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Direct answer: Chapter 13 bankruptcy is a court-approved repayment plan that lasts 3 years if your income is under your state's median and usually 5 years if it isn't. You keep your property and can catch up on a mortgage to stop foreclosure. To file, unsecured debts must be under $526,700 and secured debts under $1,580,125.
By the numbers: To file Chapter 13, an individual's unsecured debts must be less than $526,700 and secured debts less than $1,580,125 on the filing date (limits in effect since April 1, 2025). Source: 11 U.S.C. 109(e), as adjusted by the Judicial Conference, 90 FR 8941
“Chapter 13 allows a debtor to keep property and pay debts over time, usually three to five years.” — U.S. Courts, Chapter 13 - Bankruptcy Basics
Updated 2026-10-22
3 years if your household income (last 6 months' average times 12) is less than your state's median for your household size, unless the court approves longer for cause; generally 5 years if it is at or above the median. No plan can run longer than 5 years, and it can be shorter only if it pays all allowed unsecured debts in full (11 U.S.C. 1322(d), 1325(b)(4)).
Unsecured debts less than $526,700 and secured debts less than $1,580,125 on the date you file (11 U.S.C. 109(e), amounts effective April 1, 2025). Congress passed H.R. 7730, which would replace both with one $2,750,000 limit for cases filed on or after the day it becomes law; as of Oct. 22, 2026 it had not been signed into law.
The court fee is $313: $235 filing plus $78 administrative. With the court's permission you can pay in up to 4 installments, with the last one due within 120 days of filing. The low-income fee waiver is for Chapter 7 only (28 U.S.C. 1930(f)). Lawyer fees are separate.
Within 30 days after you file the plan or the case, whichever is earlier, even before the court approves the plan (11 U.S.C. 1326(a)(1)). The plan itself is due with the petition or within 14 days after it (Bankruptcy Rule 3015).
Yes. Filing stops a foreclosure through the automatic stay, and the plan can catch up past-due mortgage payments over time. You must keep making the regular payments that come due after filing, and you can still lose the home if the foreclosure sale was completed under state law before you filed (U.S. Courts; 11 U.S.C. 1322(c)).
Yes, for consumer debts: while the case is open, a creditor generally can't try to collect a consumer debt from someone who is liable on it with you, unless the court allows it (11 U.S.C. 1301).
The law allows up to 10 years from the date the case was filed (15 U.S.C. 1681c(a)(1)). The CFPB says this applies to Chapters 7, 11, 12 and 13.
The plan can be changed (modified), the case can be converted to Chapter 7, or it can be dismissed. A “hardship discharge” is possible if you can't finish because of things outside your control, creditors got at least what Chapter 7 would have paid, and a modified plan isn't possible (11 U.S.C. 1328(b), 1329).
As of Oct. 22, 2026
Chapter 13 bankruptcy is a repayment plan run by a court trustee. You pay what you can afford for 3 or 5 years, keep your property, and can catch up on a mortgage to stop a foreclosure. Most debts left unpaid when you finish are wiped out. To use it, unsecured debts must be under $526,700 and secured debts under $1,580,125. Below: who can file, whether your plan would be 3 or 5 years, the timeline, what the plan must pay, and the discharge, from the courts and the law.
Sources: U.S. Courts fee schedule · 11 U.S.C. 1322 · 11 U.S.C. 1325 · 11 U.S.C. 1326 · 15 U.S.C. 1681c.
Pending change: Congress passed H.R. 7730 (House Sept. 16, Senate Sept. 28, 2026). It would replace both limits with one $2,750,000 limit on total noncontingent, liquidated debts, for cases filed on or after the day it becomes law. As of Oct. 22, 2026 it had not been signed into law, so the two limits above still apply.
Sources: U.S. Courts: Chapter 13 · 11 U.S.C. 109 · 90 FR 8941 · Congress.gov: H.R. 7730 · H.R. 7730 text.
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The math (Tennessee, household of 3, median $97,511): $8,125 a month × 12 = $97,500, which is $11 under, so 3 years. At $8,126 a month ($97,512 a year) it is $1 over, so 5 years.
Sources: 11 U.S.C. 1322 · 11 U.S.C. 1325 · U.S. Trustee median income table · U.S. Courts: Chapter 13.
| When | What happens |
|---|---|
| Within 180 days before filing | Credit counseling briefing from an approved agency |
| Filing day | Petition, schedules and forms filed; the automatic stay stops most collection, lawsuits, garnishments and foreclosure; a trustee is appointed |
| With the petition or within 14 days | The repayment plan is filed (Bankruptcy Rule 3015), unless the court extends the time |
| Within 30 days | Plan payments to the trustee start, even before the plan is approved (11 U.S.C. 1326(a)(1)) |
| 21 to 50 days after filing | Meeting of creditors: you answer questions under oath from the trustee and creditors (Rule 2003(a)) |
| Within 45 days after that meeting | Confirmation hearing: the judge decides whether to approve the plan (11 U.S.C. 1324); creditors get 28 days' notice and can object |
| 70 days after filing | Deadline for most creditors to file claims (Rule 3002(c)); government units have 180 days |
| 3 or 5 years | Payments through the trustee; a personal finance course; then the discharge |
Sources: U.S. Courts: Chapter 13 · 11 U.S.C. 1326 · 11 U.S.C. 1324 · 11 U.S.C. 109 · Rule 3015 · Rule 2003 · Rule 3002.
