Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Income Limits in Pennsylvania

To file Chapter 7 bankruptcy in Pennsylvania, your income generally must fall below the state median for your household size: $72,230 for a single filer and $135,862 for a household of four, under the figures effective April 1, 2026. Earn less and you qualify automatically. Earn more and you aren’t disqualified, but you have to work through the means test, a federal calculation that subtracts allowed expenses from your income to see whether anything is left over to pay creditors. The Chapter 7 bankruptcy income limits in Pennsylvania come from federal data updated several times a year, so the number that applies to you depends on when you file.

2026 Median Income Thresholds

The U.S. Trustee Program sets the Pennsylvania figures using Census Bureau data. For Chapter 7 cases filed on or after April 1, 2026, the thresholds are:1United States Department of Justice. Median Family Income Based on State and Household Size – April 2026

  • 1 person: $72,230
  • 2 people: $87,534
  • 3 people: $110,151
  • 4 people: $135,862
  • Each additional person: add $11,100

Cases filed between November 1, 2025, and March 31, 2026, use slightly lower numbers: $70,378 for one person, $85,290 for two, $107,327 for three, and $132,379 for four.2United States Department of Justice. Median Family Income Based on State and Household Size – November 2025 If your annualized income lands below the threshold for your household size on the day you file, you pass the first screen and generally proceed without further income analysis.

How Your Income Is Measured

The bankruptcy code uses “current monthly income,” a term that doesn’t match ordinary usage. The court takes your total gross income from all sources over the six full calendar months before your filing date, averages it, and multiplies by twelve.3Legal Information Institute. 11 USC 101 – Definitions That annualized figure is what gets compared against the Pennsylvania median.

The averaging method creates real planning opportunities. A one-time bonus, severance payment, or stretch of overtime inside that six-month window gets baked into the average and can push you over the threshold even when your usual pay runs well below it. The reverse is also true. If you lost your job three months ago, the zero-income months pull the average down. Timing a filing date so the window captures the most favorable income picture is one of the few places where planning ahead meaningfully changes the outcome.

What Counts and What Doesn’t

Nearly every source of money counts: wages, salary, business income, rental income, interest, dividends, pension payments, and unemployment benefits. Regular contributions someone outside your household makes toward your expenses, like a parent covering your car payment, count too.3Legal Information Institute. 11 USC 101 – Definitions

The big exclusion is Social Security. Benefits paid under the Social Security Act are specifically carved out, which means retirees and disability recipients living primarily on Social Security almost always fall below the median regardless of benefit amount. Certain veteran disability payments and compensation for victims of war crimes or terrorism are also excluded.3Legal Information Institute. 11 USC 101 – Definitions

Household Size Changes Your Number

The difference between a one-person and two-person Pennsylvania household is more than $15,000 in allowable income, so counting the household correctly matters. Courts haven’t settled on a single method. One approach counts everyone living under your roof. Another focuses on people who actually share finances with you, pooling income and splitting expenses.

Dependents count even if they earn nothing, and a non-filing spouse living with you is typically included. Roommates are where it gets harder. A roommate who chips in for rent usually isn’t part of your household for threshold purposes, but their contributions to shared expenses may still have to be reported as income on the means test forms. Document every financial relationship in the home before you file so a trustee can’t challenge the household size later.

If You’re Over the Median

Earning above the Pennsylvania median doesn’t disqualify you from Chapter 7. It means you complete Form 122A-2, the full means test, which subtracts specific allowed expenses from your income to see whether enough is left over to fund a Chapter 13 repayment plan.4United States Bankruptcy Court. Means Testing Information

Deductions fall into three categories. IRS National Standards give you fixed monthly allowances for food, clothing, personal care, and similar household costs based on family size, regardless of what you actually spend.5Internal Revenue Service. Collection Financial Standards IRS Local Standards cap housing, utilities, and transportation expenses by Pennsylvania county, and you claim either the standard or your actual cost, whichever is lower. Then you deduct actual out-of-pocket amounts for things like mandatory payroll taxes, health insurance premiums, childcare, and court-ordered payments such as child support or alimony.

Secured debt payments on mortgages and car loans also come out, which is where many above-median filers find enough room to qualify. Someone earning $90,000 with a mortgage, two car payments, and significant childcare costs can end up with very little disposable income after the subtractions. The math is more forgiving than people expect.

When the Court Presumes Abuse

Whatever disposable income remains gets multiplied by 60 (a five-year repayment period). The resulting figure determines whether the court presumes you’re abusing Chapter 7:6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 707 – Dismissal of a Case or Conversion to a Case Under Chapter 11 or 13

  • Below $10,275 over 60 months: no presumption, and you can proceed with Chapter 7.
  • $17,150 or more over 60 months: the presumption applies automatically.
  • Between $10,275 and $17,150: the presumption applies only if the amount equals or exceeds 25% of your nonpriority unsecured debts.

In monthly terms, keeping disposable income below roughly $171 clears the test. Above roughly $286, the presumption kicks in regardless of your debt level. These dollar thresholds were last adjusted effective April 1, 2025, and typically hold for three years.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 707 – Dismissal of a Case or Conversion to a Case Under Chapter 11 or 13

A presumption isn’t the end of the case. You can present evidence of special circumstances, such as a serious medical condition or an active-duty military call-up, that justify additional expenses or income reductions the standard categories don’t capture. The burden is on you to show why the numbers don’t reflect your actual situation.

Filers Who Skip the Income Test Entirely

Some filers aren’t subject to the means test at all, no matter what they earn:

These exemptions are claimed on Form 122A-1Supp. Qualifying under any of them makes your income level irrelevant to Chapter 7 eligibility.

Passing the Income Test Isn’t the Whole Picture

The income limits decide whether you can file Chapter 7. They don’t decide whether Chapter 7 will actually help. Several categories of debt survive the discharge: domestic support obligations, most student loans, recent income taxes, debts obtained through fraud, certain luxury purchases and cash advances taken shortly before filing, and judgments for death or personal injury caused by driving while intoxicated.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 523 – Exceptions to Discharge If most of what you owe falls into these categories, qualifying by income won’t give you meaningful relief. And Pennsylvania lets you choose between federal and state exemption systems to protect property you keep after filing, a choice that doesn’t affect the means test but can decide whether you walk out of the case with your car or your home equity intact.