How long does a Chapter 13 plan last?

District guidance describes plan payments running roughly three to five years. The Middle District of Alabama flowchart shows payments completed in months 36 to 60, and Minnesota's states that plan length varies but typically lasts between three and five years. Where a plan provides for less than full payment of certain priority claims, § 1322(a)(4) requires a five-year commitment of projected disposable income.

When do I have to start making payments?

Unless the court orders otherwise, payments begin no later than 30 days after the plan is filed or the order for relief, whichever is earlier (11 U.S.C. § 1326(a)(1)). That is before confirmation. The trustee holds those pre-confirmation payments; if the plan is not confirmed, the trustee returns what has not already been distributed, after deducting any allowed administrative claim under § 503(b).

Can Chapter 13 stop a wage garnishment?

Filing a bankruptcy petition automatically stays debt-collection actions. As long as the stay remains in effect, creditors generally cannot bring or continue lawsuits, make wage garnishments, or place collection calls (Bankr. D. Md. official page — Legal Overview). There are limits — Arizona's court guidance notes the stay does not reach most domestic relations and criminal proceedings, and prior dismissed filings within the past year can shorten or eliminate it.

Can I keep my house and car in Chapter 13?

Chapter 13 is commonly used to cure defaults on secured debts over time, including mortgage and vehicle arrears (U.S. Bankr. Ct. D. Ariz., Choosing Your Chapter). But under either chapter, secured debts on property you want to keep still have to be paid, and insurance maintained. A plan generally cannot modify a claim secured only by your principal residence (11 U.S.C. § 1322(b)(2)).

Are all my debts wiped out at the end?

No. Section 523(a) excepts several categories of debt from discharge for individual debtors — commonly certain tax claims, domestic support obligations, willful and malicious injury debts, government fines and penalties, most government-backed student loans, and DUI-related personal injury debts (Bankr. N.D. Iowa official page — FAQs: Debtor). That court also notes that a slightly broader discharge is available in Chapter 13 than in Chapter 7.

Does the discharge remove liens on my property?

Generally not on its own. A discharge order relieves you of personal liability for the debt; valid liens that existed before you filed usually pass through the bankruptcy unaffected. Some liens can be avoided or satisfied through the plan (Bankr. N.D. Iowa official page — FAQs: Debtor), and several districts have local rules setting out the motion and evidence required to value collateral or avoid a lien in a Chapter 13 case.

What does it cost to file Chapter 13?

The court fees are a $235 filing fee (28 U.S.C. § 1930(a)(1)(B)) plus a $78 administrative fee (Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Item 8). The statute permits an individual to pay the filing fee in installments, and courts publish an application form for that. Attorney fees are separate; in Chapter 13 they are commonly paid through the plan rather than up front.

Can a Chapter 7 case become a Chapter 13 case?

It can. Under 11 U.S.C. § 707(b)(1), after notice and a hearing, the court may dismiss a Chapter 7 case filed by an individual whose debts are primarily consumer debts if granting relief would be an abuse of Chapter 7 — or, with the debtor's consent, convert it to a Chapter 11 or 13 case. Court instructions describe choosing another chapter as one way to avoid dismissal.

Chapter 13

How Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Works

Chapter 13 is a court-supervised repayment plan. You file a petition and a plan proposing to pay creditors from future income over three to five years, make payments to a trustee starting within 30 days of filing, and if the court confirms the plan and you complete the payments, remaining eligible balances are typically discharged.

Key points

Chapter 13 does not liquidate your property; it commits part of your future income to a repayment plan supervised by a trustee.
Only the debtor may file the plan, and payments generally begin within 30 days of filing — before the court has confirmed anything.
The court confirms a plan only if it meets the statutory tests in 11 U.S.C. § 1325, including that unsecured creditors receive at least what Chapter 7 liquidation would have paid them.
Chapter 13 can cure defaults over time, which is why people facing mortgage or vehicle arrears often look at it rather than Chapter 7.
The Chapter 13 filing fee is $235 plus a $78 administrative fee, and the statute permits an individual to pay it in installments.

If you are behind on a mortgage or car loan, or you have income but no way to catch up, Chapter 13 is the part of the bankruptcy system built for that situation. It is a repayment plan, not a wipe-out, and it runs for years rather than months. This page explains the mechanics: what you file, who administers it, what the court has to find before it approves your plan, and what happens when the payments are done.

