Just because you are eligible to file a chapter 7 bankruptcy doesn’t mean you are entitled to a discharge of debt. The following is a list of the major parts of Bankruptcy Code Section 727(a) which describes the requirements and limits on receiving a discharge.
1. You must be an individual
2. You can’t with an intent to hinder, delay or defraud a creditor or officer of the bankruptcy estate transfer, remove, destroy, mutilate or conceal, or allow someone else to do so any property that you own within one year before the bankruptcy filing date or after the date of filing.
3. You must keep good records and protect your records
4. You can’t knowingly and fraudulently make a false sworn statement, make a false claim, accept money or a promise to act or fail to act, or withhold information or documents.
5. You have to be able to explain any loss of assets or deficiency of assets to meet your liabilities
6. You can’t refuse to obey an order of the court, refuse to answer questions that may incriminate yourself if you have been granted immunity on the issue
7. You can’t have received a discharge in another chapter 7 case filed within the last 8 years
8. You can’t have received a discharge in a chapter 13 that was filed in the last 6 years unless 100 percent of the allowed unsecured claims were paid in the case or 70 percent of them were paid but the plan was proposed in good faith and was based on your best effort
9. You must take a financial management course after the filing of the case