Sources: U.S. Courts: Chapter 13 · 11 U.S.C. 1322 · 11 U.S.C. 1325 · 28 U.S.C. 586(e).
Sources: U.S. Courts: Chapter 13 · 11 U.S.C. 1322 · 11 U.S.C. 1326 · 11 U.S.C. 1301.
Sources: U.S. Courts: Chapter 13.
When you finish all plan payments, the court discharges the debts the plan provided for, as long as you certify your child support and alimony are current, completed the personal finance course, and didn't get a discharge too recently (below) (11 U.S.C. 1328(a)).
Not wiped out: long-term debts like a home mortgage, child support and alimony, certain taxes, most student loans, debts from death or injury caused by driving drunk or high, and criminal restitution or fines. Whatever the plan didn't pay on these, you still owe.
Wiped out in Chapter 13 but not Chapter 7: debts for willful and malicious damage to property (not people), debts taken on to pay taxes that can't be wiped out, and property settlements in a divorce or separation.
Hardship discharge: if you can't finish because of things outside your control, creditors already got at least what Chapter 7 would have paid, and a modified plan isn't possible, the court may grant a narrower “hardship discharge” (11 U.S.C. 1328(b)). An injury or illness that keeps you from working can qualify.
Timing: no Chapter 13 discharge if you got a discharge in a Chapter 7, 11 or 12 case filed within 4 years, or a Chapter 13 case filed within 2 years, before the new case (11 U.S.C. 1328(f)). The math: a Chapter 7 case filed in June 2023 means a new Chapter 13 case filed before June 2027 can't end in a discharge.
Sources: U.S. Courts: Chapter 13 · 11 U.S.C. 1328.
The U.S. Courts Basics page still prints a $75 administrative fee and a 90-day claims deadline; the official fee schedule (effective Dec. 1, 2023) sets the fee at $78, and Bankruptcy Rule 3002(c) sets 70 days after filing.
Sources: U.S. Courts fee schedule · U.S. Courts: Chapter 13 · Rule 1006 · 28 U.S.C. 1930(f) · 15 U.S.C. 1681c · CFPB.
Not legal advice. These are facts from the Bankruptcy Code, the Bankruptcy Rules and the U.S. Courts, with dates. They don't say whether you should file. A bankruptcy lawyer or legal aid office can tell you how the rules apply to you.
3 years if your household income (last 6 months' average times 12) is less than your state's median for your household size, unless the court approves longer for cause; generally 5 years if it is at or above the median. No plan can run longer than 5 years, and it can be shorter only if it pays all allowed unsecured debts in full (11 U.S.C. 1322(d), 1325(b)(4)).
Unsecured debts less than $526,700 and secured debts less than $1,580,125 on the date you file (11 U.S.C. 109(e), amounts effective April 1, 2025). Congress passed H.R. 7730, which would replace both with one $2,750,000 limit for cases filed on or after the day it becomes law; as of Oct. 22, 2026 it had not been signed into law.
The court fee is $313: $235 filing plus $78 administrative. With the court's permission you can pay in up to 4 installments, with the last one due within 120 days of filing. The low-income fee waiver is for Chapter 7 only (28 U.S.C. 1930(f)). Lawyer fees are separate.
Within 30 days after you file the plan or the case, whichever is earlier, even before the court approves the plan (11 U.S.C. 1326(a)(1)). The plan itself is due with the petition or within 14 days after it (Bankruptcy Rule 3015).
Yes. Filing stops a foreclosure through the automatic stay, and the plan can catch up past-due mortgage payments over time. You must keep making the regular payments that come due after filing, and you can still lose the home if the foreclosure sale was completed under state law before you filed (U.S. Courts; 11 U.S.C. 1322(c)).
Yes, for consumer debts: while the case is open, a creditor generally can't try to collect a consumer debt from someone who is liable on it with you, unless the court allows it (11 U.S.C. 1301).
The law allows up to 10 years from the date the case was filed (15 U.S.C. 1681c(a)(1)). The CFPB says this applies to Chapters 7, 11, 12 and 13.
The plan can be changed (modified), the case can be converted to Chapter 7, or it can be dismissed. A “hardship discharge” is possible if you can't finish because of things outside your control, creditors got at least what Chapter 7 would have paid, and a modified plan isn't possible (11 U.S.C. 1328(b), 1329).
Estimates, not financial advice. Taxes, insurance, PMI and fees vary by lender, county and city; confirm with your lender, dealer and state agency before acting.