A Free Bankruptcy, IVA And Simple IVA, Insolvency Advice Forum

[Myvesta-Steve]

People have wanted to know if it is possible to bankrupt UK debts when they have moved out of the country. Here is information that will help.

If you are currently living outside of the UK but lived in the UK in the last three years and want to petition for bankruptcy to discharge your UK debts, Myvesta can represent you in this matter so you don't have to return to the UK.

If you want to deal with the issue yourself, please review the information below.

Under the provisions of section 265 (1) of The Insolvency Act 1986 (IA86) you are able to petition for bankruptcy if you are either:

(a) domiciled in England and Wales,

(b) personally present in England and Wales on the day on which the petition is presented, or

at any time in the period of 3 years ending with that day -

(i) have been ordinarily resident, or has had a place of residence, in England and Wales, or

(ii) have carried on business in England and Wales.

If you do not live in England or Wales, you must present your bankruptcy petition in the High Court. The bankruptcy petition must be presented either by yourself in person, or an agent acting on your behalf, e.g. a solicitor. If you appoint an agent to act on your behalf, you may need to grant them power of attorney - please contact the High Court for further details. The telephone number for the High Court is 00 44 207 947 6000. Following the making of a bankruptcy order, you will need to provide information to the Official Receiver and complete a booklet and other documents, as well as possibly attending for an interview. Unfortunately, these documents cannot be completed before a bankruptcy order is made, and you cannot pre-book an appointment. However, if you explain your circumstances to the Official Receiver, i.e. you are only in the country for a limited period, he will try to fix an appointment for you as soon as possible. If you appoint an agent to act on your behalf under a power of attorney, that agent could be required to attend for interview at the Official Receiver's office on your behalf.

The forms you need to complete to enable you to petition for your own bankruptcy can be obtained from the court or from the website at www.insolvency.gov.uk in the 'Forms' section. You need to complete Form 6.27 - Debtor's Bankruptcy Petition and Form 6.28 - Statement of Affairs on Debtor's Petition. You will also find on our website, in the same section, Guidance Notes on how to complete Form 6.28.

Alternatively, you can complete both of the above forms via the on-line forms service, The Insolvency Service's online interactive website which can be accessed at a time and location that is convenient to you via the website. A database captures the information you have provided in the forms and will only be made available to The Insolvency Service when a bankruptcy order is made against you.

The on-line forms service is easy to use and provides assistance to allow you to complete the forms on your own. There is a helpline number - 00 44 113 200 6066 - if you require additional guidance in completing the forms. The on-line forms service allows you to save and retrieve partially completed forms, with the ability to edit previously saved information.

Once you have completed the forms you will need to print 3 copies, swear them in front of a solicitor and then take them to court/ask your agent to take them to court.

Any assets in any part of the world fall into your bankruptcy estate. However, the trustee may encounter problems selling foreign assets if he is not 'recognised' in a foreign jurisdiction as having power to sell them. The trustee may require co-operation from you and also, he may need to apply for a court order in the foreign country to deal with the asset.

The Insolvency Service does produce a range of information leaflets regarding bankruptcy, which are also available on our website under the Publications Section, as follows:

Dealing with Debt - How to petition for your own bankruptcy : Information on how to make yourself bankrupt

A Guide to Bankruptcy : This guide tells you what happens if you are made bankrupt in England and Wales and about some of the alternatives to bankruptcy

Can my Bankruptcy be cancelled : Information on how the court may annul (cancel) your bankruptcy order

What will happen to my home : Information on your home when bankruptcy occurs

When will my bankruptcy end : Information on discharge from bankruptcy

What will happen to my bank account: Information on banking facilities when bankruptcy occurs

What happens when you are interviewed by the Official Receivers? : Information for bankrupts and directors of companies in compulsory liquidation about the work of the Official Receiver

[bobcat]

Hi Steve

would you be able to advise of the procedure, we have got an invoice to pay for this service, just getting the funds together to do this but wondered what happens then, once this is paid. Are the forms filled in by yourselves, how do we pay the filing fees, will the OR want to see us, speak to us?

Many thanks

the site is great - I'm on it nearly everyday at the moment, it stops me worrying as much!

[Tboyo]

What happens if I'm living in the USA and I just ignore my creditors, will they just have me declared bankrupt.

I personally own no assets in the USA and the only thing I have in the UK is my pension funds totalling about 24K, which I am unable to touch as I am only 37 yrs old.

Between my wife and I we owe various credit card companies & banks (namely Loydds) around 50K.

any suggestions ?

[Pennyh]

I just found this site and was thinking of paying for the foreign bankruptcy service.

Are questions still being answered ? As the guy above me hasn't had anything replied or the person before that

[hiho]

Hi Penny

What would you like to know?

I'll try and help you.

[Pennyh]

Hi there ... Thanks for the reply

I live in Norway and just find everything so confusing .... then found this 600£ Foreign bankruptcy service that was offered.

Do you know anything about it and is it really worth 600£?

Sorry if that's a stupid question ...

[myvesta-mandy]

Do you know anything about it and is it really worth 600£?

Sorry if that's a stupid question ...

Not a stupid question at all! £600 is quite a pretty penny! However, the foriegn bankruptcy assistance service is a really good service if you are out of the UK and wish to file bankruptcy.

If you are residing in any of the EU countries and have been for over 6 months, you must file bankruptcy in that country according to that country’s bankruptcy laws and procedures. If you are residing outside any EU country and have not been outside the UK for over 3 years, you can file for bankruptcy in the UK; however you will need a representative to do this for you as it is filed in the High Court in London. Our Foreign Bankruptcy Assistance Programme can help with this. In this service we have somebody act on your behalf in Court, have a team of Insolvency Practitioners that look over your forms to make sure that everything is 100% correct for filing and you will have a full year's unlimited phone consultation with a bankruptcy expert (the same person who will act on your behalf in court).

http://myvesta.org.uk/programmes/foreign_bankruptcy_service.html

You could choose to do this without the service but you would need to appoint someone to act on your behalf in court (say, a family member or close friend).

The choice is up to you but the service is handy if you are stressed or worried about the process and want it to be as smooth as possible.

Best of luck with whichever route you choose!

MyvestaMandy

[matt s]

Hi there,

I'm a former Scottish resident, now in Japan. Can I petition the high court in London? or does it only apply to former residents of England or Wales?

Thanks in advance for your advice

Matt S

[rf]

can you please explain this process a bit better? the details are still vague.

how long does it take for this to go through, on average? what happens, for any reasons, bankruptcy is not approved (Does that ever happen??) do you return money at all?

[Hg]

Hello RF

The procedure from abroad is essentially exactly the same as for the UK, except that you present your petition at the High Court in London not your (non existent) local County Court.

Debtor's own bankruptcy petitions can be dismissed, but it is very rare, and would generally involve some variation of the court deciding you were at it (like being able to repay your debts!!!), or a serious technical defect like already being bankrupt!

[Rachael24]

How rare are we talking for the petitions to be dismissed? I understand everything else, but that just confuses me. Thanks!

[Hg]

Very very very rare.