United States Code
11 U.S.C. § 302 — Joint cases
Section 302 lets an individual and that individual's spouse begin a bankruptcy case together by filing a single petition, under a chapter the individual could file under alone. Subsection (a) states that starting the joint case is itself the order for relief. Subsection (b) then requires the court to determine how far, if at all, the two debtors' estates are consolidated.
Filing bankruptcy while married raises a practical first question: one case, or two? Section 302 is the provision that allows a single petition to open a single case for both spouses. It also flags the thing that filing together does not by itself settle — whether the two estates are treated as one.
What is a joint bankruptcy case?
A joint case is one bankruptcy case opened by one petition filed by two people: an individual and that individual's spouse. Subsection (a) describes it as "a single petition" filed with the bankruptcy court under a chapter of this title. That is the whole mechanism. Instead of each spouse filing a separate petition and opening a separate case, the two file one document that starts one case. The text puts two conditions on its face. The people filing must be an individual and that individual's spouse, and the chapter must be one the individual "may be a debtor under." Section 302 does not describe how the case is administered afterward, what has to be filed alongside the petition, or what relief follows. It answers a narrower question: how a married couple begins a case together, and what happens to their two estates once they have.
Who can file a joint petition with a spouse?
Subsection (a) identifies the filers as "an individual that may be a debtor under such chapter and such individual's spouse." Two things follow from that wording. First, the filer is an individual — the joint-case mechanism in this section is written around individuals and their spouses, not around business entities. Second, eligibility is tied to the chapter: the individual has to be someone who may be a debtor under the chapter the petition is filed under. Section 302 itself does not set out those eligibility requirements, and it does not define who counts as a spouse. Those questions are answered elsewhere in the Bankruptcy Code and by the court applying it, not by this section. So this section tells you the joint-filing route exists and who it is built for; it does not tell you whether a particular couple meets the requirements of the chapter they are considering. Courts consider chapter eligibility separately.
Does filing a joint petition start the case automatically?
The second sentence of subsection (a) says the commencement of a joint case constitutes an order for relief under that chapter. In plain terms: the filing is the event. The text does not describe a hearing, a motion, or a separate decision that has to happen first for the order for relief to exist in a joint case commenced this way. That matters mostly for timing. Many things in a bankruptcy case are measured from the order for relief, and this sentence fixes that point at commencement rather than at some later step. Section 302 stops there. It does not describe what the order for relief does, what protections or duties attach to it, or what has to happen next — all of that lives in other parts of the Code. Read this sentence for one thing only: in a joint case, commencement and the order for relief are the same moment.
Are a married couple's property and debts combined in a joint case?
Not automatically. Subsection (b) says that after the commencement of a joint case, the court shall determine the extent, if any, to which the debtors' estates shall be consolidated. Two words carry the weight. "Court" — this is a determination the judge makes, not something the joint petition accomplishes by itself. And "if any" — the text expressly contemplates that the answer may be no consolidation at all. So a joint case is one case with two debtors and, at the outset, two estates. Whether and how far those estates are combined is an open question the court resolves afterward. Section 302 sets no standard for that determination, no deadline for making it, and no procedure for raising it. It requires only that the determination be made. If the treatment of one spouse's separate property or separate debts matters in your situation, this is the subsection that tells you the question exists — and that it is decided case by case.
What does section 302 not decide?
This is a short section, and reading its silences is as useful as reading its text. Section 302 does not address whether each spouse receives a separate discharge, how exemptions are claimed by two debtors in one case, what a joint filing costs, whether a joint case can later be split into two, or what happens if the spouses separate or divorce while the case is open. It does not say that both spouses must file together, and it does not say a married person cannot file alone. It also gives no guidance on how the court should decide the consolidation question in subsection (b). Those answers come from other Code sections, the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure, and the practice of the district where the case is filed. If your question is one of the ones listed above, this section is the right starting point but not the place the answer lives.
This summary is our plain-English explanation, written to help you find the right part of the text below. The section itself is the authority — where the two differ, the text controls.
Text of 11 U.S.C. § 302
Reproduced in full from the official source, verified as of July 2026. View it at the source.
(a) A joint case under a chapter of this title is commenced by the filing with the bankruptcy court of a single petition under such chapter by an individual that may be a debtor under such chapter and such individual's spouse. The commencement of a joint case under a chapter of this title constitutes an order for relief under such chapter.
(b) After the commencement of a joint case, the court shall determine the extent, if any, to which the debtors' estates shall be consolidated.
(Pub. L. 95–598, Nov. 6, 1978, 92 Stat. 2558.)
Notes and amendment history
Published by the official source alongside the section above. These notes record how the text has changed over time and the reasoning behind those changes. They are not the operative rule — the enacted text is the section itself.
Historical and Revision Notes
senate report no. 95–989
A joint case is a voluntary bankruptcy case concerning a wife and husband. Under current law, there is no explicit provision for joint cases. Very often, however, in the consumer debtor context, a husband and wife are jointly liable on their debts, and jointly hold most of their property. A joint case will facilitate consolidation of their estates, to the benefit of both the debtors and their creditors, because the cost of administration will be reduced, and there will be only one filing fee.
Section 302 specifies that a joint case is commenced by the filing of a petition under an appropriate chapter by an individual and that individual's spouse. Thus, one spouse cannot take the other into bankruptcy without the other's knowledge or consent. The filing of the petition constitutes an order for relief under the chapter selected.
Subsection (b) requires the court to determine the extent, if any, to which the estates of the two debtors will be consolidated; that is, assets and liabilities combined in a single pool to pay creditors. Factors that will be relevant in the court's determination include the extent of jointly held property and the amount of jointly-owned debts. The section, of course, is not license to consolidate in order to avoid other provisions of the title to the detriment of either the debtors or their creditors. It is designed mainly for ease of administration.
Guides that rely on 11 U.S.C. § 302
Plain-language explanations on this site that cite this section.
- Bankruptcy when your spouse has died
- Co-signed and joint debts in bankruptcy
- Community Property in Bankruptcy
- Declaring Bankruptcy
- Filing Alone, Filing Jointly, or Filing Without Your Spouse
- Jointly Owned Property When Only One Spouse or Co-Owner Files Bankruptcy
- Official Form 101: The Voluntary Petition That Starts a Bankruptcy Case
- Petition (Bankruptcy)
- Petition Date
- Tenancy by the Entirety
- Timing Bankruptcy Around a Divorce or Legal Separation
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.
Turn this into a plan for your exact situation, state, and court.
See My Debt Relief Options→