How To File Bankruptcy for Free in West Virginia

Collect Your West Virginia Bankruptcy Documents

When you file bankruptcy, you’ll have to submit the following documents to the bankruptcy, even if you’re filing with an attorney:

• Your last two years of tax returns,  

• Your last 60 days of paycheck stubs, and

• A bank statement that covers the filing date.

There are also some documents that are good to have on hand as you fill out the required bankruptcy forms.

• Bank statements for the past six to 12 months will help you list your expenses.

• Creditor statements/bills and letters from collection agencies or other third-party debt collectors can help you list all your debts and creditors in your bankruptcy paperwork. 

• Your credit report will help list your creditors and debt amounts as well.

You’re entitled to a free copy of your credit report from all three credit reporting agencies every year, and you can request them online. Upsolve also pulls a report for all users. 

Take a Credit Counseling Course

The federal Bankruptcy Code requires anyone filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy to complete an approved credit counseling class within six months before they file. Congress requires this six-month window so you have time to learn about the options for addressing your debt before you file. Keep your course completion certificate because you’ll have to submit it to the bankruptcy court with your other paperwork. Finally, although you have to pay a fee to take the course, you may be able to get a fee waiver if you can’t afford the cost. West Virginia has 96 approved credit counseling providers.  

Complete the Bankruptcy Forms

To start the Chapter 7 bankruptcy process, you must fill out several forms. The bankruptcy forms are federal, so they’re the same nationwide. The forms are long, but they come with a detailed guide you can use if you’re filling them out on your own. You can download the forms as fillable PDFs for free online from USCOURTS.gov. Take your time and be diligent during this part of the process.   

If you decide to file using Upsolve’s free filing tool you’ll fill out an online questionnaire. Then our software generates the forms based on the information you provide. If you hire a bankruptcy lawyer, you’ll typically fill out a questionnaire, and the attorney (or their staff) will prepare the bankruptcy forms. 

Get Your Filing Fee

The fee for filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy is $338. If you’re eligible, the fee can be waived by the court. You’re eligible to apply for a fee waiver if your current income is below 150% of the poverty guidelines. See West Virginia’s Fee Waiver Eligibility table below.

Once you file for bankruptcy, an automatic stay takes effect. This means that as soon as your bankruptcy case is filed, your creditors can no longer take certain actions to collect on your debt. You may be in a hurry to file for bankruptcy to prevent a creditor from taking money from your paycheck through wage garnishment or to stop a foreclosure. 

But what if you can’t pay the full filing fee? In this case, you can ask the court to let you pay the filing fee in installments. The court will decide the minimum amount you must pay at the time of filing. This lets you move forward with filing bankruptcy right away and get the protections of the automatic stay.

Print Your Bankruptcy Forms

Taken together, the bankruptcy forms are called your bankruptcy petition. You may or may not need to print your bankruptcy petition, depending on the filling options in your West Virginia district. We’ll cover each district more in-depth blow. 

• If you live in the Northern District, you can file your bankruptcy forms online (see more about this below). 

• If you’re in the Southern District, you don’t have this option, so you need to print the forms to submit them to the court. 

If you fill out everything on your own, use the same checklist you used to figure out which forms you need to complete for printing. The forms look alike, so make sure you print out all sections. Print the forms on regular, white letter-size paper (8.5" x 11"), in black ink, and single-sided. Keep copies for yourself. Also, the forms contain numerous signature spots, so make sure you don’t miss any.

If you use Upsolve’s free Chapter 7 filing tool, you’ll get your packet as a single download, with dividers that flag each signature page.

File Your Forms With the West Virginia Bankruptcy Court

If you’re filing without an attorney you can mail everything in or hand-deliver your forms to the court regardless of which district you live in. Taking your forms to the bankruptcy court clerk in person can help you make sure you have all of the documents needed to file your petition. You’ll want to check the court’s most recent COVID-19 protocols before filing your case.

If you live in the Northern District of West Virginia, you also have the option to file using the court’s online system called Electronic Self-Representation (eSR). This is an online system for preparing all required Chapter 7 documents before filing.  

If you have an attorney, your attorney can file your documents online through the court’s Electronic Court Filing System (ECF) in either district.

Mail Documents to Your Trustee

When you file for bankruptcy, a few things happen. First, the court will assign a number to your case. The court will also appoint a bankruptcy trustee to handle your bankruptcy case. The court will then either notify you who the trustee is or the trustee will contact you directly. As soon as you file, the automatic stay goes into effect, and the court will set a date for your creditors' meeting. (More on this later.)

You must send a copy of your two most recent federal income tax returns to your trustee at least seven days before the creditors' meeting. You also must send your trustee a bank statement that includes the date of your bankruptcy filing. The trustee uses the tax return information and any other information to verify the information you disclosed in your bankruptcy forms. The trustee may ask for additional information as well.

Take a Debtor Education Course

Once the bankruptcy court confirms you’ve complied with the requirements under the Bankruptcy Code, the court will enter an order discharging your debts. Before you become eligible for a discharge, you must complete an approved debtor education course. The debtor education course teaches you financial management skills.

Although you can take the course before the creditor’s meeting, you must take it no later than 60 days after the creditors’ meeting. You also have to file your certificate of completion with the court in that time period. If you don’t complete the course, the court could close your case without entering a discharge. West Virginia offers 120 approved debtor education courses. 

Attend Your 341 Meeting

Your 341 meeting is also called your creditors’ meeting. You’ll attend your creditors' meeting about a month after you file your Chapter 7 bankruptcy. A creditors’ meeting is usually held in a conference room (not a courtroom) in an informal setting. You must bring a government-issued picture ID and acceptable proof of your Social Security number to the meeting. 

Creditors rarely show up at creditors' meetings. Usually, just you and your trustee attend the meeting. Your trustee will put you under oath and ask the same questions they ask everyone filing Chapter 7 in West Virginia. The trustee may ask you some additional questions if they need more information. Creditors’ meetings usually last only 10 minutes and proceed without problems. The most typical issue is that the filer forgets to bring identification or acceptable proof of their Social Security number. After the meeting, you’re almost done with the bankruptcy process.

As part of recent COVID-19 precautions, creditors’ meetings are currently being held via telephone or video conference. This is currently a temporary measure, so be sure to verify things haven’t changed when you get your notice.

Dealing with Your Car

People filing for bankruptcy often want to know if they can keep their car, especially if they’re still making monthly payments on it. If you own your car free and clear (you’re not making any monthly payments), and if it’s valued below the exemption amount, you can keep it. West Virginia exempts motor vehicles for up to $7,500 in equity.  

If you’re still making car loan payments, you have a few options. 

• If you decide to surrender your car, you won’t have to pay the balance left on the loan. This may be a good strategy if you owe more than what the car is worth. 

• People who want to keep making their car payments will have to enter into a reaffirmation agreement. You need to be current on your payments to do this. 

• If you want to keep your car but not the loan, you’ll have to pay the car’s current value to the creditor in exchange for a clear vehicle title. If there’s remaining debt on the car loan (because you owe more than it’s worth), it’ll then be discharged in your bankruptcy.

If you’re leasing your car, you have similar options. You can keep the lease if you’re current on your payments. This is called “assuming” the lease. If you aren’t current on your payments or you want to get out of the lease, you can reject the lease and give the car back.

Most filers have no trouble buying another car after bankruptcy. But it may be good to wait a while to let your credit score rebound, so you can get good financing offers.