What if I disagree with the balance a collector is claiming?

List it anyway. Court form instructions state that you must list the claims of all your creditors even if they are contingent, unliquidated, or disputed. Listing an account is not an admission that the amount is correct; the schedules include a way to mark a claim as disputed, and there is a separate process under the Bankruptcy Code for objecting to a claim a creditor files.

Does bankruptcy erase a debt that is already too old to sue on?

The limitation period on a lawsuit is a matter of state law, and it varies by state and account type, so we do not publish one figure here. It generally restricts a creditor's ability to sue rather than eliminating the debt, and it is a defense that must be raised. Because the federal listing requirement does not carve out old accounts, listing them remains the cautious approach.

What happens if I forget a creditor after I have already filed?

Schedules can be amended. Court guidance explains that inaccurate information in your petition or schedules is corrected by filing an amendment with corrected schedules, signed under penalty of perjury. Some districts charge a fee to add a creditor after filing; one district publishes a $32 fee under its local rules. Timing can matter under § 523(a)(3), so raise it quickly.

Can an old account at my own bank be offset against my money there?

It can be an issue. Section 553 preserves a creditor's right to offset a mutual debt owed to you that arose before the case against a claim it holds against you, subject to exceptions and to sections 362 and 363. If you owe an old balance at a bank where you also keep a deposit account, that overlap is worth raising with a lawyer before you file.

How much does it cost to file?

The Chapter 7 filing fee is $245, with a $78 administrative fee and a $15 trustee surcharge collected as well. Chapter 13 carries a $235 filing fee plus a $78 administrative fee. Chapter 7 fee waivers are conditional under 28 U.S.C. § 1930(f) and Judiciary procedures, and the statute permits installment payment for an individual filing a voluntary or joint case.

Debts & discharge

Old Debts, Charge-Offs, and Collection Accounts in Bankruptcy

A charge-off is an accounting entry, not a cancellation, so the debt still exists and must be listed in your bankruptcy schedules. Bankruptcy law excepts from discharge debts that were neither listed nor scheduled with the creditor's name, when known, in time for that creditor to act (11 U.S.C. § 523(a)(3)). List every old account, including ones you dispute.

Key points

A charge-off means the original creditor wrote the balance off its own books for accounting purposes; the underlying debt is still owed and still collectible.
Under 11 U.S.C. § 523(a)(3), a debt that is neither listed nor scheduled with the creditor's name, when known to you, in time to permit the creditor to act may be excepted from discharge.
Court instructions direct filers to list every creditor's claim, even claims that are contingent, unliquidated, or disputed.
How long a creditor can sue on an old debt is a matter of state law, not the Bankruptcy Code, and it varies substantially by state and by type of account.
When a debt has been sold or assigned, listing both the original creditor and the current collection agency is the safer practice because notice is what the statute turns on.

If you have opened a credit report lately, you may be looking at a wall of accounts marked "charged off," agency names you have never heard of, and balances from purchases you barely remember. It is unsettling, and it raises a fair question: do these old accounts even belong in a bankruptcy filing? They usually do, and leaving one out can cost you more than including one that turns out not to matter.

What does a charge-off actually mean, and is the debt gone?

A charge-off is an accounting decision by a lender. After an account goes unpaid long enough, the lender writes the balance off as a loss on its own books. Nothing about that entry cancels what you owe. The account can still accrue interest under the contract, can still be sued on if state law allows it, and can still be sold to a third party who buys the right to collect.

Bankruptcy uses a different word for a debt going away: discharge. Court guidance describes a discharge as a court order relieving you of the obligation to pay dischargeable debts and barring those creditors from calling, writing, or suing you about them (U.S. Bankr. Ct. M.D. Ala., Consumer Pro Se Debtors Guide). That is a legal release granted by a judge. A charge-off is a bookkeeping label applied by a company.

The practical consequence matters. Because a charged-off account is still a claim against you, it is still a debt your schedules have to account for.

Do I have to list a charged-off or collection account in my bankruptcy?

The Bankruptcy Code answers this in the discharge-exception section rather than in a filing rule. Section 523(a)(3) excepts from discharge a debt "neither listed nor scheduled under section 521(a)(1) of this title, with the name, if known to the debtor, of the creditor to whom such debt is owed, in time to permit" that creditor to act (11 U.S.C. § 523(a)(3)). Court instructions repeat the point in plainer language, warning that debts you may still have to pay after bankruptcy include "certain debts that are not listed in your bankruptcy papers" (Bankr. S.D. Iowa official guidance — Instructions - Bankruptcy Forms for Individuals).

