United States Code
11 U.S.C. § 722 — Redemption
Section 722 lets an individual debtor redeem tangible personal property intended primarily for personal, family, or household use from a lien securing a dischargeable consumer debt. Redemption is done by paying the lienholder the amount of the allowed secured claim secured by that lien, in full, at the time of redemption. The property must be exempted under section 522 or abandoned under section 554.
If a lender holds a lien on something you use at home — a car, appliances, furniture — you may be wondering whether there is any way to clear that lien instead of continuing to pay on it. Section 722 is the provision that describes redemption: a one-time payment to the lienholder that frees the item from the lien. It is one sentence long, with several conditions packed into it, and every one of those conditions has to be met.
What does it mean to redeem property under section 722?
Redemption is a payment that removes a lien from a specific item. Under section 722, an individual debtor pays the holder of the lien "the amount of the allowed secured claim of such holder that is secured by such lien in full at the time of redemption." Two words in that phrase do a lot of work. "Allowed secured claim" means the payment is keyed to that claim amount rather than to whatever total balance appears on the contract; the section itself does not describe how that claim amount is measured. "In full at the time of redemption" means the section describes a single payment made when the property is redeemed. Nothing in this section sets up an installment plan, a grace period, or a partial-payment option. Because this provision has no lettered subsections, all of these requirements sit in the single sentence you can read directly below.
What kind of property can be redeemed?
The section is specific. It covers "tangible personal property intended primarily for personal, family, or household use." Tangible personal property is a physical, movable thing — a vehicle, a washing machine, a bed, a computer. Real property, such as a house or land, is not tangible personal property, so a home mortgage is outside the terms of this section. Intangible property is likewise outside it. The use test matters too: the property has to be intended primarily for personal, family, or household use. Something acquired primarily for a business or an investment does not meet that description, even if it is physical and movable. If you are trying to work out whether a particular item is covered, those are the two questions the text puts to you: is the thing tangible personal property, and was it intended primarily for personal, family, or household use?
Which debts and liens does this section apply to?
The lien has to be one "securing a dischargeable consumer debt." That phrase carries two separate limits. The debt has to be a consumer debt, and it has to be dischargeable. A debt that is not dischargeable does not fit the description in this section, so redemption as described here would not be available for a lien securing it. Whether a particular debt is a consumer debt, and whether it is dischargeable, are determined by other parts of the Bankruptcy Code — this section assumes the answer rather than supplying it. Note also what the section does not say: it does not distinguish among types of lienholders, and it does not carve out liens created by purchase-money financing. What it asks about is the character of the underlying debt, not the identity of the creditor holding the lien.
Why does the property have to be exempt or abandoned first?
Section 722 makes redemption available only where the property "is exempted under section 522 of this title or has been abandoned under section 554 of this title." These are alternatives — either condition satisfies the requirement — and both are gateways handled elsewhere in the Code. Section 522 is the exemption provision; section 554 governs abandonment of property by the trustee. This section does not describe how either of those things happens, what has to be filed, or when. It only conditions redemption on one of them having occurred. In practical terms, the sequence in the text matters: the exemption or abandonment comes first, and redemption operates on property that has already reached one of those states. If neither has happened to a particular item, the condition stated in this section is not met, and the pages for sections 522 and 554 are where the requirements behind that condition are set out.
Can a loan agreement waive the right to redeem?
The text addresses this directly and it is the most easily missed clause in the sentence. Redemption is available "whether or not the debtor has waived the right to redeem under this section." That language means a prior waiver of the redemption right described here does not, by its own force, remove the debtor from the terms of this section. Consumer financing paperwork is long and is signed under pressure, and a reader who remembers signing away rights may assume the question is closed. Under the words of this section, a waiver of the right to redeem is not treated as controlling. Every other condition in the sentence still has to be satisfied — individual debtor, tangible personal property for personal, family, or household use, a lien securing a dischargeable consumer debt, exemption under section 522 or abandonment under section 554, and payment of the allowed secured claim in full at the time of redemption.
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. § 722
Reproduced in full from the official source, verified as of July 2026. View it at the source.
An individual debtor may, whether or not the debtor has waived the right to redeem under this section, redeem tangible personal property intended primarily for personal, family, or household use, from a lien securing a dischargeable consumer debt, if such property is exempted under section 522 of this title or has been abandoned under section 554 of this title, by paying the holder of such lien the amount of the allowed secured claim of such holder that is secured by such lien in full at the time of redemption.
