How to File Chapter 7 Bankruptcy in Texas: Exemptions and 341 Meeting

To file Chapter 7 bankruptcy in Texas, you pass a federal income test, complete a credit counseling course, submit a petition with a $338 fee to the federal bankruptcy court for your district, attend a meeting with a trustee, and finish a second financial management course. From petition to discharge takes about four months, and because Texas exemptions are among the most generous in the country, most filers keep their home, vehicles, and personal belongings.

Do You Qualify

The main gatekeeper is the means test, a federal formula that measures whether your income is low enough for Chapter 7.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 US Code 707 – Dismissal of a Case or Conversion to a Case Under Chapter 11 or 13 Average your household income over the six full calendar months before filing, multiply by 12, and compare the result to the Texas median for a household your size. For cases filed between November 1, 2025 and March 31, 2026, the medians are:

  • One earner: $65,123
  • Two-person household: $84,491
  • Three-person household: $96,728
  • Four-person household: $114,938
  • Each additional person: add $11,100

Fall below the median and you pass.2U.S. Department of Justice. Median Family Income Table Come in above it and you move to a second calculation that subtracts allowed living expenses and secured debt payments from your income. If little or no disposable income remains, you can still qualify. If the numbers show enough monthly income to repay a meaningful portion of your debts, the court presumes abuse of Chapter 7, and you would likely need to file Chapter 13 instead.3U.S. Department of Justice. Means Testing

One rule catches people off guard: if you received a Chapter 7 discharge in a case filed within the last eight years, you cannot receive another one.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 US Code 727 – Discharge

Take the Credit Counseling Course

Before you file, federal law requires a credit counseling session with a nonprofit agency approved by the U.S. Trustee’s office.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 US Code 109 – Who May Be a Debtor It runs 60 to 90 minutes, can be done online, by phone, or in person, and typically costs $10 to $50. Agencies must offer reduced fees or waivers for people whose household income is below 150 percent of the federal poverty level.6U.S. Trustee Program. Frequently Asked Questions – Credit Counseling

Watch the timing. The certificate you receive must reflect a session completed within 180 days before you file. An older certificate will not satisfy the requirement, and the court will dismiss your case. File the certificate along with your petition.

Gather Your Documents and Complete the Petition

The petition is a full snapshot of your financial life. Blank forms are available on the United States Courts website at uscourts.gov. Before you start, pull together:

  • Assets: real estate, vehicles, bank balances, investments, retirement accounts, and personal property of any meaningful value.
  • Debts: every creditor, including credit cards, medical bills, personal loans, car loans, mortgages, and past-due utilities.
  • Income: pay stubs for the past six months, tax returns for the past two years, and records of any other income such as rent, benefits, or side work.
  • Expenses: monthly costs for housing, utilities, food, transportation, insurance, childcare, and medical care.

Accuracy is not optional. Debts you accidentally leave off the petition may not be discharged, and the trustee will scrutinize every form. Attorney fees for a standard Chapter 7 case in Texas generally run $1,000 to $3,000 depending on complexity. Filing on your own means working through each form line by line.

What Property You Keep in Texas

Chapter 7 is sometimes called liquidation bankruptcy because a trustee can sell non-exempt property to pay creditors. In Texas, this rarely happens. State exemptions are among the most protective in the country, and most filers keep everything they own. Texas does not allow residents to use the federal exemption schedule; you must use the state list.

Homestead

Texas places no dollar cap on the homestead exemption. You can protect the full equity in your primary residence regardless of value. The limits are on acreage: up to 10 acres for an urban home, or up to 200 acres for a rural family home (100 acres for a single adult without a family).7State of Texas. Texas Property Code 41.001 – Interests in Land Exempt From Seizure8State of Texas. Texas Property Code Chapter 41 – Interests in Land If you sell your homestead, the proceeds stay protected from creditors for six months after the sale.

Personal Property

Texas protects up to $100,000 in aggregate personal property for a family, or $50,000 for a single adult without dependents.9State of Texas. Texas Property Code 42.001 – Personal Property Exemption Inside that cap, exempt categories include:

  • One motor vehicle per licensed household member, with no cap on the vehicle’s value.
  • Home furnishings, appliances, and family heirlooms.
  • Tools of the trade, including equipment, books, boats, and vehicles used in your profession.
  • Jewelry, up to 25 percent of the aggregate limit ($25,000 for a family, $12,500 for a single adult).
  • Up to two firearms.
  • Sporting equipment and clothing.
  • Household pets.

Some property sits outside the cap entirely. Current wages, prescribed health aids, and alimony or child support payments are fully exempt with no dollar limit.10State of Texas. Texas Property Code PROP 42.002 Most tax-exempt retirement accounts and pensions are also protected. Unless you own luxury items, a vacation home, or investments well beyond these limits, you are unlikely to lose property in a Texas Chapter 7 case.

File the Petition and Pay the Fee

File the petition at the federal bankruptcy court for the district where you live. Texas has four: Northern (Dallas), Southern (Houston), Eastern (Tyler/Beaumont), and Western (San Antonio/Austin). Each clerk’s office accepts filings in person, by mail, or electronically.

