UK Bankruptcy from Abroad

Established in 2009, Bankruptcy from Abroad has now been trading for over 14 years. In that time we have helped more than 1,000 clients to file Bankruptcy in England & Wales while living overseas.

We are the only Company in the UK that specialises in this particular type of overseas personal bankruptcy.

Have you moved from England or Wales to live abroad but still have UK debts or property that are causing you problems?

If the answer to this is yes, and you are now struggling with payments, you may wish to consider whether filing bankruptcy from abroad is a good solution for you.

Don’t bury your head in the sand as we are seeing more and more UK debts being transferred abroad to local debt collectors. The problem won’t go away if you do nothing; it will only get worse, so take positive action now. Do you really want your new life overseas spoilt by local debt collectors knocking on your door?

Creditors are now passing these debts overseas after locating people using social media platforms such as LinkedIn and Facebook. If you do nothing about your debts, the new life that you are developing abroad could be affected by your old UK debts.

As a company we feel that we have unrivalled experience and background in dealing with this specialist type of personal bankruptcy. Since 2009 we have represented almost 700 individual clients living all over the world. Their bankruptcies were handled using Power of Attorney in the High Court of London, also known as the Royal Courts of Justice. We have helped our clients to deal with their creditors, their assets, and explained and clarified how this process works, both in relation to the UK and also in relation to the Country that they now live in.

 

Filing bankruptcy from abroad – The Pitfalls

Filing bankruptcy from abroad can work well, but there are also many potential issues in relation to this complicated process.

  • It is very common for the Official Receiver to dispute your living expenses as the Insolvency Service will use a set of allowances when dealing with expenditure in a personal bankruptcy. In most cases, the Official Receiver will ask you to make payments for a three year period of time. Income payment agreements can be very high and if the Official Receiver feels that you have (for instance) £500 of disposable income they will ask you to pay this amount every month; over a three year period you could end up paying £18,000 back to your UK creditors. You may even end up paying more as if your disposable income increases during the three year period so may your income payment agreement.
  • If you have a property abroad with equity, this needs to be handled very carefully within a personal bankruptcy. In this situation your property may be under threat of possession and sale, even if it is a property that is based abroad. Alternatively, you may be asked to pay thousands of pounds to the Official Receiver depending on the equity amount within the property. The Official Receiver has three years in which to deal with your property even though a standard bankruptcy lasts for one year before you are discharged.
  • In your bankruptcy the Official Receiver will contact various companies and organisations abroad. You need to be aware of how this part of the bankruptcy process works and how it may affect you overseas.
  • Assets such as cars, motorcycles, boats, savings, shares and high value items should be disclosed as part of your bankruptcy application. This needs to be considered when you file for bankruptcy in the UK. If you do own assets that are based overseas don’t think that they are immune to bankruptcy proceedings – the Official Receiver in the UK can apply to the courts in the country that you are residing in and ask for assistance in handling your case. This assistance will be given to the Official Receiver as most countries now have reciprocal agreements to help each other in these situations. Always take professional advice as each person’s circumstances are different.

We specialise in handling bankruptcies for ex-UK residents that are now living overseas. We cover worldwide including countries such as Canada, the United States of America, Africa, Thailand, Australia, New Zealand, Dubai and many other areas.

European countries fall under different legislation and have now been affected by BREXIT . With our expert help your bankruptcy may still be possible with UK or European debts. We have helped many people deal with their UK debts while remaining in their new country of residence.

Complete our short online application form for assistance, or telephone our experienced advisors for further information.

Emigrated Overseas with UK debts?

It can be very hard to start a new life abroad with the pressure of old debts hanging over you. Our specialist overseas bankruptcy service provides full assistance with your UK debts and creditors and also assists with the preparation of your bankruptcy application. Our service will help you to clear your UK your debts using the legal process of Bankruptcy. Debts including credit cards, loans, tax, mortgage arrears, vat, negative equity in property and more could be included in your bankruptcy leaving you debt free in the UK.

More and more people are choosing to start a new life overseas. A combination of good climate, healthy living and better job opportunities mean that we are seeing a steady increase of people leaving the UK and settling in various countries. The image below shows figures for 2004 to 2005 with Australia as clearly the most popular destination.

Most Popular Destinations for UK Emigrants Filing for Bankruptcy

How much is the Bankruptcy fee?

Prior to the 6th of April 2016 the standard fee to file bankruptcy in England and Wales used to be £705 or £525 per person; this was made up of two elements; a £525 bankruptcy deposit fee and a £180 Court fee.

In some cases a person could obtain a reduced bankruptcy fee of £525 depending on their circumstances.

The current bankruptcy fee has been set at £680.

Even though you may hear of a “joint bankruptcy” the fee for a couple or husband and wife will be £1,360 as there is no discount given for the second person.

Unfortunately there are no longer any reduced bankruptcy fees available.

What happens when you go bankrupt?

Once you have prepared your bankruptcy application it will be submitted to the Bankruptcy adjudicator. The Adjudicator has the power to approve or dispute the application subject to the information that you have put forward.

Once the bankruptcy has been approved the case will be passed over to one of the Official Receiver offices based in the UK. You will then have an examiner and a case officer applied to your case and these individuals will deal with you directly.

You will be interviewed and there will be various forms to sign and return. The examiner will have to produce a report that is sent to your creditors and this will include details of any return that is expected from you as an individual.

Bankruptcy needs to be handled very carefully if you are living in another country. You do not want this process to impact upon your life abroad and it can make sense to obtain some professional advice and assistance from an established Company. Contact us for professional advice and assistance.