Chapter 7 vs Chapter 13

The official facts about each chapter, side by side.

Most people who file bankruptcy use Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 of the federal Bankruptcy Code. This guide puts the official facts about each one side by side. It does not tell you which chapter to choose: that depends on your income, your property and your debts, and a legal aid office or a bankruptcy attorney can help you decide.

Chapter 7

Chapter 7 is 'liquidation'. A trustee may sell property that is not exempt and pay creditors. Most individual Chapter 7 cases have no property to sell. Most remaining debts are discharged, usually about 60 to 90 days after the first date set for the meeting of creditors.

Law: 11 U.S.C. 701-727; Fed. R. Bankr. P. 4004(c)

Chapter 13

Chapter 13 is a repayment plan. You keep your property and pay part or all of your debts through a court-approved plan over 3 or 5 years. You need regular income. It can let you catch up on missed mortgage payments.

Law: 11 U.S.C. 1321-1328

Who can file Chapter 7: the means test

If you have mostly consumer debts and file Chapter 7, you take the means test. If your income is below your state's median for your household size, you usually pass. If it is above, a longer form subtracts allowed expenses; if enough income is left over, abuse is presumed and the case may be dismissed or changed to Chapter 13 with your consent. Since April 1, 2025 the thresholds are $10,275 and $17,150 over 5 years (60 months).

Law: 11 U.S.C. 707(b)(2), 707(b)(7); 90 FR 8941

The official medians for every state and household size are in our means test median income table, with a quick first-step check. Applies to cases filed on or after April 1, 2026.

Who can file Chapter 13: debt limits

To file Chapter 13 your debts must be under the limits on the day you file: less than $526,700 of unsecured debt and less than $1,580,125 of secured debt (amounts from April 1, 2025). Only debts that are fixed in amount and not contingent count.

Congress passed a bill in September 2026 that would replace these limits with a single $2,750,000 limit once signed into law. Check the current limit with the court.

Law: 11 U.S.C. 109(e); 90 FR 8941

How long a Chapter 13 plan lasts

If your household income is below your state's median, the plan is usually 3 years; the court can allow longer for cause, up to 5 years. If your income is at or above the median, the plan is 5 years (it can be shorter only if you pay all unsecured claims in full).

Law: 11 U.S.C. 1322(d), 1325(b)(4)(B); Official Form 122C-1

Filing fees

To file Chapter 7 you pay $338 to the court: a $245 filing fee, a $78 administrative fee and a $15 trustee fee. A married couple filing one joint case pays one set of fees.

Law: 28 U.S.C. 1930(a)(1)(A); Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, items 8 and 9 (effective December 1, 2023)

To file Chapter 13 you pay $313 to the court: a $235 filing fee and a $78 administrative fee.

Law: 28 U.S.C. 1930(a)(1)(B); Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, item 8 (effective December 1, 2023)

Read about paying in installments or asking for a fee waiver.

The same in both chapters

Before you file, you must take a credit counseling course (a 'briefing') from an agency approved by the U.S. Trustee Program. You must take it within 180 days before you file. It can be in person, by phone or online, alone or in a group. Keep the certificate: you file it with your case. If you skip it, your case can be dismissed.

Law: 11 U.S.C. 109(h), 111

What you can keep

In some states you can choose either the state exemptions or the federal exemptions. You must pick one whole set; you cannot mix them. Other states allow only the state exemptions. A married couple filing together must both pick the same set.

Law: 11 U.S.C. 522(b)(1)-(2)

See exemptions by state.

Debts that usually stay

Some debts usually stay with you after bankruptcy.

The full list is in debts bankruptcy does not erase.

If you filed before

  • Chapter 7 after Chapter 7: 8 years between the filing dates of the two cases (if you got a discharge in the first).
  • Chapter 7 after Chapter 13: 6 years between filing dates, unless your Chapter 13 plan paid 100% of unsecured claims, or at least 70% in a good-faith best-effort plan.
  • Chapter 13 after Chapter 7: no Chapter 13 discharge if you got a Chapter 7 (or 11 or 12) discharge in a case filed within 4 years before the new case.
  • Chapter 13 after Chapter 13: no new discharge if you got a Chapter 13 discharge in a case filed within 2 years before the new case.

Law: 11 U.S.C. 727(a)(8); 11 U.S.C. 727(a)(9); 11 U.S.C. 1328(f)(1); 11 U.S.C. 1328(f)(2)

This is general information, not legal advice. A legal aid office can help for free; each state page lists free help.