Official Procedure Last Change September 30, 2013
Prior Filings
Prior case was discharged
If a debtor received a discharge on a prior bankruptcy case, they may not be able to receive a second discharge on a new case if sufficient time has not passed between the two cases. The actual bar time varies depending on the chapters of the previous and current case, as shown in the following table (times shown are from filing date of prior case to filing date of new case):
| Chapter of new case | Chapter of prior case | To be eligible for a discharge in the new case, you will have to wait... |
| 7 | 7 | 8 years |
| 7 | 11 | 8 years |
| 7 | 12 | 6 years** |
| 7 | 13 | 6 years** |
| 11 | 7 | No limitation |
| 11 | 11 | No limitation |
| 11 | 12 | No limitation |
| 11 | 13 | No limitation |
| 12 | 7 | No limitation |
| 12 | 11 | No limitation |
| 12 | 12 | No limitation |
| 12 | 13 | No limitation |
| 13 | 7 | 4 years |
| 13 | 11 | 4 years |
| 13 | 12 | 4 years |
| 13 | 13 | 2 years |
** There are certain exceptions that apply to these combination of chapters. Consult the Bankruptcy Code for more information.
Prior case was dismissed
If a prior bankruptcy case was dismissed one year or less prior to the filing of the new case, the automatic stay will terminate on the 30th day after the filing of the current case, unless a Motion to Extend Automatic Stay is filed and granted.
If two or more prior bankruptcy cases were dismissed one year or less prior to the filing of the new case, the automatic stay will not go into effect on the current case, unless a Motion to Impose Automatic Stay is filed and granted.
Current case is being converted
A converted case is only eligible to receive a discharge in the new chapter if the waiting requirements as shown in the table above are met for the chapter to which the case is converting. This is calculated from filing date to filing date (not date of conversion).
E.g.:
| 2001 | 2006 | 2007 |
| Chapter 7 case filed, discharged |
Chapter 13 case filed OK - it's more than 4 years after the original filing |
Converts to Chapter 7 Will not be eligible for discharge - the current case was filed 5 years after the filing date of the original Chapter 7. Therefore, the 8 year bar applies. The only way to get a Chapter 7 discharge would be to dismiss this case and file another Chapter 7 in 2009, (8 years after filing date of the 2001 case). |
Current case is being transferred from another court or division within this court
The transferred case and the case from which it was transferred do not count as different filings. Therefore, time differences between the original date of filing of the current case and date of transfer need not be considered.
Current case is a joint case that is being split into two cases
Likewise, the new case created by the debtor that got split off does not count as another filing. Therefore, time differences between the original date of filing of the joint case and the date it was split into two separate cases need not be considered.