How does Chapter 13 actually work, step by step?

Chapter 13 starts the way every bankruptcy case starts: you file a petition with the federal bankruptcy court, along with schedules listing your assets, income, liabilities, and every creditor and what they are owed. Filing automatically stays most collection activity — creditors generally cannot continue lawsuits, garnish wages, or call demanding payment while the stay is in effect (Bankr. D. Md. official page — Legal Overview).

What makes Chapter 13 different is the plan. The debtor files a plan (11 U.S.C. § 1321), and only the debtor may file one. The plan commits some portion of your future earnings to the supervision and control of a trustee, who distributes the money to creditors (11 U.S.C. § 1322(a)(1)).

You then start paying. Unless the court orders otherwise, payments begin no later than 30 days after the plan is filed or the order for relief, whichever is earlier (11 U.S.C. § 1326(a)(1)). A meeting of creditors follows, then a confirmation hearing where the court approves or denies the plan.

What has to be in the plan, and what can it change?

Some plan contents are mandatory. The plan must submit enough of your future income to the trustee to fund it, must pay priority claims under § 507 in full through deferred cash payments unless that creditor agrees otherwise, and must treat every claim within a class the same way (11 U.S.C. § 1322(a)).

Beyond that, the plan may do a considerable amount. It can modify the rights of holders of secured claims — with a significant carve-out: not a claim secured only by a security interest in real property that is your principal residence. It can cure or waive defaults. It can provide for curing a default within a reasonable time while maintaining payments on a debt whose last payment falls due after the plan ends, which is the mechanism that lets a long-term mortgage be brought current through a Chapter 13 case. It can also assume or reject leases and executory contracts, subject to § 365 (11 U.S.C. § 1322(b)).

What does the court have to find before confirming your plan?

Confirmation is not automatic. Section 1325(a) lists what the court must find, and each item is a real gate:

The plan has to comply with the Code, required fees must be paid, and the plan must be proposed in good faith. Unsecured creditors must receive at least as much under the plan as they would have received had the estate been liquidated under Chapter 7 on the plan's effective date — often called the best-interests test. Each secured claim must be handled one of three ways: the creditor accepts the plan, the plan satisfies the lien-retention and value requirements of § 1325(a)(5)(B), or you surrender the collateral.

The court must also find you will be able to make all the payments and comply with the plan, that the petition was filed in good faith, that post-petition domestic support obligations are current, and that you have filed all applicable federal, state, and local tax returns as required by § 1308.

Best-interests test: unsecured creditors get no less than Chapter 7 liquidation would pay (§ 1325(a)(4))
Feasibility: the court must find you can actually make the payments (§ 1325(a)(6))
Good faith, in both the plan and the petition (§ 1325(a)(3), (7))
Domestic support obligations that came due after filing must be paid (§ 1325(a)(8))
All applicable tax returns filed (§ 1325(a)(9))

What does the Chapter 13 trustee do?

A standing trustee is normally appointed to administer Chapter 13 cases in a district; otherwise the United States trustee appoints a disinterested person or may serve directly (11 U.S.C. § 1302(a)). The trustee is not your lawyer and not the judge. The role is administrative and supervisory.

The trustee appears and is heard at hearings about the value of property subject to a lien, plan confirmation, and post-confirmation modification. The trustee must ensure the debtor commences timely payments under § 1326, and must advise and assist the debtor in performing under the plan — but the statute is explicit that this assistance is on matters other than legal ones (11 U.S.C. § 1302(b)). Where there is a domestic support obligation claim, the trustee has specific notice duties to the claim holder and the state child support enforcement agency (§ 1302(b)(6), (d)).

Money you pay before confirmation is held by the trustee, and if the plan is not confirmed, it is returned to you less any allowed administrative claim (§ 1326(a)(2)).

Where do state and local rules change the picture?

The Bankruptcy Code is federal, and bankruptcy cases can only be filed in federal bankruptcy court — a state court has no jurisdiction over them (Bankr. D. Md. official page — Legal Overview). So the structure described on this page is the same everywhere.

