Can someone with high income still qualify for chapter 7 bankruptcy?

Even someone with high income can qualify for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, but only if the person is able to pass the “means test” that determines eligibility for bankruptcy relief.  In order to do that, you must be able to show that your current monthly income is less than a state median, determined by applying certain formulas to the figures involved. 

If you fail the median income test, you may still be eligible for Chapter 7 relief if your total current monthly income, measured over five years, but reduced by certain allowable expenses, is less than either $10,950 or 25 percent of the your non-priority unsecured debt, if that debt totals at least $6,575.  Newer modifications to the bankruptcy law that occurred during the Bush administration have made it difficult for a layperson to even determine eligibility for bankruptcy, much less to practice a bankruptcy case “pro se” (representing yourself, without an attorney). 

A bankruptcy law attorney can best determine whether your income is so high that it makes you ineligible for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection.  If you fail to qualify for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, you may still obtain relief through a Chapter 13 proceeding, which allows you to make payments to catch up your debt obligations over a period of time (usually three to five years).

Talk to a Bankruptcy Lawyer to find out if you are eligible to get your debts discharged under chapter 7, or if chapter 13 would be a good solution.

Good luck.