So the risk of omission runs one direction only. Listing a debt that turns out to be uncollectible costs you nothing. Omitting one can leave that single account outside the discharge while everything else is resolved.

Court form instructions are equally direct about uncertainty: you must list the claims of all your creditors, "even if the claims are contingent, unliquidated, or disputed" (U.S. Bankr. Ct. D. Alaska, The Forms Individuals and Married Couples Need to File Bankruptcy). Disagreeing with a balance is not a reason to leave it off.

What is the difference between a charge-off and a discharge?

These two words get used interchangeably in everyday conversation, and they mean almost opposite things. One is a private company's internal decision. The other is a federal court order with legal force behind it. Keeping them separate helps you read your credit report and your bankruptcy paperwork without confusing yourself.

Court guidance describes what the discharge does and does not reach: it releases personal liability for dischargeable debts and stops collection contact about them, but it does not prevent a secured creditor from seizing collateral when payments stop, and valid liens that existed before filing generally pass through unaffected (U.S. Bankr. Ct. M.D. Ala., Consumer Pro Se Debtors Guide; Bankr. N.D. Iowa official page — FAQs: Debtor).

Charge-off compared with bankruptcy discharge
	Charge-off	Discharge
Who does it	The creditor, internally	The bankruptcy court, by order
What it is	An accounting write-off of the balance	A release of personal liability for the debt
Do you still owe it	Yes, the obligation continues	No, for debts that are dischargeable
Can collection continue	Yes, including by a buyer of the debt	No, collection contact on discharged debt is barred
Effect on a valid lien	None	Liens existing before filing generally pass through unaffected

What does federal law say about unlisted and old debts?

Three federal provisions do most of the work on this topic. Section 523(a)(3) is the notice rule: a debt neither listed nor scheduled with the creditor's name, when known to you, in time to permit that creditor to act can fall outside the discharge (11 U.S.C. § 523(a)(3)). The Bankruptcy Code defines a claim broadly and treats creditors as those holding a right to payment against you (11 U.S.C. § 101).

Section 502 governs whether a filed claim is allowed, and court guidance describes the process for objecting to claims you believe are wrong. Section 553 preserves a creditor's right to set off a mutual debt that arose before the case against a claim it holds against you, subject to limits, which is why an old account at a bank where you also keep money deserves attention (11 U.S.C. § 553).

What federal bankruptcy law does not do is set a deadline after which an old consumer debt disappears. That question belongs to state law.

Is a time-barred debt still listed, and where does state law come in?

A debt is often called time-barred when the period for a creditor to sue on it under state law has run. That period is a creature of state statute. It differs from state to state and often differs within a single state depending on whether the account is written, oral, or governed by a sales-contract rule. We do not publish a verified figure for every state's limitation period on this page; check your state page, and treat any number you find elsewhere with care.

Two points hold generally. First, a limitation period usually restricts a lawsuit, not the existence of the debt, and it is a defense that has to be raised. Second, nothing in the federal listing requirement carves out an old account. Section 523(a)(3) turns on whether the creditor was listed and given notice in time to act, not on the age of the balance (11 U.S.C. § 523(a)(3)).

State law also controls exemptions in many cases, which shapes what property is at stake (11 U.S.C. § 522).

What does this look like in practice with a collection agency?

Old accounts rarely stay with the company you originally borrowed from. A balance may be charged off by the bank, sold to a debt buyer, placed with a collection agency, and sold again. By the time you file, the name on the collection letter and the name on your credit report may be different, and neither may match the merchant you remember.

Because the statute keys on the creditor's name being listed, when known to you, in time to permit the creditor to act, the practical approach is to list every entity you can identify for a single debt: the original creditor, any assignee or debt buyer, and the agency currently contacting you (11 U.S.C. § 523(a)(3)).

If a creditor surfaces after you file, court guidance notes that schedules can be amended, and in at least one district adding a creditor after filing carries a $32 fee under the local rules (Bankr. N.D. Iowa official page — FAQs: Debtor; Bankr. D. Md. official guidance — General Information: Understanding Bankruptcy). Local fees and procedures differ by district.

What documents and information do I need for old accounts?

