United States Code

11 U.S.C. § 528 — Requirements for debt relief agencies

Section 528 sets the rules a debt relief agency must follow when it helps someone with bankruptcy. Subsection (a) requires a written contract explaining the services and the fees, executed within 5 business days of the first services and before the petition is filed, plus a copy for the client. It also requires specific disclosures in advertising. Subsection (b) defines which advertisements are covered.

If you have paid, or are thinking about paying, a company or a law office to help you with bankruptcy, this is the section that says what they owe you in writing and how they are allowed to advertise. It exists because people in debt were being sold "repayment plan" help without being told it was bankruptcy. The section does not define who counts as a debt relief agency or an assisted person — those terms are defined elsewhere in the Bankruptcy Code.

What does a debt relief agency have to give me in writing?

Subsection (a)(1) requires the agency to execute a written contract with the assisted person that explains, clearly and conspicuously, two things: the services the agency will provide, and the fees or charges for those services along with the terms of payment. Both parts are named separately in the text, so a contract that describes the work but leaves payment terms vague is not what the subsection describes. Subsection (a)(2) then requires the agency to provide the assisted person with a copy of the fully executed and completed contract. "Fully executed and completed" is the statute's own language — the copy the section describes is the finished, signed document, not a blank form or a draft. If you are trying to work out what you agreed to pay and when, subsection (a) is the part of the text below to read first. What the section requires is disclosure and a document; it does not set fee amounts or say what a reasonable fee is.

How soon does the written contract have to be signed?

Subsection (a)(1) sets two limits at once. The contract must be executed not later than 5 business days after the first date on which the agency provides any bankruptcy assistance services to the assisted person. It must also be executed before that person's petition under this title is filed. Whichever comes first in a particular situation controls, because both conditions have to be met. The clock in the text starts at the first services, not at the first phone call, first payment, or the date a case is opened. Note the words "any bankruptcy assistance services" — the subsection does not carve out preliminary or minor work. "Business days" is also the statute's own measure, so weekends and holidays are treated differently from calendar days. If you paid someone weeks ago and still have nothing in writing, subsection (a)(1) is the provision that describes when the contract was supposed to exist. It states a timing requirement; it does not state what happens afterward.

Why do bankruptcy ads say "We are a debt relief agency"?

Because subsection (a)(4) requires that exact wording, or a substantially similar statement: "We are a debt relief agency. We help people file for bankruptcy relief under the Bankruptcy Code." It is not a slogan the company chose. Subsection (a)(3) sits alongside it and requires a separate thing — clear and conspicuous disclosure that the services or benefits being advertised are with respect to bankruptcy relief under this title. Both requirements apply to any advertisement of bankruptcy assistance services, or of the benefits of bankruptcy, that is directed to the general public. The text lists the formats it covers: general media, seminars, specific mailings, telephonic or electronic messages, or otherwise. That last word matters — the list is illustrative rather than closed, so the medium is not the test. "Clearly and conspicuously" appears in both paragraphs, which is the standard the section uses for how visible the disclosure has to be. The section states what an advertisement must contain; it says nothing about approving or endorsing the advertiser.

Does an ad count if it never mentions bankruptcy?

Subsection (b)(1) says it can. It defines an advertisement directed to the general public to include descriptions of bankruptcy assistance in connection with a chapter 13 plan, whether or not chapter 13 is specifically mentioned in the advertisement. It goes further and names the kinds of phrases it has in mind: statements such as "federally supervised repayment plan" or "Federal debt restructuring help," or other similar statements. The test the text supplies is what a reasonable consumer could believe — specifically, statements that could lead a reasonable consumer to believe that debt counseling was being offered when in fact the services were directed to providing bankruptcy assistance with a chapter 13 plan or another form of bankruptcy relief under this title. So the wording used in the ad does not control; what the services actually are, and the impression the wording creates, are what subsection (b)(1) looks at. If an offer sounded like a government program or credit counseling to you, this is the paragraph describing that situation.

What about ads about foreclosure, eviction, or debt collection calls?