(Pub. L. 95–598, Nov. 6, 1978, 92 Stat. 2606; Pub. L. 109–8, title III, §304(2), Apr. 20, 2005, 119 Stat. 79.)
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
legislative statements
Section 722 of the House amendment adopts the position taken in H.R. 8200 as passed by the House and rejects the alternative contained in section 722 of the Senate amendment.
senate report no. 95–989
This section is new and is broader than rights of redemption under the Uniform Commercial Code. It authorizes an individual debtor to redeem tangible personal property intended primarily for personal, family, or household use, from a lien securing a nonpurchase money dischargeable consumer debt. It applies only if the debtor's interest in the property is exempt or has been abandoned.
This right to redeem is a very substantial change from current law. To prevent abuses such as may occur when the debtor deliberately allows the property to depreciate in value, the debtor will be required to pay the fair market value of the goods or the amount of the claim if the claim is less. The right is personal to the debtor and not assignable.
house report no. 95–595
This section is new and is broader than rights of redemption under the Uniform Commercial Code. It authorizes an individual debtor to redeem tangible personal property intended primarily for personal, family, or household use, from a lien securing a dischargeable consumer debt. It applies only if the debtor's interest in the property is exempt or has been abandoned.
The right to redeem extends to the whole of the property, not just the debtor's exempt interest in it. Thus, for example, if a debtor owned a $2,000 car, subject to a $1,200 lien, the debtor could exempt his $800 interest in the car. The debtor is permitted a $1,500 exemption in a car, proposed 11 U.S.C. 522(d)(2). This section permits him to pay the holder of the lien $1,200 and redeem the entire car, not just the remaining $700 of his exemption. The redemption is accomplished by paying the holder of the lien the amount of the allowed claim secured by the lien. The provision amounts to a right of first refusal for the debtor in consumer goods that might otherwise be repossessed. The right of redemption under this section is not waivable.
Editorial Notes
Amendments
**2005**—Pub. L. 109–8 inserted "in full at the time of redemption" before period at end.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date of 2005 Amendment
Amendment by Pub. L. 109–8 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 a note under section 101 of this title.
Guides that rely on 11 U.S.C. § 722
Plain-language explanations on this site that cite this section.
- Avoiding a Nonpurchase-Money Lien on Household Goods
- Bankruptcy exemptions: what they protect and how they work
- Business Equipment and Inventory in a Personal Bankruptcy
- Calculating Equity Against Liens and Exemptions
- Car Loans in Bankruptcy: Keeping, Redeeming, or Surrendering a Vehicle
- Chapter 7 Bankruptcy: What It Is and How This Section Is Organized
- Choosing Between State and Federal Bankruptcy Exemptions
- Exempt property
- Exempt vs. Nonexempt Property in Chapter 7
- Exemption
- Firearms and Other Regulated Personal Property in Bankruptcy
- Getting a Car Loan After Bankruptcy
- Getting a Repossessed Vehicle Back in Bankruptcy
- Household Goods and Furniture Exemptions in Bankruptcy
- Individual Chapter 11 and Subchapter V
- Jewelry, Collectibles, and Other High-Value Personal Property in Bankruptcy
- Keeping a Car in Chapter 13
- Keeping a Car in Chapter 7 Bankruptcy
- Keeping Secured Property in Chapter 7: Your Car, Your House, and Your Options
- Property and Exemptions in Bankruptcy
- Property and Exemptions in Bankruptcy: Common Questions Answered
- Redeeming Personal Property in Chapter 7
- Repossession Deficiency Balances in Bankruptcy
- Secured Debt
- Sole Proprietor Business Debt in a Personal Bankruptcy
- State foreclosure rules: reinstatement, redemption, and deficiency judgments
- Statement of Intention: What It Means in a Chapter 7 Case
- Surrendering Collateral in Chapter 7: How Giving Back a Car or House Works
- The 730-Day Domicile Rule: Which State's Exemptions Apply After You Move
- Tools-of-the-Trade Exemptions for Work Equipment in Bankruptcy
- Vehicle Exemptions and Keeping Your Car in Bankruptcy
- Vehicle Repossession After a Bankruptcy Case Is Filed
- Vehicles and Secured Debt in Bankruptcy
- Wildcard Exemptions and How to Apply Them
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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