders from previous cases are available from the court clerk for a negligible cost.

• Step 2

  Verify compliance with the Chapter 7 discharge time limitation.

• Step 3

  Verify compliance with the Chapter 13 discharge time limitation.

• Step 4

  Participate in a credit counseling class offered by a court-approved agency. A signed certificate of completion is necessary to file a second bankruptcy case.

• Step 5

  Complete the means test. The means test calculates monthly disposable income using form B 22A. Debtors who earn more than the median income in their state of residency, with more than $200 in monthly disposable income, cannot file Chapter 7. Form B 22A includes instructions and online sources for information necessary to complete the test.

• Step 6

  Prepare official bankruptcy schedules. The clerk of the court provides free access to all necessary materials. Free schedules are also available online through the U.S. Courts website.

• Step 7

  File schedules, the means test form and the certificate of completion of credit counseling with the clerk of the court.

• Step 8

  Pay the filing fee for the second bankruptcy case. The court clerk may waive filing fees for debtors whose income is below 150% of the current state poverty level. Call the clerk's office to obtain the most recent poverty level used to grant waivers.

• Step 9

  Send notice letters to creditors. Once a creditor receives actual notice of filing, all collection activities must stop.

• 5
• Final discharge order Counseling certificate Form B 22A Official bankruptcy schedules Filing fee or waiver Notice letters
• Final discharge order
• Counseling certificate
• Form B 22A
• Official bankruptcy schedules
• Filing fee or waiver
• Notice letters
• Dismissal of a bankruptcy case with prejudice, before discharge, imposes another time limitation on all debtors filing a second bankruptcy case under Chapter 7 and Chapter 13. A dismissal with prejudice bars filing again for 180 days. According to 11 U.S.C. Section 109(g)(1), the designation of prejudice indicates that the dismissal resulted from "willful failure of the debtor to abide by orders of the court, or to appear before the court in proper prosecution of the case." The most common reasons for dismissals with prejudice include filing documents late, missing Chapter 13 payments, and a debtor's failure to attend a mandatory meeting with the case trustee.
• Dismissal of a bankruptcy case with prejudice, before discharge, imposes another time limitation on all debtors filing a second bankruptcy case under Chapter 7 and Chapter 13. A dismissal with prejudice bars filing again for 180 days. According to 11 U.S.C. Section 109(g)(1), the designation of prejudice indicates that the dismissal resulted from "willful failure of the debtor to abide by orders of the court, or to appear before the court in proper prosecution of the case." The most common reasons for dismissals with prejudice include filing documents late, missing Chapter 13 payments, and a debtor's failure to attend a mandatory meeting with the case trustee.

• USUnited States

References & Resources

• Cornell University Law School: U.S. Code Collection 11 U.S.C. Section 727(a)(8)
• U.S. Courts: Bankruptcy Forms
• Cornell University Law School: U.S. Code Collection 11 U.S.C. Section 109(g)(1)
• United States Bankruptcy Court, Northern District of Texas; Bankruptcy Terminology