The filing fee is $338.11United States Courts. Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule If you cannot pay it all at once, you can apply to pay in up to four installments over 120 days, extendable to 180 days for good cause.12Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure Rule 1006 – Filing Fee If your household income is below 150 percent of the federal poverty level and you cannot pay even in installments, you can request a full fee waiver.13Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 US Code 1930 – Bankruptcy Fees

The moment the clerk accepts your petition, the automatic stay takes effect. This federal court order stops nearly all collection activity on the spot.14Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 US Code 362 – Automatic Stay Creditors cannot call you for payment, continue lawsuits, garnish wages, foreclose on your home, repossess your car, or freeze your bank account. Violate the stay and the court can sanction the creditor. The stay does not stop criminal proceedings, child support or alimony collection, most tax audits, or family law proceedings to establish paternity or modify custody.

Attend the 341 Meeting

Between 21 and 40 days after you file, you attend a meeting of creditors, called the 341 meeting.15Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure Rule 2003 – Meeting of Creditors or Equity Security Holders16Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 US Code 341 – Meetings of Creditors and Equity Security Holders Many Texas districts now hold these by phone or video. Despite the name, creditors rarely appear. The audience is the trustee.

Bring government-issued photo ID and proof of your Social Security number. Have recent tax returns, bank statements, and pay stubs ready; the trustee typically requests these at least seven days before the meeting. The trustee will ask questions under oath about your petition and determine whether you have non-exempt assets worth selling. Straightforward meetings often last under 10 minutes. If your paperwork checks out and no non-exempt assets turn up, the trustee reports the case as a “no-asset” case and you move toward discharge.

Finish Debtor Education and Get Your Discharge

After the 341 meeting, complete a second course called personal financial management, or debtor education. It focuses on budgeting and rebuilding credit, is typically available online, runs about two hours, and costs roughly the same as the pre-filing course. Skip it and the court cannot grant your discharge.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 US Code 727 – Discharge

If you finish the course and no creditor or trustee objects, the court grants your discharge roughly 60 days after the 341 meeting, about four months from your filing date.17United States Courts. Discharge in Bankruptcy – Bankruptcy Basics The discharge order eliminates your personal obligation to pay the covered debts, and creditors who received notice are permanently barred from trying to collect.

One distinction matters. The discharge wipes out personal liability, but it does not erase liens on secured property. If you owe on a car loan and want to keep the vehicle, the lender’s lien survives the discharge.

Debts That Don’t Go Away

Certain debts are excluded from discharge by federal law, no matter how clean your filing is:18Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 US Code 523 – Exceptions to Discharge

  • Child support and alimony cannot be discharged under any circumstances.
  • Recent income taxes, taxes where no return was filed, and taxes tied to fraud or evasion generally survive. Older tax debts may be dischargeable if the return was filed on time, the tax was assessed more than 240 days before the petition, and the due date was more than three years ago.
  • Student loans survive unless you file a separate action within the bankruptcy case and prove that repayment would cause “undue hardship,” a standard that remains difficult to meet.
  • Debts from fraud, including credit card charges over $800 for luxury goods made within 90 days of filing and cash advances over $1,100 taken within 70 days of filing, both presumed fraudulent.
  • Debts from willful injury to a person or property.
  • Criminal restitution, traffic tickets, and most government-imposed fines and penalties.
  • Debts owed to creditors you left off your petition, if they did not learn about the case in time to file a claim.

If most of what you owe is student loans and child support, Chapter 7 may not deliver the relief you expect.

Keeping Financed Property: Reaffirmation

To keep property that secures a debt, such as a financed car, you may need to sign a reaffirmation agreement. This is a new contract in which you agree to remain personally responsible for the debt despite your discharge.19Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 US Code 524 – Effect of Discharge Many auto lenders insist on one as a condition of keeping the vehicle.

Safeguards apply. The agreement must be signed and filed with the court before discharge. You have 60 days after filing (or until discharge, whichever is later) to rescind. An attorney representing you must sign a declaration that the agreement causes no undue hardship and that they explained the consequences. Without an attorney, the court must hold a hearing and approve the agreement as being in your best interest.

Think carefully. Sign a reaffirmation and later fall behind, and the lender can repossess and pursue you for any deficiency, exactly as if you had never filed. Reaffirming a debt on an asset worth less than what you owe can undo much of the fresh start the case gave you.

What It Does to Your Credit

A Chapter 7 filing stays on your credit report for 10 years from the filing date.20Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 US Code 1681c – Requirements Relating to Information Contained in Consumer Reports Individual accounts included in the case, such as charged-off cards and defaulted loans, drop off after seven years from their original delinquency date. The hit is sharpest in the first two years. Many filers see scores improve within 12 to 18 months of discharge, particularly with a small secured credit card used consistently and paid on time.

The filing also becomes part of the public record. Future landlords, employers (with your permission), and lenders can find it during background checks.