The cost to file bankruptcy in Indiana runs roughly $1,400 to $1,900 out of pocket for a Chapter 7 case and around $5,400 or more for a Chapter 13 case, though most of the Chapter 13 attorney fee is folded into your monthly repayment plan rather than paid upfront. Three categories make up the total: the court filing fee, attorney fees, and two mandatory education courses. Which chapter you file is the biggest factor in what you pay.
The Court Filing Fee
The filing fee is the same in every federal bankruptcy court. Chapter 7 costs $338 and Chapter 13 costs $313.1United States Courts. Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule Each includes a $78 administrative fee, and the Chapter 7 fee carries an additional $15 trustee surcharge.
If paying all at once is a problem, you can ask the court to split the fee into up to four installments, with everything due within 120 days of filing. A judge can extend that to 180 days for good cause.2Legal Information Institute. Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 1006 – Filing Fee
Chapter 7 filers with very low income may owe the court nothing. The filing fee can be waived entirely if your household income is below 150% of the federal poverty line for your family size and you cannot afford installments.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 US Code 1930 – Bankruptcy Fees No such waiver exists for Chapter 13.
Attorney Fees
Attorney fees are the largest expense in most bankruptcy cases. You are allowed to file without a lawyer, but bankruptcy procedure is unforgiving: a missed deadline, an overlooked exemption, or a wrongly completed form can get your case dismissed or cost you property you could have kept.
Chapter 7
Most Indiana attorneys charge between $1,000 and $1,400 for a straightforward Chapter 7. The fee covers document preparation, review of your finances, and representation at the meeting of creditors. Business assets, pending lawsuits, or significant real estate push the price up. Chapter 7 lawyers almost always want full payment before filing, since the case usually finishes in three to four months and there is no repayment plan to spread the fee across. Some will accept installments before the petition goes in.
Chapter 13
Chapter 13 cases cost more because they last three to five years and require a repayment plan. Indiana’s Southern District bankruptcy court sets a “presumed reasonable fee” of $5,000 for routine Chapter 13 cases filed on or after December 1, 2025.4United States Bankruptcy Court. General Order 25-0001 – Increase of the Chapter 13 Presumed Reasonable Fee The Northern District’s presumed fee has historically been lower, around $4,000. Attorneys can request more than the presumed amount for complex cases, but they need court approval.
The upside: most of the Chapter 13 attorney fee gets built into the monthly repayment plan. You pay a portion upfront and the rest through your plan payments. That makes it possible to start a Chapter 13 case without having $5,000 in hand.
Required Credit Counseling and Debtor Education
Federal law requires two separate courses. You must complete a credit counseling session from a U.S. Trustee-approved nonprofit before you file your petition,5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 US Code 109 – Who May Be a Debtor and a debtor education course after filing but before you receive your discharge.6United States Department of Justice. Credit Counseling and Debtor Education Information Skipping either can get your case dismissed or your discharge denied.
Each course typically costs around $50, so budget roughly $100 for both. Some approved providers offer reduced fees or waivers for filers who cannot afford the standard price. Most courses run online or by phone and take an hour or two.
Smaller Fees That Can Come Up Mid-Case
A few extra charges may surface depending on what happens after you file. Adding or removing a creditor from your schedules costs $34 to amend. Just updating a creditor’s address is free, but adding a creditor you forgot to list is not. Converting a Chapter 13 case to Chapter 7 costs $10.1United States Courts. Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule
Expect some incidental spending on credit report pulls, copies, postage to creditors, and notary services. If you own real estate or other high-value property, the court or trustee may want a professional appraisal, which can run several hundred dollars. These items rarely add up to more than a few hundred dollars total, but they are worth planning for.
Which Chapter You Qualify For Affects the Price
Because Chapter 13 costs several thousand dollars more than Chapter 7, the means test matters as a cost question, not just a legal one. The test compares your household income to Indiana’s median for your family size. For cases filed between November 1, 2025 and March 31, 2026, the thresholds are $62,808 for one earner, $79,884 for two people, $93,175 for three, and $112,691 for four, with $11,100 added for each additional person.7United States Department of Justice. Median Family Income Table – November 2025
Income under the threshold passes the test, and Chapter 7 is open to you. Income over the threshold moves you to a second calculation that subtracts IRS-approved living expenses to see whether you have enough disposable income to fund a Chapter 13 plan. Failing the means test does not bar you from bankruptcy; it steers you into Chapter 13, which raises your total cost significantly.
Ways to Pay Less
The Chapter 7 fee waiver is the most direct savings. Household income below 150% of the poverty line for your size may mean you owe the court nothing.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 US Code 1930 – Bankruptcy Fees
For legal representation, Indiana’s Southern District bankruptcy court runs a Chapter 7 Pro Bono Panel that provides free or reduced-cost attorney services to qualifying low-income filers.8United States Bankruptcy Court. Free or Low Cost Legal Help Indiana Legal Services also handles bankruptcy for people who meet income eligibility requirements. Together these can eliminate the largest single cost in a Chapter 7 filing for filers who qualify.
For Chapter 13, the repayment plan itself is the main cost-management tool, since most of the attorney fee is paid through the plan over three to five years. Shopping among attorneys is reasonable because fees vary even within the same district, but picking the cheapest lawyer for a complicated case is usually a false economy.