If you are an illegal immigrant in Washington State and you have serious financial problems, you should speak to a debt relief lawyer to learn about all of the options available to you. Illegal immigrants in the United States may be able to file bankruptcy in order to get relief from their debts as the United states bankruptcy code does not mention that debtors have to be citizens of the United States.
When choosing which state exemptions may be used, the debtor will need to show where they were living two years prior to the filing date, as that is the state exemption which will be applied. This place may be different than your domicile. A domicile is the place where you are present and have an intent to remain in that state or location. If you are an illegal immigrant who does not have a social security number, a Individual Tax Payer Identification Number (ITIN) may be used instead. When speaking to your bankruptcy attorney and providing information, you want to be as truthful as possible. This because any fraudulent activity may result in not being able to discharge your debt. Therefore, if you use a fake social security number, don’t bother trying to use it in association with your bankruptcy filing.
Debtors who file bankruptcy, are required to go to court one time for their 341 meeting of creditors. At this meeting, debtors are required to provide proof of identification and ITIN. This may be done by showing a drivers license, passport, ITIN card or number printed on a paystub, taxes, or W2 form. Most people who are citizens of the United States usually bring with them their social security card and drivers license. Therefore the process will not be much different for citizens of the United States and non-citizens. Furthermore while creditors or anybody else for that matter, may show up at your meeting of creditors, it’s typical that no creditors will show up in your case and you will get a discharge in about 90 days after the filing of a chapter 7 bankruptcy case.
If you have additional questions about whether an illegal immigrant can file bankruptcy please call Symmes Law Group to set up a free consultation by calling 206-682-7975
