Federal law sets no lifetime limit on how many times you can declare bankruptcy. You can file a second, third, or later case, but between any two filings that end in discharge you have to wait a set period, ranging from two to eight years depending on which chapters are involved.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 727 – Discharge Repeat filers also lose some of the automatic protection from creditors that first-time filers get, and the credit damage compounds with each case.
Chapter 7 After a Previous Chapter 7: Eight Years
Chapter 7 wipes out most unsecured debt like credit cards and medical bills, which is why it is the most common form of consumer bankruptcy. If you received a Chapter 7 discharge and want another one, you must wait eight years from the filing date of the earlier case, not from the date the discharge was entered or the case closed.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 727 – Discharge
Filing before eight years have passed does not get the case tossed out automatically. The court can accept the petition and the automatic stay takes effect, but the court will deny the discharge at the end. You go through the process without eliminating any debt.
Chapter 13 After a Previous Chapter 13: Two Years
Chapter 13 works differently. Instead of liquidating, you repay some or all of your debts through a court-approved plan lasting three to five years.2United States Courts. Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Basics If you completed a Chapter 13 and received a discharge, you only have to wait two years from the earlier filing date before filing another Chapter 13.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 US Code 1328 – Discharge
Because plans themselves last three to five years, the two-year clock has almost always run out before your first plan finishes. In practice, you can file a second Chapter 13 right after completing the first if new trouble hits.
Switching Between Chapter 7 and Chapter 13
The rules change when you mix chapters, and they are not symmetric.
Chapter 13 After Chapter 7
You have to wait four years from the Chapter 7 filing date before you can receive a Chapter 13 discharge.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 US Code 1328 – Discharge This combination is common enough to have a nickname: “Chapter 20” (7 + 13). It works because Chapter 7 clears unsecured debt first, freeing up income for a Chapter 13 plan focused on secured debts like mortgage arrears or on nondischargeable tax obligations.
Filing the Chapter 13 before the four years are up is still allowed, and the automatic stay still applies. You just won’t get a discharge at the end of the plan.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 US Code 1328 – Discharge For someone trying to stop a foreclosure and cure arrears over time, that can still be worth doing.
Chapter 7 After Chapter 13
Going the other direction is the longest default wait: six years from the Chapter 13 filing date. Two exceptions can eliminate that wait. The six-year bar does not apply if you paid 100 percent of the allowed unsecured claims under your Chapter 13 plan. It also does not apply if you paid at least 70 percent of those claims and the court finds the plan was proposed in good faith and represented your best effort.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 727 – Discharge
The Automatic Stay Shrinks With Each Filing
The waiting periods control when you can get a discharge. A different set of rules controls how much protection you get from creditors while a repeat case is pending, and this is where many filers get caught off guard.
The automatic stay is the order that halts lawsuits, garnishments, foreclosures, and collection calls the moment you file. For a first-time filer, it lasts the whole case. For repeat filers, it does not.
- If you file within one year after a previous case was dismissed, the automatic stay expires 30 days into the new case unless you get the court to extend it. You have to file a motion and finish the hearing inside that 30-day window, and the court will presume the case was filed in bad faith. Overcoming that presumption requires clear and convincing evidence.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 362 – Automatic Stay
- If you file after two or more cases were dismissed in the previous year, no automatic stay takes effect at all. Foreclosures, repossessions, and garnishments can continue as if you never filed. You can ask the court to impose a stay, but again you have to overcome the bad-faith presumption with clear and convincing evidence, and the stay only starts on the date the court grants your motion.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 362 – Automatic Stay
When deciding whether the new case is in bad faith, the court weighs dismissals caused by failing to file required documents, failing to provide adequate protection to a secured creditor, or failing to follow through on a confirmed plan.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 362 – Automatic Stay Whether your financial situation has actually changed since the last dismissal matters too. If nothing has changed, the presumption is very hard to beat.
The 180-Day Bar After Certain Dismissals
A dismissed case is not the same as a completed one, and a separate 180-day filing bar can apply. You cannot file any new bankruptcy petition for 180 days if the court dismissed your previous case because you willfully disobeyed court orders or failed to appear at required hearings.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 109 – Who May Be a Debtor
The same 180-day bar applies if you voluntarily dismissed the earlier case after a creditor had already filed a motion for relief from the automatic stay.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 109 – Who May Be a Debtor The rule targets a specific abuse: filing bankruptcy to halt a foreclosure, dismissing when the creditor pushes back, then refiling to restart the stay.
The 180-day bar and the automatic-stay limits stack. A debtor whose case was dismissed can face both the delay before refiling and a reduced or nonexistent stay once they do.
Requirements That Reset With Every Filing
Nothing from a prior case carries over. Each filing is treated fresh.
You have to complete a credit counseling briefing from an approved nonprofit agency within 180 days before you file, every single time.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 109 – Who May Be a Debtor A certificate from an earlier case is not good enough. After filing, you also have to complete a separate debtor education course before the court will enter the discharge.7United States Courts. Credit Counseling and Debtor Education Courses Both courses generally run $10 to $50 each.
If you are filing Chapter 7, you have to pass the means test again. The test compares your current monthly income against your state’s median. Earning above the median triggers a formula based on your allowable expenses to determine whether you could instead fund a Chapter 13 plan.8United States Courts. Chapter 7 – Bankruptcy Basics Passing before does not guarantee passing again.
The filing fees also apply in full to every case: $338 for Chapter 7 and $313 for Chapter 13. Courts can allow installments, but the fee itself does not get reduced for repeat filers.
What Multiple Filings Do to Your Credit
Each bankruptcy shows up as its own entry on your credit report. A Chapter 7 stays for up to 10 years from the filing date. A Chapter 13 stays for up to seven. File a Chapter 7 and then a Chapter 13 several years later and both entries sit on your report during the overlap.
Lenders see each filing separately. A single bankruptcy is common enough that many lenders have programs for borrowers rebuilding from one. Multiple bankruptcies are a harder sell. Mortgage underwriting guidelines at most major lenders require longer waits after a second filing than a first, and some portfolio lenders will not consider applicants with more than one filing at all. The legal right to file again is real, but each additional case makes the climb back steeper.