How do I find out whether my state is an opt-out state?

Look at your state's exemption statute, or start with your state page on this site. The opt-out statutes are usually short and explicit, saying that debtors are not authorized to claim the exemptions in 11 U.S.C. § 522(d). Because the domicile lookback in § 522(b)(3)(A) can point to a different state than the one you live in now, a recent move is worth raising with a lawyer.

If my state opted out, do I lose all federal exemptions?

No. An opt-out removes the § 522(d) list only. Section 522(b)(3)(A) still preserves property exempt under federal law other than § 522(d), and Alabama's statute states this expressly (Ala. Code § 6-10-11). Federal non-bankruptcy exemptions — Social Security payments and certain veterans' benefits among them — are a separate body of law that an opt-out does not touch.

Does opting out change my filing fee or where I file?

No. Opting out concerns exemptions, not court administration. The Chapter 7 filing fee is $245 (28 U.S.C. § 1930(a)(1)(A), (f)(1)), plus a $78 administrative fee and a $15 trustee surcharge (Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Items 8 and 9). Those amounts are set nationally and do not vary with your state's exemption choice.

Can my spouse and I each choose a different list?

Not in a joint case, and not in individual cases by spouses whose estates are jointly administered under Rule 1015(b). Section 522(b)(1) prohibits one spouse electing the federal list while the other elects the state alternative. If the two cannot agree, the Code deems them to have elected the federal list, where the law of the jurisdiction where the case is filed permits that election.

Glossary

Opt-Out State

An opt-out state is a state that has passed a law barring debtors whose applicable domicile law is that state's from electing the federal exemption list in 11 U.S.C. § 522(d). Section 522(b)(2) lets each state do this. In an opt-out state, exemptions come from that state's law plus federal laws other than § 522(d).

Key points

The Bankruptcy Code offers two exemption lists, and 11 U.S.C. § 522(b)(2) lets a state remove the federal § 522(d) list as an option.
Whether you are in an opt-out state turns on the domicile rule in 11 U.S.C. § 522(b)(3)(A), not on where you live today.
Opting out removes the § 522(d) list only — federal exemptions outside § 522(d) still apply.
States that have not opted out let a debtor choose between the state list and the federal list, but not mix them.
An exemption shields an interest or equity in property; it does not avoid a valid mortgage or car lien.

You may have seen the phrase "opt-out state" in a court packet, a form, or something a lawyer said in passing. It describes a choice your state legislature made years ago about which exemption list applies in bankruptcy. It has nothing to do with opting out of anything yourself.

What does "opt-out state" actually mean?

The Bankruptcy Code contains its own list of exemptions at 11 U.S.C. § 522(d) — a federal schedule covering things like a residence, a vehicle, and household goods. Section 522(b)(1) lets an individual debtor exempt property under either that federal list or the alternative in § 522(b)(3), which draws on state and local law plus federal law outside § 522(d).

But § 522(b)(2) makes the federal list available only "unless the State law that is applicable to the debtor under paragraph (3)(A) specifically does not so authorize." A state that passes such a law has opted out. Its statute usually says so directly: Ohio's provides that the state "specifically does not authorize" debtors domiciled there to use the § 522(d) list (Ohio Rev. Code § 2329.662). North Dakota, Mississippi, Nebraska, Wyoming, Arizona, Kansas, South Dakota and Alabama have comparable statutes. New York took the opposite path, expressly permitting the federal alternative (N.Y. Debt. & Cred. Law § 285).

Why does it matter in a bankruptcy case?

It decides which menu you are working from when you fill out Schedule C, the form listing property claimed as exempt. In an opt-out state there is one list; everywhere else there are two and you pick one.

That single fact can change what a Chapter 7 trustee may sell and how much unsecured creditors receive. Some state lists are more generous than the federal list on a home and far less generous on cash or a vehicle; others are the reverse. Neither list is universally better, which is why the answer turns entirely on your state and the specific property you own.

One more constraint: married debtors filing jointly cannot split the difference. Under § 522(b)(1), spouses in a joint case may not have one elect the federal list and the other the state list, and if they cannot agree, they are deemed to elect the federal list where that election is permitted.

How does it work in practice?

