- 1). Request the pro se debtors guide and a copy of the local rules from your local bankruptcy court house or download it from the court's website. Study the information and make sure you understand everything. Seek help from a legal aid organization if you have any questions.
- 2). Get your financial documentation together. Include account statements, bills and correspondence for all debts, proof of income from all sources including a job, business, pension, social program payments and investments, as well as six to 12 months of bank statements and one to three years of tax returns. Get documentation of household expenses such as housing payments, transportation costs, utilities, clothing, child education expenses and food. Look through the local rules and the pro se debtors guide to ensure you include all necessary documentation.
- 3). Take a federally-mandated credit counseling course within the six months before you file bankruptcy. Find a court-approved course provider by looking on the U.S. Trustee website. Contact the provider before you being the class and request a waiver of the counseling fee. Send the provider any requested documentation, such as pay stubs, bank statements and tax returns, to prove you cannot afford to pay.
- 4). Request the bankruptcy petition worksheets from your local bankruptcy court house or download them from your jurisdiction's website.
- 5). Start with the means test which will determine if your income is above or below the median in your state and if you have enough money after paying monthly expenses to pay back some or all of your debt. Continue with a Chapter 7 bankruptcy if your income is above the median but you have less than $100 in discretionary income or if your income is below your state's median. You must file Chapter 13 bankruptcy if your income is above the median and you have at least $100 to put towards debts every month.
- 6). Use the documentation you gathered to complete the bankruptcy petition schedules. Report all income, assets, expenses to avoid dismissal of your case for fraud or abuse of the bankruptcy process. Do not leave any debts off of the petition or the court will not discharge those debts and you will still be responsible for paying them once the bankruptcy case is over. Request help from a legal aid organization if you cannot fill out the petition on your own.
- 7). Take the petition to your jurisdiction's court house along with photo identification and income documents such as pay stubs, bank statements and proof of payments from social programs or other sources. File the petition with the court clerk and request form B 3B which is the Chapter 7 fee waiver application. Fill it out and give it to the clerk. Give the clerk your income documentation as well. The court will notify you if it will grant your request within 15 days of filing the petition. If the court does not approve your request, you will have to pay the filing fee before you can continue.
- 8). Ask the clerk to give you the name and phone number of the trustee who the court appoints to direct bankruptcy proceedings so you can contact her if you have questions throughout the case. Also request the date of the 341 meeting which is a federally-required meeting that takes place six weeks after filing. The meeting is between the debtor, the trustee and any creditors who wish to attend. You will have to answer questions under oath about the information you gave in your petition. The filing portion of Chapter 7 bankruptcy is done.
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