Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Filings (YoY % Change)
Year-over-year change in 12-month Chapter 13 bankruptcy filings
What is the current Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Filings (YoY % Change) reading?
Over the 12 months through Q2 2026, Chapter 13 bankruptcy filings in U.S. courts were 7.6% higher than in the same 12 months a year earlier, by our calculation from Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts counts. The figure counts cases, business and nonbusiness, not people. Source: U.S. Courts, Table F-2.
In the 12 months through Q2 2026, bankruptcy courts logged 7.6% more Chapter 13 cases than a year earlier.
The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts counts Chapter 13 cases filed in the federal bankruptcy courts over a rolling 12 months, business and nonbusiness together. We compare each 12-month total with the one ending on the same date a year earlier. For the 12 months through Q2 2026, the count was 7.6% higher than in the same 12 months a year earlier. It is the lowest year-over-year change since Q1 2022.
A change above zero means more Chapter 13 cases were filed than in the same 12 months a year earlier. When the change gets smaller but stays above zero, the count is still growing, only more slowly; it does not mean filings fell.
Chapter 13 lets an individual with regular income repay debts under a court-supervised plan, usually over three to five years. A filing starts a case; it is not a confirmed or completed plan, and the court can dismiss the case or convert it to Chapter 7.
Chapter 13 has debt limits, and they changed during this series. A combined $2,750,000 limit ended on June 21, 2024, so each reading from the 12 months through Q2 2024 to the 12 months through Q1 2026 compares filings made under different rules. Those readings stay on the chart, but we do not compare newer readings with them. The limits were adjusted again on April 1, 2025. No source gives the size of either effect.
Each quarter brings a new rolling-year (12-month) total, so two readings in a row share nine of their 12 months. Chapter 7 filings, all bankruptcy filings and the chapter ratio use the same court tables. None of them says why people filed or which chapter they chose and why.
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Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Filings (YoY % Change) over time: what has changed?
Counties with the highest default and legal scores
These are default and legal scores from our County Distress Index, not county readings of Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Filings (YoY % Change).
Explore all 3,144 counties →| Period | Value | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 7.6% | — |
| Q1 2026 | 6.3% | — |
| Q4 2025 | 5.4% | — |
| Q3 2025 | 3.6% | — |
| Q2 2025 | 4.1% | — |
| Q1 2025 | 6.2% | — |
| Q4 2024 | 7.2% | — |
| Q3 2024 | 10% | — |
| Q2 2024 | 11% | — |
| Q1 2024 | 12.7% | -19.8 pp |
| Q4 2023 | 17.1% | -13.8 pp |
| Q3 2023 | 19.5% | -7.1 pp |
Frequently Asked Questions
How much have Chapter 13 filings changed?
For the 12 months through Q2 2026, Chapter 13 filings were 7.6% higher than a year earlier. We compute the change from the Courts' Table F-2 counts; it covers a full 12 months, not a single quarter.
What is Chapter 13 bankruptcy?
Chapter 13 lets an individual with regular income propose a plan to repay debts over time, usually three to five years, under court supervision. A filing starts a case. It does not mean a plan was confirmed or completed, and the court can dismiss the case or convert it to Chapter 7.
Does the Chapter 13 figure count people?
No. It counts court cases. A married couple can file one joint petition, and business cases are included. The figure is also national: district changes differ, and Table F-2 reports districts separately.
Where does this data come from?
The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts publishes Table F-2 each quarter with 12-month filing counts by chapter and district. It prints the Chapter 13 counts but not their percent change; American Default computes that from two tables. There is no fixed release calendar.
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