How Long is Bankruptcy?

Bankruptcy lasts forever.

That’s just the way it is.

But probably not in the way you’re thinking.

It stays in a government record and anyone who wants to pay a fee to search your name can find that you filed for bankruptcy. That’s a fee being paid for every name a person searches.

Don’t like it?

I get it. But there is nothing you can do about it.

And whatever you do, don’t let this change your mind about filing bankruptcy either.

Public record is for the public, but rarely does the public ever pay a fee to look this sort of thing up. I mean, would you?

Anyway, bankruptcy stays on the public record forever, but it doesn’t stay on your credit report forever. And this is what really matters.

Bankruptcy stays on your credit report for 6 years after you complete your bankruptcy.

How long you are in bankruptcy depends on a few things:

Have you been bankrupt before?

Do you make over a certain amount of money?

Have you done all of the things you were supposed to do while you were bankrupt?

If you haven’t been bankrupt before, and you make less than a certain amount of money, and you do everything required of you, you’ll be out of bankruptcy in as little as 9 months. If you make more money, it will take you 21 months.

If you have been bankrupt before, the minimum time is 24 months, and it can stretch to 36 months if you make more money.

But understand, if you don’t do what you are supposed to do while you are in bankruptcy, you will stay in bankruptcy. Or at least until you do what you were supposed to do.

It may seem like a long time, but most people experience it passing in a heartbeat.

I think this is because the time leading up to bankruptcy feels much longer.

When you’re struggling to pay your creditors, juggling bills, dodging collection calls, and wondering how you’re going to make ends meet, time crawls.

Every payday comes with stress.

Every bill comes with anxiety.

Every phone call feels like bad news.

Compared to that, most people find that bankruptcy itself passes surprisingly quickly.