What varies is local practice and exemption law. Districts adopt their own local rules and mandatory plan forms: the Central District of California requires a court-mandated plan form and service on all creditors at least 14 days before the § 341(a) meeting (C.D. Cal. LBR 3015-1), the Middle District of Georgia requires its standard plan form with deviations confined to a special-provisions section (M.D. Ga. LBR 3015-1), and the Eastern District of Michigan requires plan contents beyond § 1322(a) plus a chapter 7 comparison analysis attached to the plan (E.D. Mich. LBR 3015-1). Exemption amounts, which feed the best-interests test, are set largely by state law. Those figures live on our state pages rather than here.

What does a Chapter 13 case look like in practice?

District flowcharts published for people filing without a lawyer show a consistent shape. Credit counseling is completed before filing, within 180 days beforehand. On day one you pay the fee or apply to pay in installments and file the petition, creditor matrix, and required statements. Within 14 days, the credit counseling certificate, schedules, statements, and the Chapter 13 plan are filed if they were not filed with the petition. Payments to the trustee begin in the first 30 days (U.S. Bankr. Ct. M.D. Ala., Anatomy of a Bankruptcy Chapter 13).

The § 341(a) meeting of creditors falls roughly three to seven weeks in, with tax returns due to the trustee seven days before it. In the Middle District of Alabama's chart, the confirmation hearing must take place within 45 days of that meeting. Plan payments then run months 36 to 60 — three to five years (Bankr. D. Minn. official guidance — Chapter 13 Process for Debtors without an Attorney).

Typical Chapter 13 sequence, per district flowcharts (M.D. Ala., D. Minn.)
Stage	Timing
Credit counseling course	Within 180 days before filing
Petition, fee or installment application, creditor matrix	Day 1
Certificate, schedules, statements, Chapter 13 plan	Day 1–14
First payment to the trustee	Day 1–30
Tax returns provided to trustee	7 days before the creditors' meeting
§ 341(a) meeting of creditors	Day 21–50
Confirmation hearing	Within 45 days of the creditors' meeting
Plan payments completed	Month 36–60
Financial management course, then discharge	After plan completion

What documents, forms, and fees are involved?

The Chapter 13 filing fee is $235 (28 U.S.C. § 1930(a)(1)(B)), plus a $78 administrative fee (Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Item 8). The statute permits an individual commencing a voluntary or joint case to pay the filing fee in installments; the conditional Chapter 7 waiver under § 1930(f) does not extend to Chapter 13. Courts publish an installment application form for exactly this (Bankr. N.D. Iowa official page — Chapter 13 Filing Requirements).

The document set is substantial. Districts list the voluntary petition, a mailing matrix of all creditors, the statement of Social Security number for pro se filers, the credit counseling certificate, Schedules A/B through J with the summary and declaration, the statement of financial affairs, Form 122C-1 (current monthly income and commitment period) and Form 122C-2 where required, copies of pay advices received in the 60 days before filing, and the Chapter 13 plan itself (Bankr. N.D. Iowa official page — Chapter 13 Filing Requirements).

What should you ask a bankruptcy lawyer?

Bankruptcy court clerks are prohibited by statute from giving legal advice or helping you complete forms (Bankr. W.D. Ky. official guidance — Guide to Filing Bankruptcy without an Attorney), so the questions below are for a lawyer, not the court.

Useful ones are specific to your facts: what would unsecured creditors receive if my case were a Chapter 7 liquidation, since that sets the floor under § 1325(a)(4)? Can my plan modify this particular secured debt, or is it excluded as a claim secured only by my principal residence? How would my mortgage or vehicle arrears be cured under § 1322(b)(5)? What plan length would my income produce, and is that payment realistic against my actual monthly budget? Which of my debts would survive the discharge under § 523? And what does my district's local rule require — mandatory plan form, attachments, service deadlines — because those differ meaningfully from district to district.