Old debts are a records problem before they are a legal problem. Unsecured claims, which is where most charged-off credit cards, medical bills, and collection accounts land, are reported on Schedule E/F: Creditors Who Have Unsecured Claims (Official Form 106E/F), while claims secured by property go on Schedule D (U.S. Bankr. Ct. D. Alaska, The Forms Individuals and Married Couples Need to File Bankruptcy). Property you want to claim as protected has to be listed on Schedule C, because exemptions are not automatic (Bankr. S.D. Iowa official guidance — Instructions - Bankruptcy Forms for Individuals).

Useful things to gather:

A current credit report from each major bureau, to catch collection accounts you have lost track of
Every collection letter and account statement you still have, including ones you never opened
The original creditor name and account number where you can find it, plus the current collector's name and address
Any lawsuit papers, judgments, or garnishment notices tied to an old account
Bank statements and income records, which court guidance lists among documents trustees commonly require before the meeting of creditors (Bankr. E.D. Mich. official guidance — A Guide for Pro Se Filers)

What should I ask a lawyer about my old accounts?

Court materials are consistent that clerks and judges cannot give you legal advice, and they repeatedly point filers toward counsel for exactly the judgment calls old debts raise (U.S. Bankr. Ct. D. Ariz., Choosing Your Chapter: What can Bankruptcy do for you? What will it do to you?). Cost is part of the picture too: 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). Chapter 13 carries a $235 filing fee (28 U.S.C. § 1930(a)(1)(B)) plus the same $78 administrative fee.

Questions worth writing down:

How should I list an account when I cannot identify the current owner of the debt?
Does my state's limitation period matter to how this account is treated, and has anything restarted it?
Is any of my old debt in a category that is excepted from discharge under § 523?
Do I have accounts at a bank where I also hold money, given the setoff rule in § 553?
Is a reaffirmation agreement being proposed on any of these accounts, and what would that undo?

Frequently asked questions

If a debt was charged off years ago, do I still have to list it?: Yes. A charge-off is the creditor's accounting entry, not a cancellation, so the claim still exists. Section 523(a)(3) excepts from discharge a debt neither listed nor scheduled with the creditor's name, when known to you, in time to permit the creditor to act. Court instructions also warn that debts not listed in your bankruptcy papers may still have to be paid.
What if I disagree with the balance a collector is claiming?: List it anyway. Court form instructions state that you must list the claims of all your creditors even if they are contingent, unliquidated, or disputed. Listing an account is not an admission that the amount is correct; the schedules include a way to mark a claim as disputed, and there is a separate process under the Bankruptcy Code for objecting to a claim a creditor files.
Does bankruptcy erase a debt that is already too old to sue on?: The limitation period on a lawsuit is a matter of state law, and it varies by state and account type, so we do not publish one figure here. It generally restricts a creditor's ability to sue rather than eliminating the debt, and it is a defense that must be raised. Because the federal listing requirement does not carve out old accounts, listing them remains the cautious approach.
Is a charge-off the same as a discharge?: No. A charge-off is a lender's internal write-off; the balance is still owed and can still be sold or collected. A discharge is a court order releasing you from personal liability for dischargeable debts and barring those creditors from contacting you about them. Court guidance notes the discharge does not remove valid liens that existed before you filed.
What happens if I forget a creditor after I have already filed?: Schedules can be amended. Court guidance explains that inaccurate information in your petition or schedules is corrected by filing an amendment with corrected schedules, signed under penalty of perjury. Some districts charge a fee to add a creditor after filing; one district publishes a $32 fee under its local rules. Timing can matter under § 523(a)(3), so raise it quickly.
Can an old account at my own bank be offset against my money there?: It can be an issue. Section 553 preserves a creditor's right to offset a mutual debt owed to you that arose before the case against a claim it holds against you, subject to exceptions and to sections 362 and 363. If you owe an old balance at a bank where you also keep a deposit account, that overlap is worth raising with a lawyer before you file.
How much does it cost to file?: The Chapter 7 filing fee is $245, with a $78 administrative fee and a $15 trustee surcharge collected as well. Chapter 13 carries a $235 filing fee plus a $78 administrative fee. Chapter 7 fee waivers are conditional under 28 U.S.C. § 1930(f) and Judiciary procedures, and the statute permits installment payment for an individual filing a voluntary or joint case.

Sources

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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