Many who come to us here at The Law Office of Paul Petrillo looking to file for bankruptcy protection hope that doing so will allow them to get back onto firm financial ground. You may have had this same intention, yet then discovered that the potential for debt struggles simply does not go away. Now you may find yourself in the position of needing to consider bankruptcy again. If so, then you may be pondering two questions: can you file for bankruptcy again, and if so, how long do you have to wait?
The answer to the first question is yes, repeat bankruptcies are allowed. In fact, data shared by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts shows that as recently as 2012, 30 percent of the total number of Chapter 13 bankruptcies filed were repeat cases. How long must you wait before filing again? The laws regulating bankruptcy focus their time restrictions on whether or not you received a discharge.
If you had debts discharged through a Chapter 7 bankruptcy in the past and wish to do so again, then a minimum of eight years must have passed from your original filing date in order for you to qualify. If you have not met that time threshold, you could file for Chapter 13 bankruptcy if at least four years has passed.
If your original Chapter 13 bankruptcy was discharged, you can seek the same form of protection again within two years of the initial filing date. That time requirement increases to six years if you want to file a Chapter 7.
In each of the aforementioned cases, you must receive a discharge for your second bankruptcy before being able to file again. You can learn more about dealing with bankruptcy restrictions by continuing to search our site.