The question is not simply "where do I live." Section 522(b)(3)(A) applies the exemption law of the place where your domicile was located for the 730 days before the petition date. If your domicile was not in a single state for that whole period, the law of the place where you were domiciled for the 180 days before that 730-day window applies — or the place you spent the longest part of those 180 days.

So someone who moved recently may be governed by a former state's law, including its opt-out. Wyoming's statute is written directly in those domicile terms (Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 1-20-109).

Also note what an opt-out does not reach. Alabama's statute leaves in place property exempt "under federal laws other than Subsection (d)" (Ala. Code § 6-10-11) — things like certain Social Security and veterans' benefits.

The controlling date is the petition filing date, applied through the § 522(b)(3)(A) lookback.
Opting out removes § 522(d) only, not other federal exemption statutes.
Retirement funds in tax-exempt accounts are addressed separately under § 522(b)(3)(C).

What do people get wrong about it?

The most common error is thinking exemptions are purely a state-law matter. They are not: § 522(d) is a federal list, available unless the applicable state has opted out under § 522(b)(2). Saying "exemptions come from state law" is only true in the opt-out states.

The second error is treating an exemption as a shield around the object itself. It protects your interest or equity, not the item. A mortgage or a car loan is a lien, and a valid lien generally survives the case and stays enforceable against the property, as court guidance for filers explains (U.S. Bankr. Ct. M.D. Ala., Consumer Pro Se Debtors Guide).

Third, people assume they can mix lists — take the federal homestead and the state vehicle amount. The Code frames it as one alternative or the other, not a combination.

We do not publish exemption figures on this page. Amounts vary by state and change over time; check your state's page for verified figures.

Frequently asked questions

How do I find out whether my state is an opt-out state?: Look at your state's exemption statute, or start with your state page on this site. The opt-out statutes are usually short and explicit, saying that debtors are not authorized to claim the exemptions in 11 U.S.C. § 522(d). Because the domicile lookback in § 522(b)(3)(A) can point to a different state than the one you live in now, a recent move is worth raising with a lawyer.
If my state opted out, do I lose all federal exemptions?: No. An opt-out removes the § 522(d) list only. Section 522(b)(3)(A) still preserves property exempt under federal law other than § 522(d), and Alabama's statute states this expressly (Ala. Code § 6-10-11). Federal non-bankruptcy exemptions — Social Security payments and certain veterans' benefits among them — are a separate body of law that an opt-out does not touch.
Does opting out change my filing fee or where I file?: No. Opting out concerns exemptions, not court administration. The Chapter 7 filing fee is $245 (28 U.S.C. § 1930(a)(1)(A), (f)(1)), plus a $78 administrative fee and a $15 trustee surcharge (Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Items 8 and 9). Those amounts are set nationally and do not vary with your state's exemption choice.
Can my spouse and I each choose a different list?: Not in a joint case, and not in individual cases by spouses whose estates are jointly administered under Rule 1015(b). Section 522(b)(1) prohibits one spouse electing the federal list while the other elects the state alternative. If the two cannot agree, the Code deems them to have elected the federal list, where the law of the jurisdiction where the case is filed permits that election.

Sources

11 U.S.C. § 522 — Exemptions · official source
Ohio Rev. Code § 2329.662 — Federal exemption not authorized
Ala. Code § 6-10-11 — Exemptions in Federal Bankruptcy
Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 1-20-109 — Exemptions from estates in bankruptcy
N.Y. Debt. & Cred. Law § 285 — Alternative federal exemptions
N.D. Cent. Code § 28-22-17 — Nonavailability of federal bankruptcy exemptions
Miss. Code Ann. § 85-3-2 — Certain federal exemptions prohibited
Neb. Rev. Stat. § 25-15,105 — Federal exemptions; rejected
A.R.S. § 33-1133 — Other exemption laws
K.S.A. 60-2312 — No right to elect exemptions under federal law, exception
S.D. Codified Laws § 43-31-30 — Certain federal bankruptcy exemptions not available
U.S. Bankr. Ct. M.D. Ala., Consumer Pro Se Debtors Guide
28 U.S.C. § 1930(a)(1)(A), (f)(1) · official source
Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Item 8
Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Item 9

By Antonio G. Jimenez, Esq. · Florida Bar No. 21022

Sources verified July 28, 2026 · How we verify

Every figure on this page is drawn from a primary legal source and checked against our canonical legal database before publication. Bankruptcy.law is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.