Would bankruptcy be a problem?

We are at the point of making a final decision on the date we want to move over to the UK. We have not filed for bankruptcy, I do not feel it is neccessary, but DH thinks this would be th eonly way we could go back to the UK money wise. Would this harm us if we did this for me to get my visa? We have been married for 9+ years, he has his green card for the US, we have two kids both born here. I know the kids would be fine as they are "dual".

No.  It should not harm you.  Your US credit does not transfer or follow you to the UK.  You would be applying for a visa which will entitle you to enter the UK as a permanent resident, due the length of your marriage.  After it's granted, you're free to come to the UK and start claiming benefits if you had to.  Of course, your husband could claim them as well, and you could claim them on behalf of your children, as they are UK nationals. 

It's also a good idea to declare bancruptcy rather than just leave your debts (not implying that you would...just stating it for the general case).  You probably don't have any plans to return to the US, but you never know!  It's not an ideal situation, but it'd be better to return having declared bancruptcy and have a clean slate than return to tons of unpaid bills/interest charges/collection fees!

I agree, Lola.  I declared bankrupcy myself before I left, even though I have no intention of ever returning to the States to live - divorce, redundancy, no insurance is what did me in.

guys, i'm a bit confused. i was told that your credit (bad or good) does follow you to the uk as you use the same credit agencies (trw, experian etc) that we do...is this NOT so? not that i have any intentions of leaving my debts here but just wanted to be clear. please advise.

The companies do have the same names but I've been told that the credit does NOT follow you. Anyone know otherwise?

I was told by my bank in the UK, that my US credit record made no impact here. 

Your UK credit will not affected by your US credit.  Totally clean slate here.  The credit-reporting agencies have the same names (though there may be some different ones I don't know about), but they do not communicate with each other.

It's frustrating if you've built up good credit in the US, but a godsend if you haven't!

It's frustrating if you've built up good credit in the US, but a godsend if you haven't!

is it then difficult to establish/build credit in the uk? i've heard that its hard to get a bank account but what about credit cards and that sort of thing?

It's not difficult, but it's a slow process.  I started out by getting a mail-order account and a store card.  Once I had those established, I went for a credit card.  Some banks will give you a credit card when you open an account -- but that varies from bank to bank.

Also, from what I understand, credit history is closely linked to address history here, so obviously, since my address is the same as my husband's, I can kind of "feed" off of his good credit.  My mail-order account was opened about a month after I got here and they gave me a very generous limit based on my husband's credit history (though his name is not at all associated with the account).

I work for a financial services company and everyone is correct...your US credit history does not follow you here.  Even though Experian and Equifax are the biggest names in the credit reporting field in both countries, they do not share country information.

Not sure how much debt you are in but if you are hesitant to claim bankruptcy in the US....just remember that once you are making money over here in the UK....for every £1 that you make at the moment it turns into $1.88....almost two for one...so its easier to pay off your US debt. I only say this because I am taking advantage of the exchange rate to not only save to move back to the US but to pay off those terrible credit cards!   

Good luck in your move over! 

Julie

I got a Kay's catalogue and ordered stuff interest free from there, then paid it off early.  Now, I have several bills in my name - power, phone - and my own bank account in addition to our joint account. 

My credit from the US did not follow me here and nowhere was I asked about it. 

One thing, however.  If you owe back taxes, student loans, or child support arrears, these will NOT be cancelled out by personal bankrupcy.  You still must make payments on these - although you can file for forebearance on student loans till you get jobs in the UK. 

I don't know how bankrupcies work if a person has assets.  I had none when I had to file.  I was even driving one of my ex-boyfriend's cars (although I paid to be on his insurance).  So mine was pretty straightforward and inexpensive.  Mine was prepared by a mediator for $150 including court fees. 

Student loans can be cancelled out by bankruptcy but only if they have been in repayment for 7 years before filing, at least that's what my backruptcy attorney told me. While the bankruptcy is in progress, repayment is suspended until the bankruptcy is finished. If you are doing a Chapter 13 (which those with assets or income of a certain level will probably be pushed into instead of a Chapter 7), then you are not required to make payments during the length of the plan (3 to 5 years) but interest still accrues. I've done both (don't ask), so if anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask me.

Student loans can be cancelled out by bankruptcy but only if they have been in repayment for 7 years before filing, at least that's what my backruptcy attorney told me. While the bankruptcy is in progress, repayment is suspended until the bankruptcy is finished. If you are doing a Chapter 13 (which those with assets or income of a certain level will probably be pushed into instead of a Chapter 7), then you are not required to make payments during the length of the plan (3 to 5 years) but interest still accrues. I've done both (don't ask), so if anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask me.

Thanks, tanis!  Of course, every situation is different and mine was a pretty basic case so my attorney filed Chapter 7.  But I knew restrictions applied to those with back taxes, student loans, etc.; but didn't know what those were.   The sad thing is, days after my bankrupcy had gone through, I was receiving offers for credit cards targeted at people who'd had a bankrupcy! 

I'm thinking seriously of declaring bankruptcy in the US and have been searching for an attorney to do it for me. One related question: anyone know if, when declaring bankruptcy from abroad, there's a way out of the stipulation that you must be available to meet with creditors? Hell, if I had enough cash to flit back and forth for meetings I wouldn't be worried about paying off credit cards!

Also, thankfully I can also verify that credit history doesn't follow you here. And I've actually had an OK time getting credit established. After getting married and finding a job I got a bank account on the first try, and I've applied for a couple of credit cards and was approved for two out of three....