David M. Siegel answers in 35 seconds. Watch on YouTube · Read the transcript.
Short answer: Generally no. Every debt has to be listed, including cards with a zero balance, and issuers subscribe to services that notify them of filings — so they find out regardless. Plan on losing your credit cards. You do keep your debit card.
Everything gets listed — that is not optional
The petition requires all debts and all creditors. Not the ones with balances, not the ones that matter to you. All of them. Leaving a card off is not a shortcut; it is a false statement in a document signed under penalty of perjury.
People ask about this constantly and the instinct is understandable — they want to keep one card for emergencies. But the disclosure obligation does not bend, and the consequences of shading it are far worse than losing a card.
They find out anyway
Card issuers subscribe to services that notify them of bankruptcy filings. Even if a card were somehow omitted, the issuer would learn about the case and close the account.
Occasionally someone keeps a card — a credit union sometimes takes a different view of a member with no balance. It happens rarely enough that you should not plan around it.
What you actually keep
Your debit card is untouched. It draws on your own money, so it is not credit and no issuer can close it over a filing. Direct deposit, automatic payments and online banking all continue.
The practical advice is to move any autopayments off cards before filing, so a closed account does not fail a payment you were counting on.
Getting credit back afterward
Faster than people expect. Secured card offers typically arrive within months of a discharge, and they rebuild a payment history quickly. Auto financing is generally available within a year or two, at a rate that reflects the recent filing.
There is also a version of this worth saying: cards at their limit, carrying balances you cannot retire, were not really available credit. Trading them for a clean balance sheet is usually the better end of the deal.
Worried about life without the cards?
The consultation is free and there is no obligation. You will find out what you qualify for, which debts can be eliminated, what it costs, and what the payment plan looks like.
Wheeling: (847) 520-8100 Chicago: (773) 276-6969
Your case is handled by phone — you do not need to come into either office. Even the meeting of creditors is held on Zoom. We represent clients across the Northern District of Illinois: Cook, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, LaSalle and Will counties.
Full transcript of the video
can I keep my credit cards and file for bankruptcy generally no all of your debt must be listed in the bankruptcy petition even if you have a zero balance on a card the creditor subscribes to a service that notifies them of bankruptcies they’re gonna find out about the fact that you filed and they’re likely going to terminate your privileges every once in a while someone will be able to keep a particular creditor maybe a credit union but don’t count on it it’s very rare plan on losing all of your credit cards when you go through the bankruptcy process you will be able to maintain and keep your debit card however
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About the author. David M. Siegel has represented consumer bankruptcy clients in the Northern District of Illinois since 1991 and is the author of several books on consumer bankruptcy. The firm has offices at 790 Chaddick Drive, Wheeling, IL 60090 and 10540 S. Western Ave, Suite 202, Chicago, IL 60643, and handles cases by phone for clients throughout the Chicago area.
This article is general information about Illinois and federal bankruptcy law. It is not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case turns on its own facts — speak with an attorney about yours.