Frequently asked questions

How long does a Chapter 13 plan last?: District guidance describes plan payments running roughly three to five years. The Middle District of Alabama flowchart shows payments completed in months 36 to 60, and Minnesota's states that plan length varies but typically lasts between three and five years. Where a plan provides for less than full payment of certain priority claims, § 1322(a)(4) requires a five-year commitment of projected disposable income.
When do I have to start making payments?: Unless the court orders otherwise, payments begin no later than 30 days after the plan is filed or the order for relief, whichever is earlier (11 U.S.C. § 1326(a)(1)). That is before confirmation. The trustee holds those pre-confirmation payments; if the plan is not confirmed, the trustee returns what has not already been distributed, after deducting any allowed administrative claim under § 503(b).
Can Chapter 13 stop a wage garnishment?: Filing a bankruptcy petition automatically stays debt-collection actions. As long as the stay remains in effect, creditors generally cannot bring or continue lawsuits, make wage garnishments, or place collection calls (Bankr. D. Md. official page — Legal Overview). There are limits — Arizona's court guidance notes the stay does not reach most domestic relations and criminal proceedings, and prior dismissed filings within the past year can shorten or eliminate it.
Can I keep my house and car in Chapter 13?: Chapter 13 is commonly used to cure defaults on secured debts over time, including mortgage and vehicle arrears (U.S. Bankr. Ct. D. Ariz., Choosing Your Chapter). But under either chapter, secured debts on property you want to keep still have to be paid, and insurance maintained. A plan generally cannot modify a claim secured only by your principal residence (11 U.S.C. § 1322(b)(2)).
Are all my debts wiped out at the end?: No. Section 523(a) excepts several categories of debt from discharge for individual debtors — commonly certain tax claims, domestic support obligations, willful and malicious injury debts, government fines and penalties, most government-backed student loans, and DUI-related personal injury debts (Bankr. N.D. Iowa official page — FAQs: Debtor). That court also notes that a slightly broader discharge is available in Chapter 13 than in Chapter 7.
Does the discharge remove liens on my property?: Generally not on its own. A discharge order relieves you of personal liability for the debt; valid liens that existed before you filed usually pass through the bankruptcy unaffected. Some liens can be avoided or satisfied through the plan (Bankr. N.D. Iowa official page — FAQs: Debtor), and several districts have local rules setting out the motion and evidence required to value collateral or avoid a lien in a Chapter 13 case.
What does it cost to file Chapter 13?: The court fees are a $235 filing fee (28 U.S.C. § 1930(a)(1)(B)) plus a $78 administrative fee (Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Item 8). The statute permits an individual to pay the filing fee in installments, and courts publish an application form for that. Attorney fees are separate; in Chapter 13 they are commonly paid through the plan rather than up front.
Can a Chapter 7 case become a Chapter 13 case?: It can. Under 11 U.S.C. § 707(b)(1), after notice and a hearing, the court may dismiss a Chapter 7 case filed by an individual whose debts are primarily consumer debts if granting relief would be an abuse of Chapter 7 — or, with the debtor's consent, convert it to a Chapter 11 or 13 case. Court instructions describe choosing another chapter as one way to avoid dismissal.

Sources

11 U.S.C. § 1321 — Filing of plan
11 U.S.C. § 1322 — Contents of plan · official source
11 U.S.C. § 1325 — Confirmation of plan · official source
11 U.S.C. § 1326 — Payments · official source
11 U.S.C. § 1302 — Trustee · official source
11 U.S.C. § 523 — Exceptions to discharge · official source
11 U.S.C. § 707 — Dismissal of a case or conversion to a case under chapter 11 or 13 · official source
28 U.S.C. § 1930(a)(1)(B) — Chapter 13 filing fee
Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Item 8 — Administrative fee
Bankr. D. Md. official page — Legal Overview
Bankr. N.D. Iowa official page — Chapter 13 Filing Requirements
Bankr. N.D. Iowa official page — FAQs: Debtor
U.S. Bankr. Ct. M.D. Ala., Anatomy of a Bankruptcy Chapter 13
Bankr. D. Minn. official guidance — Chapter 13 Process for Debtors without an Attorney
U.S. Bankr. Ct. D. Ariz., Choosing Your Chapter: What can Bankruptcy do for you? What will it do to you?
C.D. Cal. LBR 3015-1
E.D. Mich. LBR 3015-1
M.D. Ga. LBR 3015-1
Bankr. W.D. Ky. official guidance — Guide to Filing Bankruptcy without an Attorney

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

Last reviewed July 26, 2026 · Sources verified July 26, 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.

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