Subsection (b)(2) covers those directly. It applies to an advertisement, directed to the general public, indicating that the debt relief agency provides assistance with respect to credit defaults, mortgage foreclosures, eviction proceedings, excessive debt, debt collection pressure, or inability to pay any consumer debt. That list covers most of the things a person actually searches for when money runs out. Under subparagraph (A), such an advertisement must disclose clearly and conspicuously that the assistance may involve bankruptcy relief under this title. Under subparagraph (B), it must also include the same statement subsection (a)(4) uses: "We are a debt relief agency. We help people file for bankruptcy relief under the Bankruptcy Code," or a substantially similar statement. Note the word "may" in subparagraph (A) — the required disclosure is that bankruptcy relief may be involved, not that it will be. Together with subsection (b)(1), this paragraph is the reason a foreclosure-help or debt-help ad from a covered agency carries bankruptcy language even when bankruptcy is not the headline.

What does § 528 not say?

Read the text below closely for what is absent, because that shapes what the section can answer. It does not define "debt relief agency," "assisted person," or "bankruptcy assistance" — those definitions live elsewhere in the Bankruptcy Code, so this section alone will not tell you whether a particular company or law office is covered by it. It does not state a consequence, remedy, or penalty for an agency that fails to do what subsection (a) requires. It does not cap or regulate fees; it requires that fees, charges, and payment terms be explained in the contract, which is a disclosure requirement rather than a price rule. It does not describe anything a debtor must do. And it does not address what happens to a bankruptcy case if the contract or the disclosures were missing. Those questions are answered, if at all, by other parts of the Code and by court decisions applying it, not by the text on this page.

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. § 528

Reproduced in full from the official source, verified as of July 2026. View it at the source.

(a) A debt relief agency shall—

(1) not later than 5 business days after the first date on which such agency provides any bankruptcy assistance services to an assisted person, but prior to such assisted person's petition under this title being filed, execute a written contract with such assisted person that explains clearly and conspicuously—

(A) the services such agency will provide to such assisted person; and

(B) the fees or charges for such services, and the terms of payment;

(2) provide the assisted person with a copy of the fully executed and completed contract;

(3) clearly and conspicuously disclose in any advertisement of bankruptcy assistance services or of the benefits of bankruptcy directed to the general public (whether in general media, seminars or specific mailings, telephonic or electronic messages, or otherwise) that the services or benefits are with respect to bankruptcy relief under this title; and

(4) clearly and conspicuously use the following statement in such advertisement: "We are a debt relief agency. We help people file for bankruptcy relief under the Bankruptcy Code." or a substantially similar statement.

(b)(1) An advertisement of bankruptcy assistance services or of the benefits of bankruptcy directed to the general public includes—

(A) descriptions of bankruptcy assistance in connection with a chapter 13 plan whether or not chapter 13 is specifically mentioned in such advertisement; and

(B) statements such as "federally supervised repayment plan" or "Federal debt restructuring help" or other similar statements that could lead a reasonable consumer to believe that debt counseling was being offered when in fact the services were directed to providing bankruptcy assistance with a chapter 13 plan or other form of bankruptcy relief under this title.

(2) An advertisement, directed to the general public, indicating that the debt relief agency provides assistance with respect to credit defaults, mortgage foreclosures, eviction proceedings, excessive debt, debt collection pressure, or inability to pay any consumer debt shall—

(A) disclose clearly and conspicuously in such advertisement that the assistance may involve bankruptcy relief under this title; and

(B) include the following statement: "We are a debt relief agency. We help people file for bankruptcy relief under the Bankruptcy Code." or a substantially similar statement.

(Added Pub. L. 109–8, title II, §229(a), Apr. 20, 2005, 119 Stat. 71.)

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.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

Section effective 180 days after Apr. 20, 2005, and not applicable with respect to cases commenced under this title before such effective date, except as otherwise provided, see section 1501 of Pub. L. 109–8, set out as an Effective Date of 2005 Amendment note under section 101 of this title.

Guides that rely on 11 U.S.C. § 528

Plain-language explanations on this site that cite this section.

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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